Late New Hollywood legend Robert Altman (Gosford Park, M*A*S*H), late master of violence Sam Peckinpah, and Dogme 95, the Danish avant-garde movement led by directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg (Another Round), will get the spotlight treatment at the 15th edition of the Beijing International Film Festival
“To commemorate the 130th anniversary of world cinema,” the Beijing fest has curated a retrospective program “to document the history of film and envision its future,” organizers said. “With a curated selection of cinematic classics, the festival blends nostalgia with new perspectives, drawing inspiration from the past to ignite future creativity.”
Among the offerings will be “Endless Waves: 30 Years of the Dogme 95.” The Dogme 95 Manifesto expressed a commitment to create movies focused on storytelling, acting, and theme rather than the elaborate use of special effects or technological tricks. One of its key goals was to empower directors as artists. The fest didn’t immediately detail which Dogme 95 movies it will screen.
Meanwhile, to mark the 100th birthday of “film master” Altman, “the largest retrospective of his works ever held in China,” according to the festival. Among the Altman movies set to screen at Beijing are the likes of M*A*S*H, The Long Goodbye, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Nashville, A Wedding, and California Split. Ron Mann’s documentary Altman will also be shown.
“On the 100th anniversary of the birth of Sam Peckinpah, who is unique in the film industry for his violent aesthetics, the 15th Beijing International Film Festival will present Peckinpah’s western masterpiece The Wild Bunch” as part of its Tribute and Commemoration section, the Beijing fest added. “The film has influenced countless filmmakers.”
Switzerland serves as this year’s country of honor at the Beijing festival. The 15th edition of the Beijing festival takes place in the Chinese capital April 18-26.
Chinese actor-director Jiang Wen (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Let the Bullets Fly) will serve as the head of the main competition jury at the festival, which will hand out its Tiantan Award. The other jurors are Chinese American director and actor Joan Chen (The Last Emperor), British director David Yates (Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them), Chinese actor Ni Ni, Finnish director Teemu Nikki, Swiss director and actor Vincent Perez, and art director Tim Yip from Hong Kong.
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