Emmanuel Courcol's The Marching Band [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Emmanuel Courcol
scheda film] (unveiled in Cannes and handed San Sebastián’s Audience Award) is due to open the 25th Arras Film Festival tomorrow, an event wrapping on 17 November, which will offer up an abundant programme of 115 feature films, enhanced by the presence of numerous talents who’ll be accompanying their works, notably the event’s guests of honour: Belgium’s Cécile de France (Call of Water [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Élise Otzenberger, Cécile …
scheda film] by Élise Otzenberger), French actress Sandrine Kiberlain (Sarah Bernhardt la divine by Guillaume Nicloux) and Serbia’s Miki Manojlovic (Emir Kusturica’s fetish actor). Similarly poised to make the journey to Arras, among many others, are Vincent Lindon, Michel Hazanavicius, Louis Garrel, Anthony Bajon, Carine Tardieu, Fabrice du Welz and Muriel Coulin.

Alongside the nine European pretenders for the Golden Atlas (read our article), which will be assessed by a jury presided over by Abel and Gordon, the line-up includes seven feature films in the Eastern Selection: The Trap [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Bulgaria’s Nadejda Koseva, The Hungarian Dressmaker [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Iveta Grófová
scheda film] by Slovakia’s Iveta Grófová, Block 5 [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Slovenia’s Klemen Dvornik, Maria’s Silence [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Dāvis Sīmanis
scheda film] by Latvia’s Davis Simanis, Raw Material [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Hungary’s Martin Boross, Crossing Istanbul [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Levan Akin
scheda film] by Sweden’s Levan Akin and U Are The Universe [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Pavlo Ostrikov
scheda film] by Ukraine’s Pavlo Ostrikov. A Czech Republic Focus is also on the agenda, foregrounding Vojtěch Strakatý’s After Party [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Vojtěch Strakatý
scheda film], Jiri Havelka’s The Gardener’s Year [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] and Veronika Lisková’s Year of the Widow [+leggi anche:
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scheda film].

An Italy Focus steals focus in the European Discoveries section, featuring Venice’s Grand Prize winner Vermiglio, The Mountain Bride [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Maura Delpero
scheda film] by Maura Delpero, Sicilian Letters [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Fabio Grassadonia e Antoni…
scheda film] by the duo composed of Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, The Time it Takes [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Francesca Comencini
scheda film] by Francesca Comencini, and The Buddy Killer [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Gianluca Santoni. Joining them in the showcase are When the Light Breaks [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Rúnar Rúnarsson
scheda film] by Iceland’s Rúnar Rúnarsson, Wishbone [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Greece’s Penny Panayotopoulou, Stormskerry Maja [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Finland’s Tiina Lymi, From Hilde, With Love [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Andreas Dresen
scheda film] by Germany’s Andreas Dresen, The Glory of Life by fellow Germans Judith Kaufmann and Georg Maas, Julie Keeps Quiet [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Leonardo van Dijl
scheda film] by Belgium’s Leonardo Van Dijl, The Girl with the Needle [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Magnus von Horn
scheda film] by Sweden’s Magnus von Horn, and Eternal [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Ulaa Salim
scheda film] by Denmark’s Ulaa Salim.

It's an overview of European cinema in all its diversity, which is also set to pay tribute to French production by way of 23 feature films screening in premieres, including Joli Joli by Diastème, Toutes pour une by Houda Benyamina, The Quiet Son [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Delphine e Muriel Coulin
scheda film] by Muriel and Delphine Coulin, The Most Precious of Cargoes [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Michel Hazanavicius
scheda film] by Michel Hazanavicius, The Ties that Bind Us [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Carine Tardieu
scheda film] by Carine Tardieu, and Maldoror [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Fabrice Du Welz
scheda film] by Belgium’s Belge Fabrice Du Welz, not to mention Pablo Aguëro’s Saint-Ex [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] which is set to close the festival.

Equally deserving of a mention is the French Film Perspectives section, foregrounding Bonjour l'asile by Judith Davis, In the Name of Blood [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Akaki Popkhadze
scheda film] by Akaki Popkhadze, Little Jaffna [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Lawrence Valin
scheda film] by Lawrence Valin, Across the Sea [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Saïd Hamich Benlarbi
scheda film] by Saïd Hamich and Holy Cow [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Louise Courvoisier
scheda film] by Louise Courvoisier, without forgetting the World Cinema line-up (notably showcasing the European co-productions Aïcha [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Mehdi M. Barsaoui, In the Land of Brothers [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Raha Amirfazli, Alireza Gh…
scheda film] by Raha Amirfazli and Alireza Ghasemi, Winter in Sokcho [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Koya Kamura
scheda film] by Koya Kamura, and Mexico 86 [+leggi anche:
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intervista: César Díaz
scheda film] by César Diaz), two retrospectives ("Love, Wigs & Music" and "Once Upon a Time in Yugoslavia"), special screenings (notably of Jonathan Schörning’s German documentary Einhundertvier), the Kid’s Festival (showcasing nine films, including Jean-François Laguionie’s A Boat in the Garden [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] and Gints Zibalodis’ Flow [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Gints Zilbalodis
scheda film]) and two film-concerts.

That’s without forgetting the industry sidebar, taking the form of the 18th Professional Northern Film Meetings (running 12 – 15 November), and the pitching sessions for the Arras Days Development Grant (on 16 November), alongside a bonus focus session, the following day, on a selection of Czech projects.