The 43rd edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) opened on 22 January with the screening of Spike Jonze’s Academy Award nominated and critically acclaimed Her and an eight-minute video on its artistic – and political – mission this year. During the next ten days it will provide a great selection of new films from around the world. There will not be only premieres but 2013 highlights as well.
Just like previous editions, this year, fifteen first or second feature films will compete for one of the three Hivos Tiger Awards Competition (and prize money of €15.000). But, besides the prize, these fifteen filmmakers will gain international recognition and attention as well. As the official presentation of this particular section states, the “Hivos Tigers Awards are that one necessary push into the right direction for many up-and-coming filmmakers”.
Here is the the Hivos Tiger Awards Competition lineup: Afscheid van de mann by Dick Tuinder, Anatomy of a Paper Clip by Ikeda Akira, Arwad by Samer Najari and Dominique Chila, Casa Grande by Fellipe Barbosa, Concrete Clouds by Lee Chatametikool, Han Gong-Ju by Lee Su-Jin, Happily Ever After by Tatjana Božić, The Hope Factory by Natalia Meschaninova, Mein blindes Herz by Peter Brunner, Riocorrente by Paulo Sacramento, Something Must Break by Ester Martin Bergsmark, Stella Cadente by Luis Miñarro, Vergiss mein Ich by Jan Schomburg, Viktoria by Maya Vitkova and War Story by Mark Jackson.
The Hivos Tiger Awards Competition Jury 2014 is made up of the Palestinian filmmaker Elia Suleiman; the Dutch filmmaker Nanouk Leopold (whose first film Iles flottantes premiered in Tiger Awards competition in 2001); the Indonesian filmmaker, artist and former Tiger Award nominee Edwin; Violeta Bava, the BAFICI programmer and film producer from Argentina and the Japanese actress and producer Kiki Sugino.
The festival will run from 22 January to 2 February. For other sections and a detailed overview of the 2014 IFFR, please visit the official webpage of the festival.
You can watch here the aforementioned opening video and stay tuned for more details from Rotterdam!
Source and photo: the official IFFR webpage.