Conformity and Rebellion in Film
June 19 – 29, 2006
The Chinese Embassy, the Japan Information and Culture Center, the Alliance Française, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura, and the Goethe-Institut have combined forces to cosponsor a film series that explores the experiences of the next generation in Europe and Asia. These films capture the struggles of youth to find identities and reconcile differences with family and society in a rapidly transforming world.
Each evening will feature a group of European and Asian short films, drawing attention to variations in social change and modernity within the two great cultural realms of Europe and Asia. Each event is followed by a brief discussion led by an expert on the respective countries featured.
A new concept of “Europeanness” is emerging within the European Union, offering bonds between young people who study and live in neighboring countries, even as sharp cultural and social divides remain at home. Similarly, youth in Asia long for a universal Asian culture of modernity that transcends the contradictions of economic and political reality. Germany, France and Italy in Europe, and China, Korea and Japan in East Asia, have each established their own distinct identity as part of a larger cultural mosaic. This film series will draw attention to the similarities and divergences in that process.
The experiences of youth in these films leave us wondering whether the world is shrinking into cultural homogeneity, or whether youth have embraced new patterns of identity that defy our expectations. Is there a distinct Asian or European culture? What elements are common to both regions?
With the support of the Korea International Trade Association
All films are either in English or in their original language with English subtitles.
A discussion entitled “Coming of Age in a Shifting World: Youth Culture of Rebellion and Conformity in East Asia and Europe” will take place on the final evening (June 29, 2006) with the following participants:
- Emanuel Pastreich, Adjunct Professor, George Washington University & Editor-in-Chief, Dynamic Korea
- Hyunjun Min, Comparative Literature/Film Studies, University of Maryland
- Matteo Bosco Bortolaso, ANSA
PROGRAM OF FILMS
(Subject to change. Please inquire with the relevant venue for updates)
Monday, June 19, 6:30 pm
GERMANY AND CHINA
Goethe-Institut
812 Seventh St. NW
RSVP to (202) 289-1200 ext. 168
ESCAPE! (ABHAUN!)
Germany, 2004, 16 mm, 9 min., Director: Christoph Wermke
The backwaters of East Germany: stagnation, unemployment, rural exodus. Nico has found a job in West Germany. He is waiting for the bus.
MEINE ELTERN (MY PARENTS)
Germany, 2003, Fiction, 35mm, 18 min., Director: Neele Leana Vollmar
Marie has a problem: she has met the man of her life. And he is dying to meet her parents. All that would not be a problem, if Marie hadn’t told him that her parents are still madly in love, tolerant of everyone, and not at all frumpy.
MY DAD, MY MOM
China, 30 min. Director: Lao Bo
In a small mountain village of China's Shandong province, my parents have toiled their whole lives, working hard in the field and saving every penny for me to go to school. My parents did not have any photos taken before they were in their sixties. As they grow older, I wish to preserve their image through my camera, to capture their ordinary but remarkable lives of love and mutual support, their emotions and dreams as ordinary farmers, and their calm confidence and persistence in the face of all hardships and difficulties. And I wish to dedicate this to my parents, the inspiration for my art and my whole life.
A discussion with Yi Chen, American University student, and Olivia Schoeller, Berliner Zeitung, will accompany these screenings.
Wednesday, June 21, 6:30 pm
ITALY AND JAPAN
Italian Cultural Institute
2025 M St. NW, Washington, DC
RSVP to (202) 223-9800 ext. 1
IL SUONO DELLA MINIERA (THE SOUND OF THE MINE)
Italy, 2005, 12 min, Director: Mario Piredda
Three little girls’ daily life in the little Sardinian village of Montevecchio is interrupted by a mine accident which claims the lives of 11 people. A fiction inspired by an actual event. The story is based on a short story by Iride Peis Concas.
PIANO T (T FLOOR)
Italy, 2005, 8 min, Director: Giulio Giordano
Feeling lonely, in an elevator as well as in a city.
KENDAMA
Japan, 2002, 15 min, in Japanese with English subtitles, Director: Tetsuo Shinohara
An unsuccessful young musician’s mundane everyday life takes a turn for the better when he becomes involved in a little adventure through a kendama, a traditional Japanese toy.
TOUCH ON JAPAN
Japan, 2006, 9 min.
First-class creators of TV commercials showcase creative images of modern Japan with a cool beat, including current fashion of the youth, the world of animation, and a young kabuki actor who appeals to all generations.
Speakers: - Yutaka Taguchi, George Mason University student
- Matteo Bosco Bortolaso, ANSA
Thursday, June 22, 6:30 pm
JAPAN AND FRANCE
Japan Information and Culture Center
1155 21st St NW, Washington, DC
RSVP to jiccrsvpspring06@embjapan.org or 202-238-6901
ARITA
Japan, 2002, 15 min., in Japanese with English subtitles, Director: Shunji Iwai
A young woman realizes that ARITA, an amine-like creature that has been with her all her life, is visible only to her. When she begins to see herself as abnormal and tries to get rid of ARITA, that leads her to a search for her own identity.
TOUCH ON JAPAN
Japan, 2006, 9 min.
First-class creators of TV commercials showcase creative images of modern Japan with a cool beat, including current fashion of the youth, the world of animation, and a young kabuki actor who appeals to all generations.
THE STRAIGHT AND THE NARROW
France, 2004, 12 min., Director: Mathias Gokalp
A 25 year-old prisoner recalls the story of his life, confusing the beginning and the end.
AULNAY NEED IS LOVE
France, 2001, Fiction, 12 min., Director: Fodil Chabbi
Max, a young man from Aulnay-sous-Bois in the Paris suburbs, meets Julie, a young woman from the south of France. As always in a love story, the social differences are a real obstacle. This musical shows how they will have to deal between the fear of their difference and their love for each other.
Speaker: Hidehiro Waki, Syracuse University student
Monday, June 26, 6:30 pm
FRANCE AND KOREA
The Alliance Française
2142 Wyoming Avenue, NW, Washington, DC
RSVP to (202) 234-7911
ALICE AND I
Belgium/France, 2004, 19 min, Director: Micha Wald
Simon has to drive his old aunt Mala and two of her friends, Lydia and Colette, to the beach. While driving, he argues with his girlfriend Alice over the phone. The three women slowly but surely interfere. This, of course, does not solve anything…
THE FRENCH DEMOCRACY
France, 2005, Animation/Documentary, 13 min., Director: Koulamata
A very personal point of view on the 2005 riots in France and their origins, directed in a videogame anime style, by a young man from the Paris suburbs.
OH! BEAUTIFUL LIFE
Korea, 2003, 16 min., Director: Kim In-suk
This movie is about a girl named Eun-suk introducing her life. The movie begins at a job interview. In front of the interviewers, she raps her life out to them. In her splendid rapping, her life seems great, but the bitter reality is far from that.
SHAVE
Korea, 2003, 33 min., Director: Shin Su-won
16-year-old Hyung-jun, son of a poor, unemployed father, suffers threats from his classmates. When he finds an old 8mm camcorder his teacher used to monitor students, it’s his turn to record.
Speakers to be confirmed.
Tuesday, June 27, 6:30 pm
CHINA AND ITALY
Italian Cultural Institute
2025 M St. NW, Washington, DC
RSVP to (202) 223-9800 ext. 1
A TALE OF TWO CHINESE
China, 2005, 28 min. Director: Wei Dajun
This film depicts two ordinary Chinese, living in Beijing and Ningxia Autonomous Regions. One practices the violin while peddling newspapers; the other works on successfully producing an aircraft.
N.K. - NEVER KEEP SOUVENIRS OF A MURDER
Italy, 2002, 27 min., Directors: Anna De Manincor and Anna Rispoli
Two distinct stories become intertwined. Two identical hotel rooms with two distinct guests: a journalist and an armed woman on the run. Their stories, originating from opposite paths, develop soon unattended correspondences, eventually leading to an unavoidable substitution of roles.
Speaker: Matteo Bosco Bortolaso, ANSA
Thursday, June 29, 6:30 pm
ALL COUNTRIES
Goethe-Institut
812 Seventh St. NW, Washington, DC
RSVP to (202) 289-1200 ext. 169
JAPANESE YOUTH: MY DREAM
Japan, 17 min., English, presented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
A portion of this video will be screened, portraying the lifestyle of a Japanese high school student. What really moves Japanese young people? What are their dreams?
THE “WEIGHT” OF HER
Korea, 2003, 35mm, 20 min., Director: YIM Soon-rye
One episode from a special omnibus film (If You Were Me) dealing with human rights issues made by six Korean leading directors. The “Weight” of Her is a story about high school girls forced to have plastic surgery to get jobs.
A SIMPLE STEP
France, 2005, BETA, 10 min., Director: Eugenie Bourdeau
Twenty-three year old Audrey is preparing to throw herself from a large bridge into the emptiness below. She's flooded with memories of her past: her mother crying, her father leaving, her depression, her fears and then the death of a younger brother, and the circumstances surrounding his death. Freed from her emotions, Audrey takes a step into the emptiness...
DIE AUGEN VON JOHNNY DEPP (THE EYES OF JOHNNY DEPP)
Germany, 2004, Fiction, Mini DV, 12 min., Director: Alexander Hörbe
An old love, a new love, a betrayal and a win in the lottery make up this love triangle.
OLTRE S.P.A.
Directors: Lorenzo Burlando and Massimo Tiburli Marini
In an non defined future (yet a quite likely one), where the expanding technology rules over all aspects of human like, a highly innovative firm of undertakers, “Oltre S.p.A.”, is the first to market an interactive death service. By means of software, developed by dedicated researchers, “Oltre S.p.A.” is able to rebuild a virtual existence for any deceased, offering them a newfangled piece of AV perpetuity.
Film from China to be announced
Reception to follow
