France's Etrange Festival Rolls Out 2012 Titles

A spotlight on Ben Wheatley and nights given over to Jan Kounen and Kenneth Anger to curate are among the highlights of the 2012 Etrange Festival in France. One of the oldest and largest genre festivals in the world Etrange boasts - as always - a stellar lineup. Check the announcement below.

L'ÉTRANGE FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES ITS 2012 LINE-UP
18th EDITION  /  6 - 16 September 2016
Paris, France - August 07, 2012
L'Étrange Festival - a unique event bringing filmgoers a fascinating roster of provocative and eye-opening films - is thrilled to announce the line-up for its 18th edition, September 6 - 16, 2012 in Paris, France.
The 2012 line-up continues the tradition of highlighting emerging talent, paying homage to independent-minded filmmakers and featuring a truly diverse program that includes cutting-edge works, outlandish genre movies, lost masterpieces, innovative shorts...
L'ETRANGE FESTIVAL is often regarded as the most "exciting cultural event of the Fall season in France" and is attended by over 17 000 rabid moviegoers each year.
EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED
Over the course of eleven days, more than 80 features will screen at L'Étrange festival, among which 6 International Premieres and more than 30 French Premieres...
... such as DREDD by Pete Travis, LOS CHIDOS by Omar Rodriguez-Lopez,  PAINLESS by Juan Carlos Medina, CITADEL de Ciaran Foy, BERBERIAN SOUND STUDIO by Peter Strickland, VANISHING WAVES by Kristina Buozyté & Bruno Samper or A FANTASTIC FEAR OF EVERYTHING by Crispian Mills & Chris Hopewell (featuring Simon Pegg)...
... and many high-profile Asian films such as MOTORWAY by Soi Cheang, DEAD SUSHI by Noboru Iguchi, AFTERSCHOOL MIDNIGHTERS by Hitoshi Takekiyo, EEGA by SS Rajamouli or GYO by Takayuki Hirao.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
A record of 21 feature-length films have been selected for the NOUVEAU GENRE competition and will vie for a cash prize award amounting to the purchase of the French premium broadcast rights by Canal+Cinema. See full list below.
Last year, Belgian film "BULLHEAD" by Michael R. ROSKAM won this prize. And in 2010, the prize went to "BURIED" by Rodrigo CORTES. Both films had their preview at L'Etrange Festival before being acclaimed by the public and critics.
The same 21 feature-length films will also participate our brand new International Competition: The AUDIENCE AWARD.

Other high-profile events inClude
- a "CARTE BLANCHE" offered to the most oddly esoteric French filmmaker Jan Kounen (Dobermann, Darshan, Blueberry, the secret experiment...) and to the legendary Kenneth Anger himself ! The honorable gentleman will also enjoy his 85th anniversary in Paris by having a chat with Nicolas Winding Refn, performing an exclusive musical live set for L'Etrange Musique and presenting an outstanding exhibition at Galerie du Jour Agnès B.
- Focuses dedicated to astonishing directors Ben Wheatley, Mathieu Seiler and Ron Fricke.
- an entire NIGHT supported by Canal+Cinema devoted to the "NEW BRITISH GENERATION" with such films as Grabbers by Jon Wright or Tower Block by James Nunn & Ronnie Thompson...
- a frightening "ZOMBIE" NIGHT
- a MOTORPSYCHO THEME with V6, speed, fast cars and crashes...
- an INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM COMPETITION consisting of the most creative and innovative productions of the last 10 months
- 3 "Music on Films" live shows for sidebar event L'ÉTRANGE MUSIQUE.
- And, last but not least, an unparalleled guest roster including such diverse talents as Juan Martinez Moreno, Benjamin Reiner, Vincent Patar & Stéphane Aubier, Serge Bromberg, Nicolas Winding Refn, Pierre William Glenn ...

L'ÉTRANGE FESTIVAL - 18th EDITION COMPLETE LINE-UP
6-16 September - Forum des Images - Paris 1

OPENING PERFORMANCE
Cornée - Stéphane Blanquet
Wrong cops - Quentin Dupieux
Headhunters - Morten Tyldum

CLOSING FILM
Dredd - Pete Travis (International Premiere)

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
« Nouveau Genre » Prize & Audience Award (Unreleased & Previews)
1-Black's game - Oskar Thor Axelsson (French Premiere)
2-Painless - Juan Carlos Medina (International Premiere)
3-God bless America - Bobcat Goldthwait
4- 11.25 The day he chose his own fate - Koji Wakamatsu
5-Headhunters - Morten Tyldum
6-Iron Sky - Timo Vuorensola (French Premiere)
7- Citadel - Ciaran Foy (French Premiere) - introduced by director
8-Vanishing waves - Kristina Buozyté & Bruno Samper (French Premiere)
9-Sightseers - Ben Weathley - introduced by director
10-Excision - Richard Bates Jr.
11-Motorway - Soi Cheang (French Premiere)
12- Los Chidos - Omar Rodriguez-Lopez (European Premiere)
13-Bullet collector - Alexander Vartanov (French Premiere) - introduced by director
14-Game of werewolves - Juan Martinez Moreno (French Premiere) - introduced by director
15-Antiviral - Brandon Cronenberg
16-Comforting skin - Derek Franson
17-The Thompsons - Butcher Brothers (French Premiere)
18-A chinese ghost story - Wilson Yip (French Premiere)
19-Redd Inc. - Daniel Krige (International Premiere)
20-A fantastic fear of everything - Crispian Mills & Chris Hopewell (French Premiere) - introduced by Crispian Mills
21-Berberian sound studio - Peter Strickland (French Premiere) - introduced by director


UNRELEASED / PREVIEWS
Fiction Films :
1-Hated - Lee Madsen (French Premiere)
2-The second death - Santiago Fernandez Calvette (French Premiere)
3-Dead Sushi - Noboru Iguchi (French Premiere)
4-The fourth dimension - Harmony Korine, Aleksei Fedorchenko & Jan Kwiecinski (French Premiere)
5-Dead shadows - David Cholewa (World Premiere) - introduced by director & team
6-Paradies : Liebe - Ulrich Seidl
7-Afterschool midnighters - Hitoshi Takekiyo (European Premiere)
8-Henge - Hajime Ohata (French Premiere)
9-La chispa de la vida - Alex de la Iglesia
10-Maniac - Franck Khalfoun
11- Gyo - Takayuki Hirao (French Premiere)
12-Eega - SS Rajamouli (French Premiere)
13-Ernest & Celestine - Benjamin Reiner, Vincent Patar & Stéphane Aubier - introduced by directors
14-Resolution - Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead (French Premiere)

Documentaries :
1-Practical electronica - Ian Helliwell (French Premiere)
2-Road dogs - Shane Aquino (International Premiere) - introduced by director
3-Marina Abramovic The Artist is Present - Matthew Akers & Jeff Dupre
4-Room 237 - Rodney Ascher
5-How to start your own country - Jody Shapiro
6-Blank City - Céline Danhier

A "CARTE BLANCHE" TO JAN KOUNEN
1-Three Supermen at the Olympic Games - Yavuz Yalinkiliç (live audio commentary by Jan Kounen)
2-Blood freaks - Steve Hawks & Brad F.Grinter
3-Crimewave - Sam Raimi + Ultimate fucking - Jan Kounen)
4-Man with the movie camera - Dziga Vertov
5-Koyaanisqatsi - Godfrey Reggio + Panshin Beka Winoni - Jan Kounen
A "CARTE BLANCHE" TO KENNETH ANGER
1-Beyond the forest - King Vidor
2-The outlaw - Howard Hughes
3-Freaks - Tod Browning
4-Peeping Tom - Michael Powell
Program number 5 « The occult program » is included in musical evening L'Étrange Musique

BEN WHEATLEY FOCUS
Down Terrace - Ben Wheatley (French Premiere)
Kill List - Ben Wheatley
Sightseers - Ben Wheatley (Also participating the International Competition!)
MATHIEU SEILER FOCUS
Stefanies Geschenk + 2 short films - Mathieu Seiler
Der Ausflug - Mathieu Seiler (French Premiere)

RON FRICKE FOCUS (hosted by Jan Kounen) :
Baraka - Ron Fricke
Samsara - Ron Fricke (French Premiere)

CANAL+CINEMA NIGHT "New British Generation"
Attack the block - Joe Cornish
Grabbers - Jon Wright (French Premiere)
Tower block - James Nunn & Ronnie Thompson (French Premiere)
God save the films - David Périsseire (documentary)

ZOMBIE NIGHT
Zombie ass - Noburu Iguchi (French Premiere)
Cockney Vs zombie - Matias Hoene (French Premiere)
Gangsters, Guns & Zombies - Matt Mitchell (French Premiere)
Osombie - John Lyde (International Premiere)

MOTORPSYCHO THEME
1-Gone in 60 sec - H.B Toby Halicki
2-Motorway - Soi Cheang (Also participating the International Competition!)
3-The Driver - Walter Hill
4- KKK - Kenneth Anger + Motor Psycho - Russ Meyer
5-Knightriders - G.A Romero
6-Freebie & the Bean - Richard Rush
7-The Iron Horse - Pierre William Glenn - introduced by director

"PEPITES DE L'ETRANGE" / ODDITIES ON THE ROCKS
1-Subconcious cruelty - Karim Hussain
2-Las Edades de Lulú - Bigas Luna
3-De Noorderlingen - Alex Van Warmerdam - 20th anniversary (new copy)
4-I, Pierre Rivière... - René Allio
5-Tawk al hamama al mafkoud - Naser Khemir
6-The freakmaker - Jack Cardiff
7-Self defense - Paul Donovan & Maura O'Connell
8-Remote Control - Jeff Lieberman
9-The loved one - Tony Richardson
10-Inserts - John Byrum
RETOUR DE FLAMME with piano performance by Serge Bromberg
The Phantom of the Opera - Rupert Julian (restored version with color inserts))

SHORT FILMS / INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
(Audience Choice & Canal+Award)
45 films / 5 programs

L'ÉTRANGE MUSIQUE / Music on films
- A tribute to Kenneth Anger : Sayona (Shazulla Nebula + Ernesto of Sylvester Anfang II) plays Black Mass Rising (French Premiere)
- 7 weeks plays Bob Clark's « Dead of Night »
- « Technicolor Skull » by Kenneth Anger & Brian Butler play (French Premiere)
+ « The occult program » (International Premiere)
Inauguration of the pleasure dome (Kenneth Anger, 1954, 38min)
Brush of Baphomet (Kenneth Anger, 2009, 7 min)
Night of Pan (Brian Butler, 2009, 7 min)
Union of Opposites (Brian Butler, 2012, 10 min)

EXHIBITIONS :
- "ADN Inside" at Galerie Cabinet des curieux  (12 September - 27 October)
- "60 United Dead Artists" curated by Stéphane Blanquet at Galerie Artsfactory (7 September - 6 October)
- "Kenneth Anger" at Galerie du jour Agnès B (13 September - 3 November)