Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF) today announced a full programme of genre treats ahead of their July 6th start date. In addition to the previously announced world-first focus on genre films of New Zealand and the festival's highlighting of Swiss fantastic cinema, the festival presents a packed Competition, an exciting exploration of New Cinema from Asia, and a delve into the more extreme, unusual and innovative offerings the genre world has to offer with their Films of the 3rd Kind and Ultra Movies strands.
Oh yeah, and David Cronenberg's going to be there...
Take a look at the full announcement below!
The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (8-14 July) is proud to reveal its official programme for the 18th edition, focused on highlighting the boldness of current productions. With David Cronenberg as President of the jury, the international competition will be composed of an overview of the most anticipated releases (UNDER THE SILVER LAKE from David Robert Mitchell, HEREDITARY from Ari Aster, MANDY from Panos Cosmatos), as well as first features from emerging talents (Tilman Singer’s LUZ, Rasmus Kloster Bro’s CUTTERHEAD, Justin P. Lange & Klemens Hufnagl’s THE DARK), and the best of auteur cinema in the fantasy genre (CLIMAX from Gaspar Noé, DIAMANTINO from Gabriel Alamantes & Daniel Schmidt, MUERE, MONSTRUO, MUERE from Alejandro Fadel). Daring experimental films will play alongside retrospectives and cartes blanches, to outline the history of genre cinema, notably with the CLASSICS RELOADED category, dedicated to restored version of renowned masterpieces screened at the Open Air. WHAT WE DO IN NEW ZEALAND, first-ever retrospective focused on Nez Zealand genre films, will take you to the other side of the world, and the EL DORADO section will make a comeback to pay homage to the limitless imagination of Latin American cinema. For its opening ceremony, the NIFFF will present the world premiere of the web series LE 5E CAVALIER, in collaboration with RTS. The Swiss premiere of HÔTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3 will conclude the festival on a quirky, funny, intergenerational note!
THE NIFFF IN A FEW NUMBERS
THE NIFFF’s 18th edition has a total budget of CHF 2’175’000. Lasting 9 days, it will show over 150 films from 14 sections. It can welcome 2’135 viewers at the same time. The 168 public screenings will be composed of 109 features and 60 shorts from 41 countries, including 7 world premieres, 6 international premieres, 9 European premieres, and 53 Swiss ones. The free NIFFF Extended and NIFFF Invasion programmes will offer more than 71 activities, 61 of which are conferences.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION
16 films will compete for the H.R. Giger “Narcisse” award to be given by David Cronenberg, which amounts to CHF 10,000 from the City of Neuchâtel. Among the competition’s major players are the Swiss premieres of TIGERS ARE NOT AFRAID (Issa López), lauded by Guillermo del Toro, and of the most terrifying film of the year, namely Ari Aster’s HEREDITARY. The adaptation of popular manga KASANE by Japanese filmmaker Satô Yûichi will have its international premiere here. Other highlights include the retro comedy AN EVENING WITH BEVERLY LUFF LINN which is Jim Hosking’s second feature, whose first film made quite the impression at the 2016 edition, as well as Iranian social comedy PIG (KHOOK) from Mani Haghighi...
AN EVENING WITH BEVERLY LUFF LINN Jim Hosking, USA, 2018, 108’ Swiss premiere
CUTTERHEAD* Rasmus Kloster Bro, Denmark, 2018, 84’ World premiere
CLIMAX* Gaspar Noé, France, 2018, 95’ Swiss premiere
DIAMANTINO Gabriel Abrantes & Daniel Schmidt, Portugal/France/Brazil, 2018, 92’ Swiss premiere
HEREDITARY* Ari Aster, USA, 2018, 120’ Swiss premiere
LUZ* Tilman Singer, Germany, 2018, 70’ Swiss premiere
MUERE, MONSTRUO, MUERE* Alejandro Fadel, Argentina/France/Chile, 2018, 109’
Swiss premiere
PIG (KHOOK) Mani Haghighi, Iran, 2018, 90’ Swiss premiere
TIGERS ARE NOT AFRAID Issa López, Mexico, 2017, 83’ Swiss premiere
UNDER THE SILVER LAKE David Robert Mitchell, USA, 2018, 139’ Swiss premiere
KASANE Satô Yûichi, Japan, 2018, 100’ International premiere
MANDY Panos Cosmatos, USA/Belgium, 2018, 121’ Swiss premiere
PIERCING Nicolas Pesce, USA, 2018, 81 Swiss premiere
THE DARK Justin Lange & Klemens Hufnagl, Austria, 2018, 91
European premiere
TIME SHARE Sebastián Hofmann, Mexico, 2018, 96’ Swiss premiere
WHEN THE TREES FALL Marysia Nikitiuk, Ukraine/Poland/Macedonia, 2018, 88
Swiss premiere
NEW CINEMA FROM ASIA
Working as a true indicator of where Asian genre cinema stands, this section is comprised of the newest trends from the Far East. This year will mark the return of Miike Takashi with the European premiere of LAPLACE’S WITCH. The crazy and colourful super hero flick BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO from Vikramaditya Motwane (who won big at last year’s NIFFF) will be shown, as well as the highly anticipated remake of the classic SATAN’S SLAVES by Indonesian filmmaker Joko Anwar...
BAD GENIUS Nattawut Poonpiriya, Thailand, 2017, 130’ Swiss premiere
INUYASHIKI Sato Shinsuke, Japan, 2018, 126’ Swiss premiere
OPERATION RED SEA Dante Lam, China, 2018, 142’ Swiss premiere
BHAVESH JOSHI SUPERHERO Vikramaditya Motwane, India, 2018, 153’ Swiss premiere
HANAGA T AMI Ôbayashi Nobuhiko, Japan, 2017, 169’ Swiss premiere
LAPLACE’S WITCH Miike Takashi, Japan, 2018, 117’ European premiere
SATAN’S SLAVES Joko Anwar, Indonesia/South Korea, 2017, 107’ Swiss premiere
FILMS OF THE 3RD KIND
Film genres intersect in this diverse selection of hybrid experiments and formally innovative movies. Prepare for an avalanche of Swiss premieres and prestigious guests: headstrong actress Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir from WOMEN AT WAR (SACD award at the International Critics' Week), Benedikt Erlingsson, screenmovies creator Timur Bekmambetov (and his film PROFILE), the adorable little (for the most part) monsters from MONSTER HUNT 2, and Frank Ribière, director of LA FEMME LA PLUS ASSASSINEE DU MONDE. Finally, Yannick Renier will be in attendance to present CARNIVORES, which he directed with his brother, and tells a story centred on the carnivorous relationship between two sisters who work in the film industry.
AMMORE E MALAVITA* Marco & Antonio Manetti, Italy, 2017, 133’ World premiere
CORNELIUS, LE MEUNIER HURLANT* Yann Le Quellec, France, 2018, 105’ International premiere
I KILL GIANTS Anders Walter, USA/UK/Belgium, 2017, 104’ Swiss premiere
MARY SHELLEY Haifaa Al-Mansour, UK/Ireland/Luxembourg/ USA, 2018, 120’
Swiss premiere
MUTAFUKAZ Guillaume "Run" Renard & Nishimi Shojiro, France/Japan, 2017, 90’
Swiss premiere
PROFILE* Timur Bekmambetov, USA/UK/Cyprus/Russia, 2018, 105’
Swiss premiere
THE REAL ESTATE Måns Månsson & Axel Petersén, Sweden/UK, 2018, 88’
Swiss premiere
CARNIVORES* Yannick & Jérémie Renier, France/Belgium, 2018, 87’
International premiere
HOTEL ARTEMIS Drew Pearce, United Kingdom/USA, 2018, 94’ Swiss premiere
LA FEMME LA PLUS ASSASSINEE DU MONDE* Franck Ribière, Belgium/UK/USA, 2018, 102’ Swiss premiere
MONSTER HUNT 2
Raman Hui, Hong Kong/Chine, 2018, 110’ Swiss premiere
NUMBER 37* Nosipho Dumisa, South Africa, 2018, 90’ European premiere
THE MAN WITH THE MAGIC BOX Bodo Kox, Poland/Italy, 2017, 105’ Swiss premiere
WOMAN AT WAR* Benedikt Erlingsson, Iceland/Ukraine/France, 2018, 101’
Swiss premiere
ULTRA MOVIES
Looking for thrills? The ULTRA MOVIES category will test your limits with the most extreme works of the year. Guests include actress Amanda Plummer (Pulp Fiction, Hunger Games), who will present the international premiere of A YOUNG MAN WITH HIGH POTENTIAL from Linus de Paoli, and BLOOD TEST director Owen Egerton, who will introduce his horror film festival-set gorefest... There will also be the European premiere of Colin Minihan’s latest gloomy film, WHAT KEEPS YOU ALIVE, in the presence of his two main actresses.
A YOUNG MAN WITH HIGH POTENTIAL* Linus de Paoli, Germany, 2018, 85’ International premiere
BLOOD FEST Owen Egerton, USA, 2018, 90’ European premiere
LIVERLEAF Naito Eisuke, Japan, 2018, 114’ European premiere
PREMIKA Siwakorn Charupongsa, Thailand, 2018, 90’ Swiss premiere
THE GREEN FOG Guy Maddin, Evan & Galen Johnson, USA, 2017, 63’
Swiss premiere
ATERRADOS Demián Rugna, Argentina, 2017, 88’ Swiss premiere
GONJIAM: HAUNTED ASYLUM Jeong Beom-sik, South Korea, 2018, 95’ Swiss premiere
ONE CUT OF THE DEAD Shinichiro Ueda, Japan, 2018, 96’ Swiss premiere
THE FIELD GUIDE TO EVIL V. Franz, S. Fiala, P. Strickland, A. Smoczynska, K. Gebbe, C. Evrenol, C. Reeder, A. Ahluwalia & Y. Veslemes, New Zealand, 2018, 117’ European premiere
WHAT KEEPS YOU ALIVE Colin Minihan, Canada, 2018, 98’ European premiere