- By Mabel Pais
Screening SHORTS
NEHAL VYAS’S Amma Ki Katha
ROOPA GOGINENI’S Suddenly TV
And many more
The Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) happens in person with the slate of feature and short films for its 19th edition, taking place September 14-17 at venues in Camden and Rockland, Maine, and online from September 18-25 for audiences across the US. YETI®, MSNBC Films, and RandomGood Foundation returning as Headlining Sponsors, and joined this year by deNovo Initiative and longtime sponsor National Geographic Documentary Films.
“As the development and distribution of independent documentary films become increasingly more difficult, we believe this program is a reminder of the incredible value of documentary film as a singularly powerful art form and its extraordinary ability to resonate with audiences,” says Ben Fowlie, Executive and Artistic Director of the Points North Institute, and Founder of the Camden International Film Festival. “Through 60 different film experiences, we explore the beautiful relationship between content and form, examining the power of the image, engaging with the potential of the archive, and immersing ourselves in the personal stories that help us to reflect, reimagine, and relate to one another. Cinema is a beacon, and we are grateful to the filmmakers who have made these works and shared these stories.”
2023 CAMDEN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL LIST FEATURES
APOLONIA, APOLONIA
Lea Glob | Denmark
THE ARC OF OBLIVION
Ian Cheney | USA
BETWEEN REVOLUTIONS
Vlad Petri | Romania, Croatia, Qatar Iran | US Premiere
BEYOND UTOPIA
Madeleine Gavin | USA, Korea, Laos, Thailand
EL CASTILLO
Martin Benchimol | Argentina, France | US Premiere
THE CONTESTANT
Clair Titley | UK | US Premiere
DEFIANT
Karim Amer | Ukraine, UK, USA | US Premiere
EASTERN FRONT
Vitaly Mansky, Yevhen Titarenko | Latvia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, USA | US
FAUNA
Pau Faus | Spain | US Premiere
A GOLDEN LIFE
Boubacar Sangare | Burkina Faso, Benin, France | North American Premiere
GRASSHOPPER REPUBLIC
Daniel Mccabe | USA | US Premiere
A HAWK AS BIG AS A HORSE
Sasha Kulak | France | North American Premiere
IN RESTLESS DREAMS: THE MUSIC OF PAUL SIMON
Alex Gibney | USA | US Premiere
IN THE SHADOW OF LIGHT
Ignacia Merino Bustos, Isabel Reyes Bustos | Chile | North American Premiere
JOONAM
Sierra Urich | USA
KNIT’S ISLAND
Ekiem Barbier, Guilhem Causse, Quentin L’helgoualc’h | France | North American Premiere
THE LADY BIRD DIARIES
Dawn Porter | USA
THE LAST YEAR OF DARKNESS
Ben Mullinkosson | China, USA
MACHTAT
Sonia Ben Slama | Tunisia, Lebanon, France, Qatar | US Premiere
MANIFESTO
Angie Vinchito | Russia | North American Premiere
MILISUTHANDO
Milisuthando Bongela | South Africa, Colombia
THE MISSION
Jesse Moss, Amanda McBaine | USA
NON-ALIGNED: SCENES FROM THE LABUDOVIĆ REELS
Mila Turajlić | Serbia, France, Croatia, Montenegro, Qatar | US Premiere
ONE WITH THE WHALE
Peter Chelkowski, Jim Wickens | Sivuqaq (St Lawrence Island), USA, UK, Portugal | World Premiere
ORLANDO: MY POLITICAL BIOGRAPHY
Paul B. Preciado | France
PIGEON TUNNEL
Errol Morris | UK
Q
Jude Chehab | USA, Lebanon
QUEENDOM
Agniia Galdanova | France, USA
REJEITO (TAILINGS)
Pedro de Filippis | Brazil, USA | US Premiere
SILVER DOLLAR ROAD
Raoul Peck | USA | US Premiere
A STORM FORETOLD
Christoffer Guldbrandsen | Denmark | US Premiere
THREE PROMISES
Yousef Srouji | Palestine, Lebanon, United States | US Premiere
TIME BOMB Y2K
Brian Becker, Marley McDonald | USA
SHORTS
PARALLEL
Lawrence Abu Hamdan | UK | 2022
A ROBUST HEART
Martin Benchimol | Argentina, USA, UK | 2023 | US Premiere
ALL THAT IS SACRED
Scott Ballew | USA | 2023
ALPHA KINGS
Enrique Pedráza-Botero, Faye Tsakas | USA | 2023
AMMA KI KATHA
Nehal Vyas | India, USA | 2023 | World Premiere
ANTI-COSMOS
Takashi Makino | Japan | 2022
BAY OF HERONS
Jared Lank | USA | 2023 | US Premiere
BEHIND THE SUN
Bentley Brown | USA, Saudi Arabia | 2023 | US Premiere
BLOOM
Helena Girón, Samuel M. Delgado | Spain | 2023 | US Premiere
CAMP COURAGE
Max Lowe | USA | 2023 | World Premiere
CLOSURE
Abigail Jakub | USA | 2022
DARKROOM
Asli Baykal | Turkey, USA | 2023
EAT FLOWERS
River Finlay | USA | 2023
ELEPHANT
Wes Sterrs | USA | 2023 | World Premiere
EVER SINCE, I HAVE BEEN FLYING
Aylin Gökmen | Switzerland | 2023 | US Premiere
FALLING
Anna Gyimesi | Hungary, Belgium, Portugal | 2023 | North American Premiere
INCIDENT
Bill Morrison | USA | 2023
LET’S GO TO THE MINES
Advik Beni | South Africa, USA | 2022 | World Premiere
LITTLE BOY LOON
Kevin Bay, Julia Thompson | USA | 2023 | World Premiere
MAS Y MAS Y MAS FLORES
César Martínez Barba | Mexico, USA | 2023 | World Premiere
MAST-DEL
Maryam Tafakory | UK, Iran | 2023 | US Premiere
SO THAT TONIGHT WE MIGHT SEE
Bea Hesselbart | USA | 2023 | World Premiere
SUDDENLY TV
Roopa Gogineni | Sudan, Qatar | 2022
TITO
Kervens Jimenez | Haiti | 2023 | North American Premiere
WAKING UP IN SILENCE
Mila Zhluktenko, Daniel Asadi Faezi | Germany, Ukraine | 2023
WELCOME TO KING FRIDAY’S DUNGEON
Destiny Arturet | USA | 2022 | World Premiere
WHAT THE HANDS DO
Bing Liu | USA | 2023 | World Premiere
For updates and more information, visit pointsnorthinstitute.org/ciff.
TICKETS
For Tickets and Pass options to the Festival, visit pointsnorthinstitute.org/ciff.
Points North
Established in 2016, the Points North Institute is the launching pad for the next generation of nonfiction storytellers. Building on the success of the Camden International Film Festival, the Points North Institute’s mission is to bring together a unique, interdisciplinary community of filmmakers, artists, journalists, industry leaders, and audiences, forming a creative hub on the coast of Maine where new stories and talent are discovered, collaborations are born, and the future of nonfiction media is shaped. Programs include the annual Camden International Film Festival and Points North Forum, as well as a year-round calendar of artist development initiatives that nurture the careers of diverse nonfiction storytellers and help them develop a stronger artistic voice.
Founded in 2005 and recognized as one of the top documentary film festivals in the world, the Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) brings innovative nonfiction cinema to the coast of Maine, showcasing 50+ documentary films and immersive works from around the globe each fall.
The 2023 Camden International Film Festival will take place September 14-17, with the virtual festival extending through September 25.
(Mabel Pais writes on The Arts and Entertainment, Social Issues, Spirituality, Education, Cuisine, Health & Wellness, and Business)