The 2012 Ozu Film Festival call for submissions is online!

New this year: two new categories, one for animation films and one for documentaries, will complement the main competition and the competition for films under 2 minutes.

Rules and submission guidelines are available in Italian, English, and French here.

The 2012 Corti ma saggi essay contest call for submissions is online!

Following the success of the first edition, the essay contest for concise cinema experts is back!

Rules and submission guidelines are available in Italian, English, and French here.

The prizes for the 19th edition of the Ozu Film Festival have been awarded. Here is the verdict of the jury.

OZU 19

Maneki Neko for Best Film to Gianni Schicchi by Francesco Visco

Because this Italian film does not only deserve to win in the “best Italian short” category.

Maneki Neko Gran Jury Prize to Augenblicke by Martin Bargiel

Even if it did not win in any specific category, this film showed potential in all of them. We are in front of an extremely skilled, visionary director. We invite him to surprise us even more in order to win the Best Film award. We want to believe in you!

Maneki Neko for Best Directing to Nuit Blanche by Samuel Tilman

Very mature directing. Tilman was able to keep the tension and the suspense high, despite the repetitiveness of the script and the shooting in one location, proving that film making is not only made of skills and camera movements, but also of heart, rhythm, and directing of the actors.

Maneki Neko for Best Writing to Le fleuve à droite by Sarah Fortin

While several short films try to portray fragments of life, Le fleuve à droite manages to turn a fragment of life into a story. The structure is impeccable and the director gives her characters depth with only a few words.

Maneki Neko for Best Italian Film il miglior film italiano to Gianni Schicchi by Francesco Visco

Neorealism masked as thriller, thriller masked as musical. A little miracle of harmony born from a successful technical challenge and a catchy plot which is both hilarious and deep. The director skillfully and intelligently managed to turn a small budget into a great strength. Well done!

Premio Teresa Pellati for Best Acting Performance to Joppe in Ik ben een meisje! by Susan Koenen

Despite the overall quality of the acting was extremely high, the jury decided to award a non-actress. The film is a documentary/interview, but in the acted parts Joppe showed the class and charisma of a real actress. Sweet and spontaneous, she produces strong emotions in the audience talking about such a complex issue with depth and lightness.

Maneki Neko Audience Award to Training Autogeno by Astutillo Smeriglia

The most voted film by the audience during the special screenings for the schools and the official screenings.

OZU 2-SHORT

Maneki Neko Ozu 2-Short OFF 19 to The invention of the lightbulb by Lorcan Finnegan

For its ability to exploit new cinematographic languages. A very short film that manages to be extremely ironic. Very creative and effective.

Special Jury Mention for production and imagination to L’insalata del Diavolo by Alice e Stefano Tambellini

For its ability to tell a folk tale through the skillful use of the stop motion technique.

PREMIO REGIONE EMILIA ROMAGNA

OFF 19 Regione Emilia Romagna Prize to Arctic Spleen by Piergiorgio Casotti

The jury unanimously decided to award Arctic Spleen for its ability to portray an extreme reality and describe existential distress with a dry and effective language. The film is a clever mix of photos, videos, and interviews which define the lines of an interior landscape.

District of Modena Press Mention to Arctic Spleen by Piergiorgio Casotti

Because he was able to face such an obscure subject with passion and precision.

The competive section for shorts under 2 minutes.

The jury, formed by students of Drama, Art,and Music Department of the University of Bologna and of the Economy and Communication Science Faculty of the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, awards the OZU 2-SHORT OFF 19 Prize.

Colette Baraldi − Recto – Italy − 00′ 50”

The book as a human place.

Colette Baraldi − Verso − Italy − 00′ 50”

The book as a human place.

Riccardo Bernasconi, Francesca Riverdito − She Wollf − Svizzera − 01′ 30”

Little Red Riding Hood – Episode II: TheReturn of the Wolf.

Pedro Collantes − Life in a minute − Spagna − 01′ 31”

An old man reflects on love and thebrevity of the life.

Rozaliya Dimitrova − Water − Bulgaria − 00′ 41”

Nature and Human beings are about tosettle the problem of dividing the water.

Lorcan Finnegan − The invention of the lightbulb − Irlanda − 01′ 00”

Edison has a bright idea!

Nenko Genov − Tomatoes eat you − Bulgaria − 01′ 10”

Tomatoes strike back. The nightmareof Genetically Modified Organisms!

Guusje Kaayk − Victory − Paesi Bassi − 01′ 40”

The dancer is fighting with her eternalenemy of mankind, the Gravity.

Michalis Lygkiaris − Se dyo lepta (In two minutes) − Grecia − 02′ 00”

A man realizes that he is late and startsrunning in order to make it on time.

Dilara Polat − Istanbul martisi − Turchia − 01′ 25”

The ordinary lives of people living inan extraordinary city.

Sjaak Rood − Fast forward Little Red Riding Hood − Paesi Bassi − 01′ 30”

Little Red Riding Hood: the whole storyin 1 minute and 30 seconds.

Alice Tambellini, Stefano Tambellini − L’insalata del Diavolo − Italia − 02′ 00”

When you wish for something, youcan always find a shortcut to get it.

Berin Tuzlic − Porijeklo smijeha (I need the origin oflaughter) − Bosnia Erzegovina − 00′ 48”

Sex is the essence of everything.

Mayye Zayed − Lady bug − Egitto − 00′ 35”

A lady bug is trapped in a maze where there is no way out…

The organizers of the 19^th edition of the Yasujiro Ozu Film Festival are proud to announce the 22 films selected to compete in the main category of the festival (Ozu 19) and the closing film.

«As every year, we are extremely pleased with the selected films. Once again, we managed to put together – in less than four hours of screenings – a huge variety of themes and genres which complete one another in their diversity», said Enrico Vannucci, Artistic Director of the Festival. «We firmly believe that the audience will appreciate the quality of the films we present. Moreover, it a great honor for us to host the filmmakers of the selected works. In a time when culture often struggles with cuts, and despite all the difficulties, we believe ideas and people must circulate. We cannot wait to get started».

FILMS IN COMPETITION

Arash Ashtiani − Tanha Sedast Ke Mimanad − United Kingdom, Iran − 16′

In the wake of the violent post-election protests in Iran a family tries to hide the news of the death of the youngest member from their grandmother.

Martin Bargiel − Augenblicke − Germany  − 19′

In the middle of the night a fight between Schenker’s neighbors won’t let him rest. He tries to put himself back to sleep by smoking one cigarette after another. But soon he runs out of matches and takes a walk to the mini-market next door. Now his real nightmare begins.

Jerry Carlsson, Anette Gunnarsson − Längs Vägen − Sweden − 7′

Two truck drivers, Ronny and Micke, have a secret relationship. They meet up at a rest area on the road, where no one can see them. Both of them are longing for something more, but Ronny already has a family and can’t stand up for his love to Micke.

Adriano Cirulli − Falling − Regno Unito, Italy − 4′

Falling is an abstract study of human interaction, expressed entirely through movement and sound. A man and a woman drift through an empty void, their bodies twisting and contorting as if subject to powerful forces beyond their control.

Sarah Fortin − Le Fleuve à droite − Canada − 16′

A bus on a country road. Direction: Sept-Iles, Québec. A man and a woman don’t know each other, but they will meet. A problem on the road will contribute on their encounter and they will know each other better. Or just a little…

Christina Höglund − (Vikten av) Hår − Sweden − 14′

…about losing your looks, suddenly, and what happens then… Well, it’s just the hair – but what if your personality is more in the skin and your output than you thought? A film about panic, grief and fear to lose the one you love. And worse, about losing yourself.

Stella Iannitto − They Meet − United States, Italy − 16′

The reason that breaks Giulia and Hillman apart is a book: the one he is trying to write. He thinks that the only way to do it is observing life from outside, she thinks that the only way to know life is living it.

Fijona Jonuzi − Girl − Sweden − 15′

La trentaduenne Hanna sta tornado a casa alla sera quando, fermandosi in un negozio, si imbatte in Andreas, un conoscente che la invita a un party. Lì trova solo ragazzini poco più che ventenni. Sebbene subito provi un forte disagio, presto inizia a sentirsi come una di loro.

Stephane Kaas − Audiotour − Netherlands− 4′

A young girl visits a 17th-century arts museum in Amsterdam and decides to take the audio tour. The girl is struck with surprise when the voice that guides her takes on a life of its own…

Kerem Keskin − Gercek bir hikayeden uyarlanmistir − Turkey − 19′

Salih works in a factory. His only hobby is watching films. After seeing a film “based on a true story” in which a bag of money is hidden in the middle of a valley, he tries to convince his friends to go and find it. But his friend Cemil has different plans about the bag…

Ádel Kháder − Reconciliación − Spain − 17′

Two neighbors, an old Communist who has returned from exile, and a young businessman leader of “Fuerza nueva” (Far Right political party in Post-Franco era), get trapped inside a lift on the night of 23rd February 1981. Inside that lift they will release all the anger that has been bottled up for years. However, eventually, they will realize that they have more in common than they would have ever imagined.

Susan Koenen − Ik ben een meisje! − Netherlands − 15′

Every 13-year-old girl dreams of that nice, but hard-to-get, boy. And Joppe is no different, consulting her friend on how to ask Brian out. But just how should she tell him that she was born a boy?

Joost Lieuwma − Things you’d better not mix up − Netherlands − 2′

A series of things you’d better not mix up.

Libor Pixa − Graffitiger − Czech Republic − 10′

A humorous and sweetly melancholic story about a lonely graffiti-tiger and his life on walls and facades of Prague houses and buildings. Full of dirty lanes and corners, the city serves as a wild jungle in which the tiger is searching for his lost love.

Ramon & Pedro − Le Miroir − Switzerland− 6′

A man’s life, from early childhood to old age, in the time it takes to freshen up.

Alessandro Seidita, Joshua Wahlen − Non tentarmi − Italy − 5′

This is what happens when a man faces an unrealizable desire and his dream turns into sorrow. Don’t tempt me is a double experiment: on the one hand it’s a tale about a chance meeting and how it can remind us of our impossibilities; on the other hand it invites to reflect about the way the ethic aim of a tale can easily turn into its opposite.

Marie-Elsa Sgualdo − Bam Tchak − Switzerland − 16′

Laetitia is not at all pleased! It’s her daughter’s birthday and, especially for this occasion, she has agreed to strap on a pair of skis for the first time ever. Several falls later all she can think of is giving her rival, who had snatched her husband away from her,  a real slap in the face.

Astutillo Smeriglia − Training Autogeno − Italy− 7′

Just another love story.

Samuel Tilman − Nuit Blanche − Belgium − 20′

As night falls, a group of mountaineers are caught in a storm. Leading them is Ariane, a young woman. A rescue patrol goes out after them. Till it gets there, their only lifeline is a state policeman, Serge, who tries to reassure them and help them fight the cold over the phone. But the storm doesn’t subside and Serge gradually realizes that he might not see them through the night…

Francesco Visco − Gianni Schicchi − Italy− 10′

A young couple is sunbathing on a beach when a friend of theirs, Gianni Schicchi, shows up. Gianni Schicchi is handsome, Gianni Schicchi is funny, Gianni Schicchi is hot! I’m sick of Gianni Schicchi.

Yoshino Kohei − DIY Encouragement − Japan − 13′

A man is keen on Do-It-Yourself work on his small rooftop every weekend. He concentrates on each process with sincerity, as a kind of ritual, but at the same time, in his mind, he carries out his frustration. One day, a woman appears and says innocently that she wants to learn about DIY. The man happily teaches her DIY techniques and ideas, but the woman has a different purpose…

Andreas Zerr − Nussbraun − Germany − 4′

Kitchen: A room within an apartment which is predominantly used to prepare and partially to store food.

CLOSING FILM – OUT OF COMPETITION

James Mc Fay − Burning Hearts − Japan − 15′

Kazu, who has lost his purpose in life, works as a taxi driver in Tokyo. Elle, a model working in Japan, has lost her confidence and has had a breakdown caused by loneliness. One day, Elle finds that a stranger is tailing her, and she jumps in Kazu’s taxi to escape. Then, an intense story full of love and action begins.

Singer of the Italian band Tre Allegri Ragazzi Morti and published cartoonist Davide Toffolo is the first announced guest of the 19^th edition of the Yasujiro Ozu International Short Film Festival.

“We are proud to have with us one of the most interesting contemporary Italian artists. It is a honour for us to welcome Davide Toffolo here, both as musician and cartoonist. We expressly decided not to apply a retrospective approach to his work, but to look at the future with original drawings and a new interpretation of his punk-rock-reggae repertoire. We can’t wait to have him here in October!” stated Enrico Vannucci, artistic director of the Festival.

Toffolo will attend the Festival starting from October 14^th. In the evening, he will open the exhibition End It Your Way participating, together with other authors, in a free drawing session.

On Saturday, October 15^th he will meet the audience of the Festival during the afternoon and, in the evening, he will perform a solo show with unplugged selections from the Tre Allegri Ragazzi Morti repertoire.

Davide Toffolo graduated in anatomical drawing at the University of Bologna. In the same city, he attended Andrea Pazienza and Lorenzo Mattotti’s Zio Feininger comics school. He published several comic books. Since 1994, he is the front man and singer of the band Tre Allegri Ragazzi Morti that released 6 albums. Teenage years are one the main tropes of his music and comics.

Did you ever leave the cinema thinking why did they have to end it like that? Would you like to see a new version of your favourite film? Do you feel like experimenting with cinema and comics?

The 19^th edition of the Ozu Film Festival presents the new “End it Your way” contest. Participants have the chance to draw four comics tables providing an alternate end to a film of their choice.

The contest is organized in collaboration with the International Comics School and supervised by professional illustrator Stefano Landini who worked also for Marvel and DC Comics.

The best ten drawings will be showed in the “End it Your Way” exhibition during the 19^th edition of the Yasujiro Ozu International Short Film Festival. Moreover, the three winners of the contest will see their works published in the official catalogue of the Festival and will be awarded prizes as described in the official call for submissions.

The “End it Your Way” contest logo was created by Stefano Landini starting from the logo of the Festival and “using an open circle that the participants will have to close by providing their own end. Also, the logo recalls a flipped Omega that denotes the end, in this case, of the chosen film.”

Submission deadline: August 31^st, 2011.

For info and submission guidelines click here.

The 19^th edition of the Ozu International Short Film Festival pays a tribute to Teresa Pellati, a recently deceased actress from Sassuolo, protagonist of the Italian cinema golden age of the 50s and 60s.

We are proud to have the honor,” the organizers of the Festival said, “to commemorate a woman whose charm and beauty have left their mark on the collective imagination of contemporary cinema. Teresa Pellati worked with icons of Italian cinema such as Roberto Rossellini, Vittorio Gassman, Totò, and Massimo Girotti as well as international legends such as Ingrid Bergman, Kirk Douglas, and Anthony Quinn. She worked and became good friends with Silvana Mangano. We want to honor a woman who found the courage, the humility, and the motivation to go back to her sources after the success in Rome in the years of the Dolce Vita.”

Therefore, starting from the 19^th edition of the Festival, there will be a new award category: the Teresa Pellati Award for Best Acting Performance.

All the winners of OFF 18.

Ozu 18 Award: Ich Bin’s Helmut by Nicolas Steiner

For the excellent use of irony and long shot techniques in describing a life journey that, little by little and not only metaphorically, destroys the oppressions of the past and opens up to new, unexpected possibilities.

Grand Jury Prize: Jericho by Liam Gavin

For the absorbing tenderness through which this film depicts the regenerating strength of childhood.

Audience Award: Bob by Harry Fast, Jacob Frey

2-Short Award: Guzel kokmadigimi biliyorum di Cenk Ertürk

We salute the ability to tell a complex story in less than 2 minutes, with bitter irony and extreme sobriety. By representing the loneliness of someone new to a small town reality, the film offers a respectful yet critical take on death.

Local Award: Il cuore ce lo abbiamo tutti allo stesso posto by Giordano Ruini

“The only possible revolution is within ourselves”

A simple concept that breaks through the walls of indifference, distrust and detachment that we build around ourselves because of the events we experience and the society we live in. Contact creates embarrassment.

In such conditions, something as simple as contact can make us overcome distrust and open up to emotions.

The jury, composed of teachers and students, decided to reward the simplicity and freshness of this operation which reminds us that only following our hearts we can rediscover our essential values.

Special Jury Mention for the Local Award: Alkolic Holocaust by Dagoberto Brasile

A surreal, ironic and grotesque short film that analyzes the paradoxes of society broadcast by the media on an almost daily bases. A hyperbolic satire on the distance between the institutional elite and simple citizens.