The
Gold Lion Film Festival
2009
Festival Venues
2009
Schedule
2009
Diary of Screenings
Awards
Committe
Mission
BUSH FIRE "Swaziland International Festival of the Arts"
Kicks off 2010 Gold Lion Film Festival !
The Gold Lion commences five months early this year with a first-time partnership between Africa's short film festival and Swaziland's annual live action concert/cultural extravaganza., Bush Fire, which is now in its fourth year. Always on the lookout for new venues to showcase the work of the world's independent filmmakers, the Gold Lion will be screening selected Official Selections for 2010 on twin giant screens for Bush Fire audiences (typically 5000 people). Dates: the evenings of May 28 and 29.
These will be official Gold Lion Film Festival screenings, and films shown are eligible for festival prizes in all categories. (Winners to be announced in October). Filmmakers whose work is selected for Bush Fire will be notified by May 23.
PROGRAMME ONE: Friday, 28 May
Patient (Drama. Canada) Director: Daniel Clements. Killing begets killing in coffee shop hostage standoff.
The Growing Season (Documentary. USA) Director: Susan Sfarra. Beautiful afternoon in the tree nursery passes as grandson learns from grandfather, the eternal cycle of human growth mirroring nature’s growth.
Sharp Sharp (Documentary. France) Director: Sylvie Coulon. South African youth make music from found objects under the guidance of visiting French maestros.
Mine de Rein (Comedy. France) Director: Jeremy Durand. Meek Parisian stubbornly pursues his own course to happiness.
The Fable of Two Crocs (Comedy. Cameroon) Director: George Philombe. Domestic bliss is disturbed by amphibian wife seducer.
PROGRAMME TWO: Friday, 28 May
Sabina’s Encounter (Drama. Kenya) Director: Albert Wandago. Abused woman is forced from husband’s house because she cannot bear children, and seeks comfort in religion.
Plato’s Cave (Documentary. New Zealand) Director: J. Ollie Lucks. The misunderstood and maligned science of chemistry asserts its role in humankind’s survival.
Sunset to Sunset (Experimental. USA) Director: Kent Hayward. A walk across Los Angeles from dawn until dusk in three minutes.
Once More (Drama. USA) Director: Hiroo Takaoka. Man clones his dead wife in a sensitive tale that is more philosophical than sensational.
For a Fistful of Snow (Animation. Switzerland) Director: Julien Ezri. Claymation snowmen meet mutual destruction in snowball fight to the death!
PROGRAMME THREE: Saturday, 29 May
Klya’s Law (Comedy. Italy) Director: Alessandro de Christofaro. After civil war ravishes the country of “Klya,” a bizarre law finishes off the survivors.
Hyerida (Drama. Israel) Director: Shai Miedzinski. Family comes to term with a son and brother’s death on a quest for his tombstone.
Male Order Bride (Comedy. USA) Director: Eric Bair. Misunderstanding brings man an unexpected companion.
Blue Spring. (Drama. Australia) Director: Motoko Shimizu. Disturbed woman uses self-destruction as revenge against lover.
Im Herbst kein Lied (Drama. Germany) Director: Karsten Prühl. Brothers bond when father shows his brutality during wartime encounter.
PROGRAMME FOUR: Saturday, 29 May
Albatrocity (Documentary. New Zealand) Directors: Iain Frengley and Edward Satau. Beautiful nature film celebrates the wonder of the sea bird the albatross.
Spotters (Comedy. USA) Director: Jeremy Stevermer. Co-workers at dry cleaners argue all day and sing at night.
Parking Space (Comedy. Canada) Director: David Bitton. Satan makes a man’s attempt to park his car a hellish adventure.
Pulse (Music Short. Canada) Director: Steve Cosmic. Woman seeks affirmation that she is alive.
Frog in the Well (Experimental. Japan) Director: Ken Ochiai. Son scatters his dead mother’s ashes across scenic Japan in a poetic odyssey that is a visual feast.
PROGRAMME FIVE: Sunday, 30 May
Awakening (Drama. USA) Director: Mario di Grossi. A woman dreams an encounter with an artist that makes her ponder her real-life relationship.
A Long Haul (Documentary, USA) Director: Nathaniel Kramer. A fisherman’s life is a compelling and musical tale.
Tags (Drama, USA) Director: Dominique DeLeon. Graffiti artist stakes out her personal and artistic territory.
Mind the Gap (Comedy. Canada) Director: Shaun Majumder. On a train, a sexy companion becomes a nightmare.
Exctincion II (Comedy. Spain) Director: Fernando Usón. Married life is an auto race speeding toward destruction for a wealthy couple.
Let me In (Musical short. USA) Director: Matthew Schutt. Country-Western song explores the personal drama of a commitment.
PROGRAMME SIX: Sunday, 30 May
There is a Frozen Land (Documentary. South Korea) Director: Zeeone Kang. Fascinating look into the divided people of Korea.
Superheroes VS. Monster (Comedy. South Korea) Director: Jong Young Park. Giant monster doesn’t stand a chance against ordinary office workers with special abilities.
Poi Dogs (Comedy. USA) Director: Joel Moffett. American high school football on the tropical Hawaiian Islands, a motorbike and a girlfriend who plays tuba.
The Catalyst (Drama. USA) Director: Dawn Westlake. Tension at the family dinner table leads to a woman’s break from her lover.
Sun and Stars (Drama. Nigeria) Director: Segun Anya . Actors performing in open-air before villagers dream of glory.
Nigerian/American filmmaker Temi Ojo, Director of "Renouncing Angelica"
receives 2009 Festival Director's Award from Gold Lion Film Festival director James Hall
29 October 2009
GOLD LION HOSTS FIRST FILMMAKERS WORKSHOP
| 2009 concluded with the first production workshop hosted by the Gold Lion Film Festival. Ten aspiring Swazi filmmakers aged 18 to 22 participated in the five-day course, held in Mbabane. Hands-on camera and editing work was featured, as teams wrote, shot and edited assignments using digital camera provided by the U.S. Embassy to Swaziland, which sponsored the initiative. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Swazi
girls with phones. The festival depends on young
volunteers from the University of Swaziland. |
Resembling a combination
between a Moorish market and Hollywood’s old
Coconut Grove, the amphitheatre at House on Fire has
been the glamorous main venue of the Gold Lion Film
Festival since the fest’s inception. |
