The European Film Academy and EFA Productions have announced the EFA Documentary Selection, a list of 15 European documentaries recommended for a nomination for this year’s European Film Awards. Pieter-Jan De Pue’s Irish co-production The Land of the Enlightened is among the 15.
The Land of the Enlightened is an international co-production between Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Germany. Winner of the Sundance Special Jury Award for Best Cinematography, this captivating study of the next Afghan generation shocks and awes. Shooting over seven years, debut filmmaker Pieter-Jan De Pue artfully combines a child’s fantasy of the future with arresting documentary of the actual hardscrabble country that remains after decades of conflict. While a young voice narrates his impossible dream of riches and marriage, glorious 16mm footage captures his fellow gang members as they roam the valleys searching for undetonated explosives to sell or trade with other children. Some mine lapis lazuli by hand, others steal opium from passing caravans, and this informal mercenary system of lost boys controls the territory in ways the U.S. military could only admire. As the young hoodlums cheer the news of American troops withdrawing, their future—and the nation’s—is achingly uncertain. This lyrical portrait of an embattled land celebrates a primary Afghan strength: resilience.
Ten documentary festivals have recommended to the committee one film each which has had its world premiere at the respective festival’s latest edition. Chosen in co-operation with the European Documentary Network EDN, these festivals are:
• IDFA (Netherlands)
• CPH:DOX (Denmark)
• Visions du Réel (Switzerland)
• DokLeipzig (Germany)
• Docslisboa (Portugal)
• Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival (Greece)
• Jihlava (Czech Republic)
• Cinéma du Réel (France)
• Krakow Film Festival (Poland)
• Sheffield Doc/Fest (UK)
Based on their recommendations and the films individually submitted, the documentary committee, consisting of EFA Board Members Vanessa Henneman (Netherlands), Roberto Cicutto (Italy), and Marek Rozenbaum (Israel), documentary filmmaker Alexander Nanau (Romania) and documentary expert Paul Pauwels (European Documentary Network, Belgium) decided on the EFA Documentary Selection.
EFA Members will now vote for five documentary nominations. Based on these nominations, the EFA Members will then elect the ‘European Documentary 2016’ which will be announced during the awards ceremony on 10 December in Wroclaw, European Capital of Culture 2016.
The selected 15:
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21 X NEW YORK 21 X NOWY JORK Poland 71 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Piotr Stasik PRODUCED BY Agnieszka Wasiak |
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A FAMILY AFFAIR Netherlands / Belgium 115 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Tom Fassaert PRODUCED BY Wout Conijn |
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A GERMAN LIFE EIN DEUTSCHES LEBEN Austria 113 min.DIRECTED BY Christian Krönes, Olaf S. Müller, Roland Schrotthofer & Florian Weigensamer WRITTEN BY Florian Weigensamer PRODUCED BY Roland Schrotthofer & Christian Krönes |
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BECOMING ZLATAN DEN UNGE ZLATAN Sweden / Netherlands / Italy 95 min.DIRECTED BY Fredrik & Magnus Gertten WRITTEN BY Jesper Osmund, Fredrik Gertten & Magnus Gertten PRODUCED BY Margarete Jangård & Lennart Ström |
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DÉJÀ VU Denmark 88 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Jon Bang Carlsen PRODUCED BY Marianne Christensen & Jon Bang Carlsen |
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EUROPE, SHE LOVES Switzerland / Germany 99 min.DIRECTED BY Jan Gassmann PRODUCED BY Lisa Blatter, Jan Gassmann, Andreas Hörl, Florian Schneider & Maren Lüthje |
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FIRE AT SEA FUOCOAMMARE Italy / France 106 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Gianfranco Rosi PRODUCED BY Donatella Palermo, Gianfranco Rosi, Serge Lalou, Camille Laemle, Roberto Cicutto, Paolo Del Brocco, Martine Saada & Olivier Pere |
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HERR VON BOHLEN Germany 90 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY André Schäfer PRODUCED BY Jonas Niewianda |
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LOST AND BEAUTIFUL BELLA E PERDUTA Italy 87 min.DIRECTED BY Pietro Marcello WRITTEN BY Maurizio Braucci & Pietro Marcello PRODUCED BY Sara Fgaier & Pietro Marcello |
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MALLORY Czech Republic 97 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Helena T?eštíková PRODUCED BY Kate?ina ?erná & Pavel Strnad |
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MR. GAGA Israel / Sweden / Germany / Netherlands 100 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Tomer Heymann PRODUCED BY Barak Heymann |
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THE EVENT SOBYTIE Netherlands / Belgium 74 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Sergei Loznitsa PRODUCED BY Sergei Loznitsa, Maria Choustova & Nicola Mazzanti |
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THE LAND OF THE ENLIGHTENED Belgium / Ireland / Netherlands / Germany 87 min.DIRECTED BY Pieter-Jan De Pue WRITTEN BY Pieter-Jan De Pue & David Dusa PRODUCED BY Bart Van Langendonck |
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THE LONGEST RUN O PIO MAKRIS DROMOS Greece 74 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Marianna Economou PRODUCED BY Marianna Economou & Spiros Mavrogenis |
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WE’LL BE ALRIGHT BREF MANUEL DE LIBERATION France 78 min.WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Alexander Kuznetsov PRODUCED BY Rebecca Houzel |