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| Think Of England Photo: Giant Aura Ltd |
The UK will be represented in this year’s Tallinn Black Nights Official Selection Competition by Richard Hawkins’ Think Of England. Hawkins’ second film in the director’s chair after 2004’s Everything, features Ronni Ancona and sees six people sent to make propaganda porn films for soldiers. It joins 16 other features in the competition at the 29th edition of the festival which was announced today and which comprises 16 world premieres and one international premiere. Other notable inclusions include Abu Bakr Shawky’s The Stories, starring Amir El Masry and Valérie Pachner, and The Muralist, the latest film from Mongolian director Sengedorj Janchivdorj, who won the main prize last year with Silent City Driver. Also in competition is George Ovashvili (Corn Island) with The Moon Is A Father Of Mine and No Comment, from Norwegian director Petter Næss (Elling).
Festival director Tiina Lokk described this year’s competition as a reflection of the world’s anxieties and resilience, saying: “It’s difficult to pinpoint a single common thread this year, but once again, the selection holds up a mirror to our world. Everything that worries and pains us is there – wars, the environmental crisis, political arrogance, migration, women’s rights, and, above all, the fragile ties of family life.”
She noted strong submissions from Asia, Latin America, and Spain, the only country with two films in competition. She added: “With Catalan Films in Focus, we were pleased to include emerging Catalan female talent Júlia de Paz Solvas with The Good Daughter, as well as The Dashed Lines – a warm and unexpected story about divorce by Galician director Anxos Fazàns.”
The competition jury will be led by Macedonian filmmaker Teona Strugar Mitevska. It includes fashion and costume designer Debra McGuire, Mongolian producer and screenwriter Nomuunzul Turmunkh, Golden Frog-winning cinematographer Roberto Schaefer, and German producer Ingo Fliess. The Grand Prix for best film in the official selection Competition will receive a €20,000 (£17,000) grant from the City of Tallinn. The festival runs from November 7 to 23
The full Official Selection Competition line-up is below:
- 18 Holes to Paradise (Portugal, Italy, Argentina), dir. João Nuno Pinto
- Duality (Iran), dir. Abbas Nezamdoost
- Hungarian Wedding (Hungary), dir. Csaba Káel
- LifeLike (Turkey, Greece, Romania), dir. Ali Vatansever
- Mira (Morocco), dir. Nour Eddine Lakhmari
- No Comment (Norway), dir. Petter Næss
- Sisa (Philippines), dir. Jun Robles Lana
- The Dashed Lines (Spain), dir. Anxos Fazáns
- The Frog and the Water (Germany), dir. Thomas Stuber
- The Good Daughter (Spain), dir. Júlia de Paz Solvas
- The Imaginary Dog and the Lying Cat (Japan), dir. Yukihiro Morigaki
- The Moon is a Father of Mine (Luxembourg, Turkey, Georgia, Germany, Czechia, Bulgaria), dir. George Ovashvili
- The Muralist (Mongolia), dir. Sengedorj Janchivdorj
- The Stories (Austria, France, Belgium, Egypt, Sweden), dir. Abu Bakr Shawky
- Think of England (United Kingdom), dir. Richard Hawkins
- Veins (Canada), dir. Raymond St-Jean
- Versalles (Mexico), dir. Andrés Clariond
