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Europe On Screen 2016 A diverse showcase of quality films

From mainstream to documentary, Europe On Screen 2016 will showcase the best of European cinema

Hans David Tampubolon (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Tue, April 26, 2016

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Europe On Screen 2016  A diverse showcase of quality films

From mainstream to documentary, Europe On Screen 2016 will showcase the best of European cinema.

The upcoming 16th annual Europe On Screen (EOS) festival is set to showcase 78 films, the work of highly acclaimed European filmmakers and producers, with its organizer promising varied and engaging viewing.

“For Europe On Screen 2016, we once again have an exciting lineup of films,” EOS Festival director Orlow Seunke said.

The lineup is expected to do away with the common stereotype that European films are boring due to a preponderance of dialogue paired with a general lack of action and or entertaining scenes, he added. The selection of films this year are not only entertaining, he said, but offered an array of interesting and unique stories.

The festival will be held from April 29 to May 26 in six cities across Indonesia — Jakarta, Bandung, Denpasar, Medan, Surabaya and Yogyakarta.

The festival opens with Italian director Roberto Ando’s film Long Live Freedom. It tells the tale of a man who fills in for his missing twin brother, the leader of the country’s biggest opposition political party, at election time.

Closing the event will be The Surprise, a film from the Netherlands that chronicles the life of a billionaire who sets up his own murder because he is bored with his lavish lifestyle, but discovers that life is worth living after he falls in love.

Festival organizers have divided the films into six categories: Xtra, Discovery, Docu, Retro/Focus, Family and Open Air.

Xtra focuses on mainstream major production features from European filmmakers, including Oscar winners and or those shown at leading film festivals. Among the store of films are British director Andrew Haigh’s 45 Years, which won awards at the 2016 Berlinale Film Festival and the 2015 European Film Awards, and Far From Men, a French film nominated for the Golden Lion award at the 2014 Venice Film Festival.

Marked by more daring stories, discovery offers a wide variety of high-quality films from up and coming European directors. Despite featuring a lesser-known cast of actors, the films are engaging, well-made and entertaining. Sweden’s A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, an absurdist and surrealistic comedy that moves between reality, nightmare and fantasy is highly recommended as is Hungary’s White God, which tells the story of a group of stray dogs that rise up against humans.

Documentary film fans will be in their element among the Docu offerings, including Ireland’s 1916: The Irish Rebellion, which details the dramatic events that took place in Dublin during Easter Week in 1916. There is an Indonesian connection in Switzerland’s Abi Means Papa, which documents the journey of a 19-year old Indonesian named Armin, adopted at an early age and raised by Swiss parents, as he seeks to find his biological parents in Indonesia.

The Retro/Focus section showcases the classical and retro culture of the European continent. The schedule includes a screening of French silent films directed by Georges Melies, with original scores composed by the students of Sjuman School of Music and performed by Trinity Youth Symphony Orchestra, featured alongside three Shakespeare-themed films to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the great playwright’s death.

Meanwhile, the variety of Family films offer film-lovers the chance to watch family-friendly European films with their children. One of the most interesting is Italy’s Italo Barocco, in which a stray dog’s arrival in an anti-stray dog village in Sicily causes an uproar.

Finally, the Open Air section offers European movies screened in an open air setting. Some of the films in this section include Big Game from Finland, featuring Hollywood actor Samuel L. Jackson, and Now You See Me, a box office hit directed by French director Louis Leterrier.

The event also offers workshops and film discussions featuring special guests from the European film scene.

“I hope that Europe On Screen 2016 continues to spread the message of intercultural understanding and builds bridges between people,” European Union Political, Press and Information head Julio Arias said.

 

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