FRED Film Radio - English Channel

PODCAST: FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews Arto Halonen, director of White Rage, which had its international premiere at the 2016 One World Film Festival.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the picture of the film

What makes an apparently harmless person reach breaking point, and commit terrible acts of violence? Director Arto Halonen tries to come up with an answer with this documentary, which illustrates a scholar’s theory that revolves around the principle or “white rage,” in which these actions are inspired by childhood traumas and repeated acts of bullying.

Since its theatrical release on its home turf of Finland, White Rage has inspiredmany debates among people, and now the documentary had its international premiere in the programme of the 2016 One World film festival in Prague. We caught up with the director to talk about the film, how he first first came across this theory, how the film was constructed by blending the line between the documentary and fictional form and how this film has inspired and will inspire more discussions on its central topic.

WHITE RAGE: As a boy Lauri experienced harsh bullying, in elementary, middle and high school. Everywhere he seems to have attracted the darker side of people and became an easy target. Following other attacks and humiliations the anger in him grew; he became interested in guns and fantasised with mass murder. The documentary is formally built on an impressive idea. Lauri’s voiceovers tell of the darkest recesses of his imagination and bruised soul, which are visually depicted in re-enacted scenes and TV news footage of bloody attacks by young people on their classmates, by people who likely went through the same hell as Lauri, but whom no one noticed until it was too late.

The post Arto Halonen talks about his documentary “White Rage” #jedensvet appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews Ira Sachs, director of Little Men from the 66th Berlinale.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the picture of the film

Filmmaker Ira Sachs returns to FRED’s airwaves to talk about his latest film Little Men, from the Generation K plus section of the 66th Berlinale. Sachs reveals how he could never work on something he hasn’t somehow personally experienced. Love is Strange was born out of a moment in which he was reflecting of long term relationships. Little Men comes from a time in his life when he finds himself more focused and devoted on his children and his husband.

Sachs comments on his casting choices and how he chose Paulina Garcia after literally falling in love with her at the 2012 Berlinale, when he watched her in the film Gloria by Sebastian Lelio. To cite Sachs’ words, “Paulina is a natural artist, her performane is an elevated form of naturalism.”

LITTLE MEN: Summer in Brooklyn. Jake’s parents have just moved into the house that used to belong to his grandfather. Tony’s mother has been renting the shop on the ground floor forever. The two 13-year-olds quickly discover their shared interest in art, computer games and girls. Together, they dream of transferring to the renowned La Guardia High School in the autumn. Soon they become allies, not only against the other boys on the block, but also when it comes to the rent dispute between their parents. Attempting to stem the inexorable effect the adult world is having on their genuine friendship, they stage a headstrong protest. Once again renowned Indie director Ira Sachs intuitively explores the family and moral conflicts with emotional depth.

The post Ira Sachs talks about his latest film “Little Men” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews Pernilla August, director of the film A Serious Game (Den allvarsamma leken) from the 66th Berlinale.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the picture of the film

Director Pernilla August elaborates on the difficulties of adapting a classic novel of the Swedish tradition, titled Den allvarsamma leken. She also talks about how her long.term friendship and collaboration with Ingmar Bergman influenced her directing career, Pernilla says that she learned not to give up on her intuitions.

A SERIOUS GAME (Den allvarsamma leken): Once upon a time Lydia was the innocent girl, the painter’s daughter, the girl that the young promising journalist Arvid fell in love with during a lunch outing on a beautiful island in the Stockholm archipelago. Did he fall for the girl or the idea of pure, untainted love, the idea of love at first sight? The attraction between them is interrupted by the social structures of Stockholm’s society at the turn of the 20th century, restraining them from taking the leap into marriage. And so love slips away. A decade later, they meet when they are both married with children, but the desire takes the upper hand and they end up having an affair. An affair that forces the couple to reflect on the time they’ve spent apart and how it has changed them both. Their affair, their serious game, also comes with unforeseeable consequences in theirs as well as other people’s lives.

Based on the best selling classic novel by Hjalmar Söderberg and set in Stockholm in the beginning of the 20th century, the story about the complex romance between Lydia Stille and journalist Arvid Stjärnblom has touched reader’s hearts for over a century. In the hands of Danish screenwriter Lone Scherfig (Italian For Beginners, An Education, The Riot Club) and director Pernilla August (Beyond) the epic scope of this bittersweet love story has finally been made into a full cinema experience.

The post Pernilla August, director of “A Serious Game” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Bénédicte Prot interviews director André Téchiné, who presented his latest film Being 17 (Quand on a 17 ans) at the 66th Berlinale

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the picture of the film

André Téchiné tells us more about the experience of co-writing the script of this strikingly physical story about first times with the now well-established, talented young director Céline Sciamma (Girlhood). As he explains his choices to set the plot of Being 17 in a rural environment and to have Damien’s father working in the army, and as he describes the chemistry he was looking for in his two main actors, the veteran French filmmaker stresses the importance of being in touch with real life and respecting its natural flow.

BEING 17 (Quand on a 17 ans): Throughout their last year of high school, in a small rural town surrounded by the mountains, two boys with their lives ahead of them (thoughtfully and givingly embodied by Kacey Mottet Klein and Corentin Fila) experience the violent confusion of their age of first times and unknown feelings under the gentle watch, full of sense and sensibility, of the former’s mother (Sandrine Kiberlain).

The post André Téchiné talks about his latest film “Being 17” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interview Thomas Vinterberg, director of the film The Commune (Kollektivet) from the 66th Berlinale

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the picture of the film

One of the founding fathers of Dogme 95, Thomas Vinterberg, presented his latest film The Commune (Kollektivet) in competition at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. The Commune is loosely based on the director’s own childhood experiences. The director in fact lived a part of his life in a commune, and he tells us what it was that made him want to make a film about it. For her leading performance in the film, Trine Dyrholm won the Silver Bear for Best Actress.

Click here to listen to our interview with Trine Dyrholm, who won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the 66th Berlinale for her role in the film The Commune – FRED English channel

THE COMMUNE (Kollektivet): Erik and Anna are an academic couple with a dream. Together with their daughter Freja, they set up a commune in Erik’s huge villa in the upmarket district of Copenhagen. With the family in the center of the story, we are invited into the dream of a real commune; we participate in the house meetings, dinners and parties. It is friendship, love and togetherness under one roof until an earth-shattering love affair puts the community and the commune to its greatest test yet. The Commune is a humorous, delicate but also a painful and touching portrait of an entire generation. The film turns into a gentle yet confrontational declaration of love for a generation of idealists and dreamers who have long since awakened to reality.

The post Thomas Vinterberg, director of “The Commune” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews director Terence Davies and actress Jennifer Ehle on the film A Quiet Passion from the 66th Berlinale.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the image

Only a few months after meeting him at the Torino Film Festival, where he presented his film Sunset Song, FRED catches up with director Terence Davies to talk about his latest film, A Quiet Pasison, presented as a Special Gala of the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. With him, one of his leading actresses, Jennifer Ehle, who plays the role of Emily Dickinson‘s sister Vinnie in the film. Davies reveals how it was reading after all the letters Dickinson wrote throughout her life that he decided to create his own version of her life story. All the dialogues, some characters and the strong and ironic relationship she had with her sister are Davies’ own invention.

Click here to listen to our interview with actress Cynthia Nixon, who plays the role of Emily Dickinson in the film A Quiet Passion – FRED English channel

A QUIET PASSION is the life story of the celebrated American Poet Emily Dickinson, from her youth as a headstrong schoolgirl to her reclusive adulthood where poetry was solace.

The post Terence Davies, Jennifer Ehle talk about “A Quiet Passion” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews Trine Dyrholm, actress in the film The Commune (Kollektivet) by Thomas Vinterberg from the 66th Berlinale.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the image

Trine Dyrholm won the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival for her leading performance in Thomas Vinterberg‘s latest film The Commune (Kollektivet). On this interview, she tries to give the audience a potential eplanation for their surprised reaction to the infidelity of her character’s huband. And she also answers the question of whether or not she has to be sympathetic with the characters and roles she plays.

Click here to listen to our interview with director Thomas Vinterberg on his film The Commune – FRED English channel

THE COMMUNE (KOLLECTIVET): Erik and Anna are an academic couple with a dream. Together with their daughter Freja, they set up a commune in Erik’s huge villa in the upmarket district of Copenhagen. With the family in the center of the story, we are invited into the dream of a real commune; we participate in the house meetings, dinners and parties. It is friendship, love and togetherness under one roof until an earth-shattering love affair puts the community and the commune to its greatest test yet. The Commune is a humorous, delicate but also a painful and touching portrait of an entire generation. The film turns into a gentle yet confrontational declaration of love for a generation of idealists and dreamers who have long since awakened to reality.

The post Trine Dyrholm talks about her role in “The Commune” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews Bernardo Bernardo, Cherie Gil and Angel Aquino, actors of the film A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery (Hele Sa Hiwagang Hapis) by Lav Diaz, in competition at the 66th Berlinale.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the image

In A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery (Hele Sa Hiwagang Hapis) by Lav Diaz, Bernardo Bernardo, Cherie Gil and Angel Aquino all impersonate the same character, in different forms – respectively, the male Tikbalang, the female Tikbalang and the androgynous one. The Tikbalang is a mythological figure in Filipino tradition. The three actors were honored to work with Lav Diaz and the experience on set felt like a big party, with this great energy surrounding them. They declare to be “in love with Lav!”

Click here to listen to our interview with Lav Diaz, director of the film A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery – FRED English channel

LULLABY TO THE SORROWFUL MYSTERY: Interconnected narrative threads on the Philippine Revolution of 1896-1897 against Spain characterize Hele sa Hiwagang Hapis–the story of the ballad Jocelynang Baliwag, which became the hymn of the revolution; Gregoria de Jesus’ forlorn search for the body of the Father of Philippine Revolution Andres Bonifacio; the journey of our national heroes’ fictional book characters Simon and Isagani; the role of the Philippine mythical hero of strength Bernardo Carpio and the half-man, half-horse Tikbalang/Engkanto, on the Filipino psyche. It is a marriage of history, literature and mythology.

The post Bernardo Bernardo, Cherie Gil and Angel Aquino, actors of the film “A Lullaby to the Sorrowful Mystery” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews Ellen Dorrit Petersen and Cosmina Stratan, actresses of the film Shelley by Ali Abbasi, from the Panorama section of the 66th Berlinale

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the image

Ellen Dorrit Petersen and Cosmina Stratan star in Ali Abbasi’s film Shelley, featured in the Panorama section of the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. Stratan, who won best actress at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival, plays the troubled surrogate mother of a childless and therefore desperate couple, played by Ellen Dorrit Petersen and Peter Christoffersen. The actresses comment on the difficulties of portraying these characters, especially considering that neither had experienced anything similar in real life. When asked about their director Ali Abbasi, they both agreed on the fact that he loves actors, and allows them freedom to express their art and their roles.

SHELLEY: Young Romanian woman Elena arrives in the Danish countryside to work as a housekeeper for a recovering Louise and her husband Kasper. It’s an eerie feeling, being deep in a dense forest, far away from modern life. Especially since the isolated house is still and somber without electricity, according to Louise’s wishes. Elena adjusts quickly to her new routine of household chores, tending to chickens and helping fragile Louise. The two women grow closer, but the more they know one another, the more each finds the other stranger. Louise is devastated being unable to bear children after a horrifying miscarriage. Desperate for a child of her own, Louise offers Elena a generous financial deal to be the couple’s surrogate mother. Elena kindly accepts, and the money will help her return home sooner to her own small son. Elena’s pregnancy brings joy to the home of Louise and Kasper, but only briefly. The couple are troubled by Elena’s atypical cravings and aloof behavior. Bizarre hallucinations and unbearable sensations drive Elena to believe that something is frightfully wrong. The life growing inside of her is taking shape too fast, upsetting the lives of everyone like an evil force…

The post Ellen Dorrit Petersen and Cosmina Stratan on their roles in the film “Shelley” #Berlinale2016 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST: FRED’s Chiara Nicoletti interviews Mathilde Henrot, co-founder of Festival Scope, at the 66th Berlinale.

To listen to the interview, click on the ► icon on the right, just above the image

FRED caught up with Mathilde Henrot, co-founder with Alessandro Raja of Festival Scope, the platform all industry professionals know very well, offering services it provides to people working in the sectors of film acquisition, programming, international co-productions and promotion, in the final days of the European Film Market (EFM) of the 66th Berlin International Film Festival. The main topic of this interview concerns a big news for Festival Scope – the announcement of the development of a new platform, which will offer the general audience the opportunity to watch films featured in programs of film festivals. This new platform, done in collaboration with film festivals all over the world, hence begins a new era for Festival Scope, which will continue to offer services to professionals under the banner of Festival Scope PRO, and Mathilde Henrot tells us more about this brand new branch and the challenges to its creation.

FESTIVAL SCOPE in his creators’ words: “Over the last 5 years, Festival Scope has become a significant player in the film industry. Thanks to on-going agreements with film festivals worldwide, as well as our team’s commitment to discovering new films and talent with a curated approach, we make independent films available on-line so that they can enjoy extra visibility and promotion. Until 2015, Festival Scope was restricted to film professionals, providing a user-friendly environment to discover the latest films and projects on the festival circuit and get distribution and booking deals done. But our secret wish has always been to share our passion for independent cinema with everyone, everywhere, at any time. That time is now! Festival Scope celebrates its 5 years by branching out in two parallel paths. Festival Scope Pro is the path for film professionals actively involved in acquisitions, programming, promotion, exhibition, distribution, production or film journalism. Festival Scope is the new platform for film lovers who want to tour the world with us in search of the best films at the best film festivals.”

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