Stories about Film from February, 2009
Cuba: Human Rights
Diaspora blogger Child of the Revolution calls “shameless” the Cuban justice minister's suggestion that all is well when it comes to human rights, while Uncommon Sense links to the trailer of a new documentary about Cuban political prisoner Oscar Biscet.
Pakistan: Karafilm Festival
Yawar Herekar at CHUP! – Changing Up Pakistan reviews Karachi's Karafilm Festival, an international film fest that showcases a range of movies from around the world.
Morocco: The Cinema Scene
The cinema scene in Morocco resembles that in Gaza, says Moroccan blogger Allal El Alaoui, who remarks: “Poor cinema in Morocco.It is targetted by everyone and eveywhere.First,and sadly speaking;majority of cinema-theatres are closed because of the mediocrity of films introduced..”
Brazil: The (r)evolution of Lusophone music
LabCult provides a torrent link of a documentary about Luso-Afro-Brazilian music and sounds: “Lusophony – The (R)Evolution“. From hiphop to rock, visiting the Portuguese fado and Angolan and Caboverdian rhythms like the kuduro and the morna, the doc compiles Lusophone music from the colony days till today.
Martinique: The last masters of the islands?
As the two-week-long-protest in Guadeloupe continues, the other French Overseas Departments of America - French Guiana and Martinique - are thinking about their own contribution to this deep thinking and massive mobilization. In the midst of this brainstorming, the French-encrypted and sometimes trouble-making channel, Canal+ is seasoning up the debate with a sizzling hot documentary about the tight relationships between certain ethnic groups and economic domination on the French island of Martinique. The Martinican blogosphere, naturally, has been buzzing...
Chile: Film Festival at Catholic University in Santiago
Seventeen different Chilean films are being shown as part of the 33rd Catholic University Film Festival in Santiago beginning on February 14 through March 1 writes Notas Al Margen [es].
East Asia: Various readings on “Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea”
Japanese anime filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki's latest animated film, Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea, has become a widely discussed movie in the 2009 new year. Here is the movie trailer: In Hong Kong, the movie was on show since mid Jan and because of the debate over protection of...
Japan and U.S: Totoro Forest Project
Martin J Frid from Kurashi introduces an exhibition on Totoro in San Francisco, which is part of the Totoro Forest project for preserving the Sayama Forest in Tokyo.
Laos: Gran Torino and Hmong culture
Padek of Lao Voices notes that the latest Clint Eastwood film, “Gran Torino”, has many “intricate links” to Laos. Apocalypse Lao writes that the film is noteworthy because “It’s the most prominent example of Hmong culture in the history of Hollywood.”
