The retrospective will include 16 first and second films by auteurs like Chloé Zhao, Kelly Reichardt, Hong Sangsoo, Cristi Puiu, Apichatpong Weerasethakul and Spain’s Isaki Lacuesta and Mercedes Álvarez.
25/08/2021 – The 66th edition of the Valladolid International Film Festival, in collaboration with Caimán Cuadernos de Cine, will feature the cycle “Dissidences: New Filmmakers, New Gazes”, including a selection of 16 feature films by renowned directors that highlight the search for new languages and narrative forms in fiction and documentary cinema from the last two decades. The “dissident” proposals by these film artists were conceived outside the conventional models of cinematic narrative and production and achieved the recognition of both critics and audiences.
The programme focuses on sixteen filmmakers from thirteen countries and four different continents, ten men and six women: Maren Ade (Germany), Wang Bing and Chloé Zhao (China), Sergei Loznitsa (Belarus), Lucrecia Martel and Lisandro Alonso (Argentina), Raya Martin (Philippines), Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese (Lesotho), László Nemes (Hungary), Cristi Puiu (Romania), Kelly Reichardt (United States), Hong Sangsoo (South Korea), Céline Sciamma (France) and Apichatpong Weerasethakul (Thailand), in addition to the Spanish directors Isaki Lacuesta and Mercedes Álvarez.
“Dissidences: New Filmmakers, New Gazes”, brings together the first works by this line-up of filmmakers emerged in the 21st century whose connecting link is an outside-the-box approach to film which seeks new paths in contrast with previous cinematic work or mainstream productions. They are true creators who have contributed a fresh glance, film artists who are capable of surprising viewers with their original and heterodoxical approaches and a way of making films that comes from their heart and guts rather than from their reason.
First films
The selected titles are debut films like ‘Son of Saul’ (2015) by Laszlo Nemes, which won the Oscar for Best Foreign Film, the Jury and FIPRESCI awards at Cannes or the BAFTA award for Best Foreign Film; or ‘Songs My Brothers Taught Me’ (2015), by Chloé Zhao, whose second feature, ‘The Rider’, would later bag the Silver Spike. Zhao would go on to harvest more than 140 awards with ‘Nomadland’, including two Oscars for Best Film and Direction, two BAFTA awards, the Golden Globe for Best Director, the Audience Award in Toronto and the Golden Lion in Venice.
Also directorial debuts are two documentaries by Spanish directors: ‘Cravan vs Cravan’ (2002), by Isaki Lacuesta, who would go on to direct such recognized titles as ‘The Double Steps’ or ‘Between Two Waters’; and ‘The Sky Turns’ (2004), by Mercedes Álvarez, presented in the Time of History section of SEMINCI, and awarded in Rotterdam and Buenos Aires with the FIPRESCI and the Audience Award, among other distinctions.
Second fiction ad documentary features
Several second feature films have likewise been selected to participate in this retrospective: ‘The Death of Mr. Lazarescu’ (2005), by Cristi Puiu, the winner of the Un certain regard section at Cannes, a festival which also programmed the director’s film ‘Sieranevada’ in its official section; ‘Among us’ (2010), by Maren Ade, Silver Bear in Berlin and Best Director and FIPRESCI awards in Buenos Aires (Ade’s third and last film to date , ‘Toni Erdman’, won the FIPRESCI award in Cannes, the Best Director award at the Toronto Film Festival and the Special Jury Prize at Sundance, among other accolades); and ‘This is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection’ (2019), by Jeremiah Mosese, also awarded at Sundance.
The retrospective also includes ‘Woman is the Future of Man’ (2004), by Hong Sangsoo, presented in Cannes’ Official Section (‘The Woman Who Ran’, ‘Hahaha’, ‘Right Now, Wrong Then’) ; ‘Syndromes and a Century’ (2006), by Apichatpong Weerasethakul, programmed in Venice (‘Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall Past Lives, ‘Tropical Malady’); “The Headless Woman (The Blonde Woman)” 2008, by Lucrecia Martel, selected at the Cannes Film Festival (“The Swamp”, “The Holy Girl”); ‘Independencia’ (2009), by Raya Martin, awarded in Rotterdam (‘Death of Nintendo’, ‘La última película’); ‘Meek’s Cutoff’ (2010), by Kelly Reichardt, awarded in Venice (‘First Cow’, ‘Wendy and Lucy’); ‘Jauja’ (2014), by Lisandro Alonso, FIPRESCI Award in Un certain regard at Cannes (‘Freedom’, ‘Los muertos’); and ‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’ (2019), by Céline Sciamma, for which she won the Best Screenplay award at Cannes (‘Girlhood’, ‘Tomboy’).
The ‘Dissidences’ lineup of titles will be complete with the documentaries’ Mrs. Fang ‘(2018), by Wang Bing, Best Film at the Locarno Film Festival (‘ San Zimei ‘,’ Ku Quian ‘), and’ State Funeral ‘(2019), by Sergei Loznitsa (‘ Donbass’, ‘Pismo’) .
LIST OF TITLES
• ‘Cravan vs Cravan’, Isaki Lacuesta (2002)
• ‘El cielo gira’, Mercedes Álvarez (2004)
• ‘La mujer es el futuro del hombre’, Hong Sangsoo (2004)
• ‘La muerte del señor Lazarescu’, Cristi Puiu (2005)
• ‘Syndromes and a Century’, Apichatpong Weerasethakul (2006)
• ‘La mujer sin cabeza (La mujer rubia)’, Lucrecia Martel (2008)
• ‘Independencia’, Raya Martin (2009)
• ‘Entre nosotros’, Maren Ade (2010)
• ‘Meek’s Cutoff’, Kelly Reichardt (2010)
• ‘Jauja’, Lisandro Alonso (2014)
• ‘El hijo de Saúl’, Laszlo Nemes (2015)
• ‘Songs My Brother Taught Me’, Chloe Zhao (2015)
• ‘Mrs. Fang’, Wang Bing (2018)
• ‘State Funeral’, Sergei Loznitsa (2019)
• ‘Retrato de una mujer en llamas’, Céline Sciamma (2019)
• ‘This is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection’, Jeremiah Mosese (2019)
