DOKUFEST ANNOUNCES OPENING AND CLOSING NIGHT FILMS
DOKUFEST ANNOUNCES OPENING AND CLOSING NIGHT FILMS
Prizren, 19th of July 2009
YOUSSOU N’DOUR: I BRING WHAT I LOVE to open DokuFest
WALTZ WITH BASHIR to close the it.
DOKUFEST announces the opening and closing night films for DOKUFEST 2009.
The Festival will open on Monday, August 3rd with YOUSSOU N’DOUR: I BRING WHAT I LOVE, directed by Elisabethe Chai Vasarhelyi, and will close on Sunday, August 9th, with WALTZ WITH BASHIR, directed by Ari Folman.
YOUSSOU N’DOUR: I BRING WHAT I LOVE takes you behind the scenes and into the world of Africa’s most famous musician: Youssou N’Dour. This never-before-told story follows N’Dour at a turning point in his life and career, as he releases his most personal and controversial album called EGYPT, an ambitious fusion of Senegalese idioms and Egyptian arrangements that sings the praises of Islam. But the singer’s hope for promoting a more tolerant face of Islam erupts in scandal and outrage in his native country that rejects the album and denounces it as blasphemous. Part explosive documentary, part stirring drama, I BRING WHAT I LOVE is an unforgettable musical journey with an artist whose courage and conviction shook the music industry and ultimately awakened the world.
“A beautiful film that shows the tolerant side of Islam,” said Veton Nurkollari, DokuFest Artistic Director. “A must see…”
This film has won Special Jury Prize at Middle East International Film Festival and Audience Award at São Paulo International Film Festival.
Director’s bio: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi grew up between New York City and Rio de Janiero. She graduated from Princeton University in 2000 with B.A. in Comparative Literature. Her documentary debut, A Normal Life, co-directed with Hugo Berkeley, won the Best Documentary Award at the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival. In 2007, she began to work on Youssou N’Dour: I Bring What I Love, marking it as her first feature length documentary film.
The Festival will close with WALTZ WITH BASHIR, directed by Ari Folman.
Described as Israel’s very own Apocalypse Now by Guardian, the film is an animated documentary that looks into the 1982 Lebanon war and the notorious Sabra and Shatila massacre committed by Christian Phalangists in Palestinian refuge camps of Beirut. Director Folman, haunted by the only memory he has of the critical night, that of a nightmarish dream where he and his fellow friends emerge from the sea and wade on to the beach at Beirut, embarks on the difficult quest to find out what really happened there and what was his role in that. One by one he visits his old friends and slowly the larger pictures of the events emerge. The result is an electrifying and hypnotic film, unique in its approach to autobiographical genre.
“A breakthrough film, Waltz with Bashir will take the viewers into an unforgettable cinematic experience,” said Veton Nurkollari, DokuFest Artistic Director.
Director’s bio: Israeli filmmaker Ari Folman graduate film, COMFORTABLY NUMB (1991) documented he’s close friends taking cover on the verge of anxiety attacks during the first Gulf war while Iraqi missiles landed all over Tel Aviv. Between 1991–1996 Ari directed documentary specials for TV, mainly in the occupied territories. In 1996 he wrote and directed SAINT CLARA, a feature film based on a novel by Czech author Pavel Kohout. Ari made his initial attempt at animation in his series THE MATERIAL THAT LOVE IS MADE OF. This successful attempt at documentary animation propelled Ari to develop the unique format of WALTZ WITH BASHIR.
