Filmstiftung NRW with five films in Venice
- „The Cut“ by Fatih Akin, „3 Hearts“ by Benoît Jacquot and „A Pigeon Sat on a Branch, Reflecting on Existence“ by Roy Andersson in Competition
- „El 5 de Tallares“ by Adrían Biniez closing film of the Venice Days
- „Nymphomaniac II“ by Lars von Trier 'out of competition'
- Film- und Medienstiftung NRW backed the three Pandora co-productions
- Director Philip Gröning member of the International Jury
- 71st Venice International Film Festival from 27 August to 6 September, 2014
The Filmstiftung NRW is represented at the 71st Venice International Film Festival with five films. Two of the productions made with support from NRW are in the running for the Golden Lion in the prestigious Competition section. Apart from Fatih Akin's hotly anticipated „The Cut“, Benoît Jacquot's „3 Hearts“ will also have its world premiere in Venice. In addition, „A Pigeon Sat on a Branch, Reflecting on Existence“ by the Swedish director Roy Andersson will be in the Competition. Moreover, „El 5 de Tallares“ by Adrían Biniez will be shown as the closing film in the Venice Days sidebar. Cologne’s Pandora Filmproduktion played a key role in three of the international co-productions. Nymphomaniac II“ by Lars von Trier will be shown 'out competition'.
„We extend our warm congratulations to the teams of Fatih Akin, Benoît Jacquot, Roy Andersson, Adrían Biniez and Lars von Trier“, says Petra Müller, CEO of the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW. „We are particularly pleased for the competition films and the production company Pandora Film which, year after year, succeeds in having a presence at the world’s most important film festivals with extraordinary productions. We wish 'our films' lots of success in Venice!“
With „The Cut“, Fatih Akin is now concluding his trilogy of „Love, Death and the Devil“ after „Head On“ („Gegen die Wand“) and „The Edge of Heaven“ („Auf der anderen Seite“). The latest film is about war and expulsion, but also about the power of love and hope that can make us achieve the unimaginable. The drama’s leads are taken by Tahar Rahim, Simon Abkarian, Makram J. Khoury, Hindi Zahra, Kevork Malikyan, Bartu Küçükçağlayan, Trine Dyrholm, Moritz Bleibtreu, Arsinée Khanjian, Akin Gazi, Arévik Martirossian, and others. „The Cut“ was co-produced by bombero international, Pandora Filmproduktion, corazón international, Pyramide Productions (F) and Opus Film (PL) with backing from broadcasters NDR and ARD Degeto. World sales are being handled by Cologne’s The Match Factory, German theatrical distribution by Pandora Filmverleih. The Film- und Medienstiftung NRW backed the production with 800,000 Euros, significant support also came from Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein (1 m Euro), DFFF, FFA, nordmedia, Eurimages, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, BKM, FFA Minitraité and the MEDIA Programme.
Charlotte Gainsbourg, Catherine Deneuve, Léa Seydoux and Benoît Poelvoorde: the new melodrama „3 Hearts“ by Benoît Jacquot has a top-notch cast and tells the story of Marc, who misses the last train back to Paris from the French provinces late one evening and then meets Sylvie. They arrange to see each other again in Paris, but Marc doesn’t keep the date. Back in the provincial town, he meets Sophie and gets to know her better. What he doesn’t realise is that Sophie is Sylvie’s sister. „3 Hearts“ is a production by Pandora in co-production with Rectangle Productions (F) and Scope Pictures (B), with WDR and Arte involved as broadcasters. The production received backing from the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW (230,000 Euros) and the FFA (Mini-Traité). The German distributor is Wild Bunch, Munich.
„A Pigeon Sat on a Branch, Reflecting on Existence“ is the story of two world-weary men who travel around selling party novelties, AND also provides insight into a chaotic world of past, present and future, and between reality and fantasy; a world of dreams and fantasies. The leads are taken by Holger Andersson, Nils Westblom, Sture Olsson und Ingvar Olsson . The film was made as a co-production by Roy Andersson Filmproduktion AB (Sweden) with Essential Filmproduktion (Berlin), Société Parisienne de Production (France) and 4 1/2 Fiksjon AS (Norway), with backing from the broadcasters ZDF/ARTE, Arte France Cinéma and Sveriges Television. The Film- und Medienstiftung NRW supported the production with 100,000 Euros, additional funds came from Eurimages, Swedish Film Institute, Nordisk Film & TV Fund, Norwegian Film Fund and the Centre National du cinéma et de l’image animée.
„El 5 de Tallares“ by Adrián Biniez tells the story of Patón, a 35-year-old footballer from the Argentinian Fourth League, who is the final year of his career. Patón comes of age for a second time and has to create a future for himself outside of the football pitch. Esteban Lamothe and Julieta Zylberberg can be seen in the lead roles of this drama. „El 5 de Tallares“ was co-produced by Mutante Cine (UY), Le Petit Film (FR), Topkapi (NL), Pandora Filmproduktion (D) and Morrocha (AR), with backing from broadcasters ZDF and Arte. The Film- und Medienstiftung NRW supported the film with 50,000 Euros, additional funding came from MEDIA Development (35,000 Euros).
„Nymphomaniac 2“ by Lars von Trier, which was made in large part in North Rhine-Westphalia, is being shown 'out of competition' in the Competition. The film with a cast including Charlotte Gainsbourg, Stellan Skarsgård, Stacy Martin, Shia LaBeouf and Christian Slater is produced by Zentropa Entertainments, in co-production with Zentropa International Köln, Slot Machine and Caviar Lab. The Filmstiftung NRW backed both parts with a total of 1.2 m Euros. Other funders are the Danish Film Institute, Eurimages, DFFF, Nordic Film & TV Fund, CNC, Belgian Tax Shelter as well as the Flanders Audiovisual Fund in cooperation with DR and Film i Väst. Moreover, the broadcasters Arte and Canal+ as well as The West Danish Film Fund are supporters along with Development Support from the MEDIA Programme.
Philip Gröning will be a member of the International Jury under the chairmanship of Alexandre Desplat. The director, whose production company has its headquarters in Düsseldorf, was already in Venice with his last two films: „The Police Officer’s Wife“ (Die Frau des Polizisten“) had its world premere in Venice last year and was the only German film screening in the festival’s competition. The drama about violence in the family was awarded the Jury’s Special Prize there. His multi-award-winning audience success, the documentary „Into Great Silence“ („Die große Stille“), was also presented in Venice for the first time in 2005. Both productions were backed by the Filmstiftung NRW.
The Mostra internazionale d’arte cinematografica di Venezia is being held this year for the 71st time and is not only regarded as the world’s oldest still existing film festival, but is also one of the internationally most important of its kind alongside Cannes and Berlin. The film festival is part of the Biennale for contemporary art in Venice and annually awards the Golden Lion as its main prize. As in previous years, the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW will again be hosting a reception on the Lido.