18/08/2011

Two European works characterised by their mixture of different, expressive languages will close the Horizons section (see news) of the 68th Venice Film Festival (31 August - 10 September): Marian Ilmestys - The Annunciation, a film reworking of a video-installation by Finishvisual artist and [pictured] director Eija-Liisa Ahtila (also a member of the festival's jury - see news), and Monkey Sandwich, an imaginary look backstage at a theatre production that communicates through the medium of dance, created by Belgian director, choreographer, performer and photographer Wim Vandekeybus.

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Marian Ilmestys - The Annunciation reinterprets through moving images one of the main motifs of Christian iconography, the Annunciation, setting it in the present, in an artist's studio. The film was shot in winter 2010 in Aulanko,Southern Finland. Monkey Sandwich, on the othe hand, is presented as an ambitious fusion of film and live performance, a mixture of music, dance, theatre and cinema, with the young artist Damien Chapelle as the main character.

Moreover, a new title has also been added to the section, Siglo ng pagluluwal (Century of Birthing) by Filipino director Lav Diaz, which will be presented on September 10 in a world premiere under the auspices of the Horizons Events. The film is a meditation on the role of the artist, featuring a director who has spent years working on his last work and a leader of a Christian cult who lives in a rural area.

(Translated from Italian)