The Mediterranean will once again take centre stage through the rich and varied programme of the 24th Cinemamed – Brussels Mediterranean Film Festival, which will explore the region’s film output in all its diversity. Almost 70 movies will be on offer to audiences, from countries ranging from Spain to Lebanon, via Morocco and Croatia. The gathering will open with a couple of locals, brothers Mounir and Ish Aït Hamou, who will be presenting their feature debut, BXL [+leggi anche:
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scheda film], which was first unveiled a few weeks ago at Film Fest Gent. It will be brought to a close by the Belgian premiere of Queen Mom, the sophomore film by Manele Labidi, starring Camélia Jordana, Sofiane Zermani and Damien Bonnard, a smart comedy on everyday racism.

The official competition will bring together eight features that have taken part in major international festivals. Among them we find Animale [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Emma Benestan
scheda film] by Emma Benestan (the festival will also show her previous film, Hard Shell, Soft Shell [+leggi anche:
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scheda film]), which was presented as the closing film of the Cannes Critics’ Week, as well as the new movie by Cinemamed regular Nabil Ayouch, Everybody Loves Touda [+leggi anche:
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scheda film], which was also unveiled at Cannes, in the Cannes Première section. Then, we head to Turkey with Faruk [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Asli Özge
scheda film], a familial docu-fiction helmed by filmmaker Asli Özge, which won the FIPRESCI Award in the Panorama section of the most recent Berlinale, and to Tunisia with Red Path [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Lotfi Achour, which was premiered at Locarno, in the Cineasti del Presente section, and which has just won the Golden Bayard at the Namur International French-language Film Festival. Spanish director Jonás Trueba will also be among the participants with his romantic comedy The Other Way Around [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Jonás Trueba
scheda film], which was presented in the Directors’ Fortnight, as was To a Land Unknown [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Mahdi Fleifel
scheda film] by Mahdi Fleifel, which follows the daily lives of two Palestinian cousins who are refugees in Athens. Also locking horns in the competition is Vermiglio, the Mountain Bride [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Maura Delpero
scheda film] by Italy’s Maura Delpero, winner of the Silver Lion – Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival and the Italian hopeful for an Oscar. Also hailing from Venice, but from the Orizzonti Extra section, is Seeking Haven for Mr Rambo, the feature debut by Egypt’s Khaled Mansour.

The festival also organises another competition dubbed RêVolution, which intends to train the spotlight on films that depict the challenges faced by Mediterranean youngsters. A further eight films are in this strand, beginning with Aïcha [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Tunisia’s Mehdi M Barsaoui (who turned heads with his feature debut, A Son [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Mehdi M. Barsaoui e Sami B…
scheda film]), which was recently revealed in Venice’s Orizzonti section. Other popular titles will surely be As Silence Passes By [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Sandra Romero
scheda film] by Spaniard Sandra Romero, which took part in San Sebastián; Wild Diamond [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Agathe Riedinger
scheda film] by Agathe Riedinger, a revelation at Cannes, where the film was presented in competition; Rabia [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Marike Engelhardt, boasting a top-notch female cast (Megan Northam, Lubna Azabal and Natacha Krief); and Meat [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Dimitris Nakos
scheda film] by Greece’s Dimitris Nakos, presented at Toronto. The competition is also a fine showcase for documentaries, as in it, we find the Egyptian title The Brink of Dreams [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Nada Riyadh, Ayman El Amir
scheda film] by Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir, which scooped the Golden Eye at Cannes; Since I Was Born [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Jawad Rhalib
scheda film], the new effort by prolific Belgian-Moroccan director Jawad Rhalib; and Donga by Muhannad Lamin, which takes an inside look at the Libyan revolt of 2011.

Of note among the festival’s other events are two special screenings of The Story of Souleymane [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Boris Lojkine
scheda film], a film by Boris Lojkine that was rewarded in Un Certain Regard at Cannes and has set tongues wagging in France, and of Parthenope [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Gints Zilbalodis
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