SFIFF56—LATINBEAT

A cursory glance at the "Country Index" included in the program guide for the 56th edition of the San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF) reveals several titles showing up more than once; a clear indicator of the state of international co-productions in today's festival landscape. Whereas at one time films in an international festival could be guided by the category of a national cinema, such a determinant now teeters on the quaint in the face of economic necessity and/or availability. The language or location of a film no longer signifies its nationality, neither does its directo

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SFIFF56—Michael Hawley Previews the Line-up

 The 56th San Francisco International Film Festival (SFIFF56) gets underway in just a few days and Bay Area cinephiles are busy gearing up for two weeks of movies, movies and more movies. The entire line-up has been announced, save for who will receive this year's Peter J. Owens Award for acting. To those who might be concerned I would say, please remember two years ago when the festival pulled Terence Stamp out of its hat at the eleventh hour—surely one of the most inspired award choices SFIFF has served up in recent years. Here are a dozen capsule reviews of films I've had the oppor

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—PALABRAS MÁGICAS (MAGIC WORDS, 2012) / CARRIÈRE, 250 METROS (CARRIÈRE, 250 METERS, 2013)

Two documentaries screened back-to-back at IFF Panamá's new venue, the Teatro Anita Villalaz (situated in the National Institute of Culture), both of which utilized the poetics of memory to further their narratives, albeit by slightly different strategies. Mercedes Moncada Rodríguez's documentary Palabras Mágicas (Magic Words, 2012)—situated in IFF Panamá's "Stories From Central America" sidebar—configured memory as an expression of history. In fact, her documentary quite brilliantly demonstrated how it is the commonplace nature of our everyday struggles that truly places us within the hist

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—DANS LA MAISON (IN THE HOUSE, 2012)

As synopsized by IFF Panamá: "A high school French teacher (Fabrice Luchini) becomes implicated in a series of increasingly precarious and unethical acts when he encourages a student to explore his fantasy of insinuating himself into a classmate's home. François Ozon's latest film fuses psychological thriller with class-conscious comedy, creating a twisty meditation on voyeurism and the dangers of storytelling."Adapted from Juan Mayorga’s play The Boy in the Last Row, Dans La Maison (In the House, 2012) reunites Ozon and Luchini (who worked together on the clever Potiche), but to less winning

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—UNA NOCHE / ONE NIGHT (2012)

Una Noche / One Night (Dir. Lucy Mulloy, Cuba, 2012, 90m)—As synopsized by IFF Panamá: "Briskly paced and brimming with atmosphere, Lucy Mulloy's electrifying debut chronicles an attempt made by two teenaged Cubans to set sail for Miami on a makeshift raft. Una noche is a fascinating portrait of Havana and its restless youth, caught in a cycle of perpetual desperate hustle." Una Noche arrives at IFF Panamá in their First Time Directors sidebar. Official site. IMDb. Wikipedia. Facebook.Una Noche premiered at the 2012 Berlin International Film Festival and 2012 Tribeca Film Festival to in

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—7 CAJAS / 7 BOXES (2012)

7 Cajas / 7 Boxes (Dirs. Juan Carlos Maneglia & Tana Schémbori, Paraguay, 2012, 105m)—As synopsized by IFF Panamá: "A teenage delivery boy working in a popular Paraguayan market must dodge thieves, rival gangs and the omnipresent police when he undertakes a dangerous contract to transport a load of mysterious—and highly sought-after—crates to the edge of town in this frenetic, inventive thriller."Winner of the Youth Jury Award at the San Sebastián Film Festival and positioned in IFF Panamá's First Time Directors sidebar, as well as one of the Teatro Nacional gala screenings, 7 Cajas might

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—CUATES DE AUSTRALIA / DROUGHT (2011)

Cuates de Australia / Drought (Dir. Everardo González, Mexico, 2011, 83m)—As synopsized by IFF Panamá: "A work of lyrical ethnography, Everardo González's Drought explores the isolated community of Northeastern Mexico's Cuates de Australia ranch. Cuates' inhabitants struggle with annual droughts, yet González emphasizes the richness of their way of life rather than their woes. The result is one of the most singular cinematic experiences on offer this year." As someone who grew up now and again working in the fields and on ranches, I had nothing but respect for the tenacious spirit depicted

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—FIN / THE END (2012)

Fin / The End (Dir. Jorge Torregrossa, Spain, 2012, 90m)—As synopsized by IFF Panamá: "The first feature from Spanish director Jorge Torregrossa is a stunning apocalyptic thriller set against the awe-inspiring peaks of the Pyrenees, where a group of friends find themselves at the mercy of nature—and their own psychic demons—after a mysterious, all-encompassing blackout."Elevated genre maintains its philosophical heights in Fin, which takes all the bite out of the ubiquitous zombie apocalypse to present a more chilling fade-out, as stars begin to blink out of the sky, and people disappear one

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IFF PANAMÁ 2013—DESPUÉS DE LUCÍA / AFTER LUCIA (2012)

Después de Lucía / After Lucia / (Dir. Michel Franco, Mexico, 2012, 102m)—As synopsized by IFF Panamá: "The story of a teenage girl ruthlessly targeted by her classmates, Mexican writer-director Michel Franco's second feature is relentless, brilliant and timely: it is a convincing portrayal of modern bullying and a sober look at the excesses of Mexico's privileged classes. But also something timeless: a chillingly well-plotted study in entropy." Winner of numerous awards, including the prestigious Un Certain Regard prize at the Cannes Film Festival, the searing, intense Después de Lucía es

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