8th River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival 5-11 December 2008 Cinema Odeon - Piazza Strozzi, 1 Florence - Italy Screening Schedule
FEATURE FILMS SHORT FILMS DOCUMENTARIES RAJ KAPOOR RETROSPECTIVE SPECIAL SCREENINGS
FRIDAY 5 DECEMBER
7.00 pm karma finger food & drinks courtesy of the restaurant India of Fiesole
8.00 pm Apsara Dance Group
8.30 pm Ocean of Pearls, Sarab S Neelam, 97’, col., english - italian subt., digibeta, Usa, 2008 A young and promising Sikh doctor from Toronto has to choose between a prestigious job in Detroit and obeying the values of the community in which he grew up. After the film, Q&A with director Sarab S Neelam
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]
SATURDAY 6 DECEMBER
3.00 pm Indian Shorts 1 Three Of Us, Umesh Kulkarni, 14’, col., no dialogues, 35mm., India, 2007 The Fiction, Spandan Banerjee, 45’, col. and b/w, english, hindi and bengali - italian and english subt., dv, India, 2008 Midnight Lost and Found, Atul Sabharwal, 19’, col., hindi - italian and english subt., betacam, India, 2007 Stories of everyday life and peculiar encounters: an Indian family faced everyday with their son’s disability, two men who share a trip by car, and a prostitute who hangs around the shop of a chemist who loves comic strips.
4.30 pm Animation Short Films , 70’, col., english, dvd, India, 2007-2008 The best animation short films from the last edition of Anifest India 2008, organised by The Animation Society of India.
6.00 pm Super 30, Christopher Mitchell, 59’, col., hindi and english - english subt., digibeta, Uk, 2008 In the poor State of Bihar, thousands of students, led by a teacher of mathematics, train to be admitted to the Indian Institute of Technology. Only the top thirty will be admitted to the prestigious university. After the film, Q&A with director Christopher Mitchell
8.30 pm Amal, Richie Mehta,104’, col., hindi and english - italian and english subt., 35mm., India-Canada, 2007 A tender metropolitan tale running along New Delhi’s most surprising rickshaw. It is driven by Amal, a man whose inner richness is worth more than any fortune. After the film, Q&A with director Richie Mehta
11.00 pm Khuda Kay Liye (In the name of God), Shoaib Mansoor, 126’, col., urdu - italian and english subt., dv, Pakistan, 2007 Pakistan, London and the United States are the ground on which two brothers have to face Islamic extremism and the mistrust of the Western world.
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]
SUNDAY 7 DECEMBER
3.00 pm Awara, Raj Kapoor, 168’, b/w, hindi - italian and english subt.,, 35mm., India, 1951 In the Chaplin-inspired film, Raju, who has become a thief, is charged with murder, and meets his father in a courtroom after many years.
6.30 pm Dabbawala - The Lunchbox Miracle, Antje Christ, 51’, col., english, digibeta, India-Germany, 2008 There is a unique job in Mumbai, the Dabbawala: every day, 5000 men deliver a metal lunch box (dabba) to over 200,00 workers. And for over one hundred years this organisation has never slipped once.
7.30 pm Salt in the Scars, Fiorella Castanotto, 17’, col., english, dv, Switzerland, 2008 In the State of Tamil Nadu, picking salt is the main mean of support for the local population, as well as the cause of a state of exploitation that has been going on for decades. After the film, Q&A with director Fiorella Castanotto
8.30 pm Quick Gun Murugan, Shashank Ghosh, 97’, col., tamil and english - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 2008 An exhilarating curry-style spaghetti western with a Matrix and Austin Powers touch, where a soft-hearted cowboy takes up the cause of veggie style against the invasion of Rice-Plate-Reddy. After the film, Q&A with director Shashank Gosh
11.00 pm Ocean of Pearls, Sarab S Neelam, 97’, col., english - italian and english subt., digibeta, Usa, 2008 A young and promising Sikh doctor from Toronto has to choose between a prestigious job in Detroit and obeying the values of the community in which he grew up.
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]
MONDAY 8 DECEMBER
12.00 am Tea talk with Paolo Scarnecchia The body of the actor and the voice of the soul: the role of music in Raj Kapoor’s films
3.00 pm Shree 420, Raj Kapoor, 168’, b/w, hindi - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 1955 Raj arrives in Mumbai in search of a better future and has to face the temptations of the metropolis.
6.30 pm The Journalist and the Jihadi - The Murder of Daniel Pearl, Ramesh Sharma and Ahmed A. Jamal, 78’, col. and b/w, english, dv, India-Uk, 2007 The kidnapping of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, through interviews with his family, workmates and wife Mariane, and with the help of film footage. After the film, Q&A with director Ramesh Sharma
9.00 pm Bioscope, KM Madhusudhanan, 94’, col., malayalam - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 2008 Kerala, the Twenties. Diwakaran is fascinated by the pictures shown by a mysterious machine and decides to buy it from a Frenchman who is about to leave India. However, the machine that feeds the charm of illusion will be mistrusted by people.
11.00 pm Quick Gun Murugan, Shashank Ghosh, 97’, col., tamil and english - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 2008 An exhilarating curry-style spaghetti western with a with a Matrix and Austin Powers touch, where a soft-hearted cowboy takes up the cause of veggie style against the invasion of Rice-Plate-Reddy.
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]
TUESDAY 9 DECEMBER
4.00 pm Amal, Richie Mehta,104’, col., hindi and english - italian and english subt., 35mm., India-Canada, 2007 A tender metropolitan tale running along New Delhi’s most surprising rickshaw. It is driven by Amal, a man whose inner richness is worth more than any fortune.
6.00 pm Kushti - Wrestling into Power, Vera Perrone and Georg Schmitt, 56’, col., hindi - english subt., dv, Germany, 2007 The life of Manu, an eighteen year old boy of the Yadaw caste who dreams of becoming a champion of Kushti, the Indian traditional wrestling which means embracing a unique lifestyle.
7.00 pm Il danzatore sacro, Diego D’Innocenzo and Marco Leopardi, 30’, col., oriya - italian subt., dv, Italy-India, 2008 In a village in Orissa, Biswajit is trained in the sacred dance performed by children who, wearing female clothes and ornaments, play the Devedasis, Krishna’s wives. But, accordingly to the tradition, Hari will have to leave the temple at the age of fourteen. After the film, Q&A with director Diego D’Innocenzo
8.30 pm Mumbai Meri Jaan, Nishikant Kamat, 140’, col., hindi - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 2008 On July 11, 2006 the local train service, known as Mumbai’s lifeline, was struck by a series of bomb blasts. Five people have to face the atmosphere of fear that threatens civil and religious cohabitation in the city, upset by the terrorist attacks. After the film, Q&A with director Nishikant Kamat
11.30 pm Bioscope, KM Madhusudhanan, 94’, col., malayalam - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 2008 Kerala, the Twenties. Diwakaran is fascinated by the pictures shown by a mysterious machine and decides to buy it from a Frenchman who is about to leave India. However, the machine that feeds the charm of illusion will be mistrusted by people.
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]
WEDNESDAY 10 DECEMBER
5.00 pm Indian Shorts 2 Aakhiri Munadi (The Last Announcement), Ahsan Bakhsh, 15’, col., hindi - italian and english subt., dv, India, 2008 Beast, Geeta Malik, 16’, col., english - italian subt., dv, Usa, 2007 Funérailles, Subarna Thapa, 20’, col. e b/n, nepali - italian and english subt., dv, France-Nepal, 2007 Three breaking point stories: a town council messenger who discovers a sad truth on his last announcement, an ex rebellious girl struggling with the world of work, and an unexpected death disrupting the social balances of a small village.
6.00 pm The Legend of Shiva and Parvati, Krishna Saraswati, 85’, col., german and english, digibeta, Germany, 2008 A German hippy meets an Indian guru and falls in love with him. After many years, their thirty-year-old son traces their legendary love story, comparing it to the one between the Indian gods Shiva and Parvati.
8.30 pm Khuda Kay Liye (In the name of God), Shoaib Mansoor, 126’, col., urdu - italian and english subt., dv, Pakistan, 2007 Pakistan, London and the United States are the ground on which two brothers have to face Islamic extremism and the mistrust of the Western world.
11.00 pm Mumbai Meri Jaan, Nishikant Kamat, 140’, col., hindi - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 2008 On July 11, 2006 the local train service, known as Mumbai’s lifeline, was struck by a series of bomb blasts. Five people have to face the atmosphere of fear that threatens civil and religious cohabitation in the city, upset by the terrorist attacks.
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]
THURSDAY 11 DECEMBER
5.00 pm Ayodhya Gatha (Tales from Ayodhya), Vani Subramanian, 62’, col., english, dv, India, 2007 At Ayodhya, theatre of the fights between Hindus and Muslims, people’s lives are interspersed with fear and hatred. The tales of the city dwellers show a way out from a secular climate of revenge and oppression.
6.30 pm FTII diploma short films, 60’, col, hindi - italian and english subt., dvd, India, 2007-2008 The three best diploma films of the last years, shot by the students of the Film and Tv Institute of India.
8.00 pm Award ceremony of the River to River DigiChannel Audience Award Screening of the winners of the first edition of Advantage India competition for short films.
8.30 pm Bobby, Raj Kapoor, 168’, col., hindi - italian and english subt., 35mm., India, 1973 Seventies atmospheres and unforgettable songs are the background to the controversial love story between Raj, a son of a wealthy Indian family, and Bobby, the rebellious niece of his governess. A sparkling love story with peaks of romance and genuine entertainment.
River to River. Florence Indian Film Festival - Piazza Santo Spirito 1 - 50125 Firenze - Italia Tel. +39 055 286929, +39 335 5743364 - Fax +39 055 284983 - Email [email protected]