<div dir="ltr">Yamagata has released information on their competition for October. The Japanese entry is Voices from the Waves (Nami no koe), by Hamaguchi Ryusuke and Sakai Ko. I haven't read much from the many online interviews and blog entries on the film, so I don't write with much confidence. But what I thought were a set of short films based on geography, yet released under the Nami no koe title, now appear to be one big massive film. <div>
<br></div><div style>But don't confuse the 213 minute running time with monumentality. It's the most intimate of films. And one of the most experimental of the 311 films. The rough cuts I saw were nothing but two people talking to each other, face to face, and with almost no prompting from the filmmakers. The directors sit two tsunami survivors in community halls or libraries, and let them talk to each other. </div>
<div style><br></div><div style>There are only three basic shots. An establishing shot taken at a 90 degree angle to the two speakers. And then shot reverse shots where one of the speakers looks directly at the camera. Through a fascinating cinematic trick, the people speak in direct address to the camera even though they are actually talking to—and looking at—their interlocutor. It's a very strange feeling, best to be experienced without knowing exactly how they did it. </div>
<div style><br></div><div style>This formal aspect to the film—added to the parallel formality of two Japanese strangers talking to each other—makes this one of the better 311 films. It's certainly the most innovative. But I have serious doubts about the running length. Very few people are going to last through four hours. It signals a complete lack of distance to their material. A kind of shiryo-sei that regrettably blinds the filmmakers to the desires, needs and capabilities of their viewers. Can you tell I'm bumming? </div>
<div style><br></div><div style>In the rough, I thought this looked like a very promising film. I'm pretty disappointed by this choice. Obviously, they needed an editor. </div><div style><br></div><div style>Markus</div>
<div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div class="gmail_quote"><br>==============================<u></u>==============================<u></u>==================<br>
YIDFF News < June 24 Special Issue ><br>
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YAMAGATA International Documentary Film Festival 2013<br>
October 10 [Thu] - 17 [Thu], 2013<br>
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<br>
<br>
:+:+:+ YIDFF2013 International Competition Lineup Open! :+:+:+<br>
<br>
<br>
We are very pleased to announce the YIDFF 2013 International<br>
Competition lineup.<br>
Feature-length works were sought from 1152 entries from around the<br>
world - a unique selection of 15 cinematic gems, richly varied and<br>
representing the vanguard of world filmmaking.<br>
<br>
<br>
*************************<br>
<br>
_The Act of Killing_<br>
DENMARK, INDONESIA, NORWAY, UK / 2012 / Indonesian / Color / VIdeo /<br>
159 min<br>
Director: Joshua Oppenheimer<br>
<br>
_Bajari: Gypsy Barcelona_<br>
SPAIN / 2012 / Spanish / Color / Video / 84 min<br>
Director: Eva Vila<br>
<br>
_Boundary_<br>
THAILAND, CAMBODIA, FRANCE / 2013 / Thai, Khmer / Color / Video / 96 min<br>
Director: Nontawat Nubenchapol<br>
<br>
_Char... The No-man's Island_<br>
JAPAN, INDIA, ITALY, NORWAY, DENMARK / 2012 / Bengali, Hindi / Color<br>
/ Video / 88 min<br>
Director: Sourav Sarangi<br>
<br>
_A Gift from the Sky - The Tragedy of Hsiaolin Village, Part 2_<br>
TAIWAN / 2013 / Taiwanese, Chinese / Color / Video / 153 min<br>
Director: Lo Hsin-chieh, Wang Hsiu-ling<br>
<br>
_Motherland or Death_<br>
RUSSIA / 2011 / Spanish / Color / Video / 99 min<br>
Director: Vitaly Mansky<br>
<br>
_Once I Entered a Garden_<br>
FRANCE, ISRAEL, SWITZERLAND / 2012 / Hebrew, Arabic / Color / Video<br>
/ 97 min<br>
Director: Avi Mograbi<br>
<br>
_The Other Day_<br>
CHILE / 2012 / Spanish / Color / Video / 122 min<br>
Director: Ignacio Agüero<br>
<br>
_Parts of a Family_<br>
THE NETHERLANDS, MEXICO / 2012 / Spanish / Color / Video / 83 min<br>
Director: Diego Gutiérrez<br>
<br>
_The Punk Syndrome_<br>
FINLAND, NORWAY, SWEDEN / 2012 / Finnish / Color / Video / 85 min<br>
Director: Jukka Kärkkäinen, J-P Passi<br>
<br>
_Revision_<br>
GERMANY / 2012 / German, Romanian, Romani / Color / Video / 106 min<br>
Director: Philip Scheffner<br>
<br>
_Stories We Tell_<br>
CANADA / 2012 / English / Color / 35mm / 108 min<br>
Director: Sarah Polley<br>
<br>
_Tour of Duty_<br>
KOREA / 2013 / Korean / Color / Video / 161 min<br>
Director: Kim Dong-ryung, Park Kyoung-tae<br>
<br>
_Voices from the Waves_<br>
JAPAN / 2013 / Japanese / Color / Video / 213 min<br>
Director: Sakai Ko, Hamaguchi Ryusuke<br>
<br>
_A World Not Ours_<br>
PALESTINE, UAE, UK / 2012 / Arabic, English / Color, B&W / Video /<br>
93 min<br>
Director: Mahdi Fleifel<br>
<br>
<br>
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------------------------------<u></u>------------------------------<u></u>-----------------------<br>
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Copyright (C) YAMAGATA International Documentary Film Festival<br>
</div><br><br clear="all"><div><br></div>-- <br><div dir="ltr"><div style="font-size:small"><font face="courier new, monospace"><b>Markus Nornes</b></font></div><div style="font-size:small"><font face="courier new, monospace" color="#6aa84f">Chair, Department of Screen Arts and Cultures</font></div>
<div style="font-size:small"><font face="courier new, monospace" color="#6aa84f">Professor of Asian Cinema, Department of Asian Languages and Cultures</font></div><div style="font-size:small"><font face="courier new, monospace" color="#6aa84f">Professor, School of Art & Design</font></div>
<div style="font-size:small"><font face="courier new, monospace" color="#6aa84f"><br></font></div><div><font face="courier new, monospace" size="1" color="#274e13"><b>Department of Screen Arts and Cultures</b></font></div>
<div><font face="courier new, monospace" size="1" color="#274e13"><b>6348 North Quad</b></font></div><div><font face="courier new, monospace" size="1" color="#274e13"><b>105 S. State Street</b></font></div><div><font face="courier new, monospace" size="1" color="#274e13"><b>Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1285</b></font></div>
<div style="font-size:small"><br></div><div style="font-size:small">
</div></div>
</div></div></div>