L'Etrange 2022: South Korean Flicks THE ROUNDUP And ALIENOID Bookend Paris Genre Fest

L’ÉTRANGE FESTIVAL PARIS 2022

 

28th EDITION

 

L’Étrange Festival’s 28th edition will take place from September 6 to 18 at the Forum des images (Paris) and offer, as per its longstanding credo, a showcase of wonderfully weird movies to sate adventurous moviegoers’ appetites. The 13-day movie madness extravaganza is set to present 80 feature-length films and 56 short films from 29 countries under 2 competitive and 3 non-competitive sections.

 

Festivities will begin on September 6th with the French General Delegate of the Don Lee/Ma Dong-seok starrer The Roundup (the first of many K-movies showcased this year) and end on September 18th with the European General Delegate of Choi Dong-Hoon’s hotly anticipated sci-fi fantasy epic, Alienoid.

 

I N A N U T S H E L L

 

Along its renowned Carte Blanche events – British performance artist and musician Cosey Fanni Tutti and Harry, He’s Here to Help director Dominik Moll have curated an enticing array of singular, poetic and groundbreaking features – the Festival will pay tribute to maverick filmmakers Masahiro Shinoda and Mike de Leon.

 

Former adult star, writer and militant feminist Ovidie will host a special program dedicated to Neuroatypical artists. ‘’My aim’’, said Ovidie, ‘’is to share and showcase the breadth of talent, sheer force and furious creativity of those outlier artists who, for want of a better word, do not follow the majority’s neurological behavior.’’

 

A frequent collaborator, if not to say muse, of Vincente Aranda and Pedro Almodóvar, the ever charismatic Victoria Abril will present in the flesh 4 of her earlier and more provocative films, showing her versatility but also readiness to take on daring roles.

 

In addition to presenting his latest film – Unicorn Wars, a truly psychedelic anti-war parable with religiously bigoted teddy bears and environmentalist unicorns – Alberto Vázquez will take a deeper look into his body of work, starting with Birdboy (2011) up to Homeless Home (2020) through his first feature-length film, Birdboy:The Forgotten Children (2015).

 

Prior to the Closing and Award ceremony, a brand new restoration of Friedrich Freher’s masterpiece The Robber Symphony (1933) will have its World General Delegate, presented and accompanied live on piano by renowned film preservationist Serge Bromberg.

 

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM COMPETITION / CANAL+ GRAND PRIZE

 

12 feature-length films – representing 8 countries, with a particularly strong presence of South Korea – have been selected this year for the ‘’Nouveau Genre’’ competition strand. Among the films that will vie for the coveted Canal+ Grand Prize are:

• Russian dystopian horror-thriller-drama Captain Volkogonov Escaped

• Hong-sun Kim’s wild adrenaline roller coaster ride Project Wolf Hunting

• Eduardo Casanova’s bizarre and highly absurdist La Piedad

• Kristoffer Borgli’s supremely black comedy Sick of Myself

• German/Romanian Orwellian satire chock full of existential dread We Might As Well Be Dead.

 

Other titles selected in competition include: Attachment (Gabriel Bier Gislason), Family Dinner (Peter Hengl), Life For Sale (Tom Teng), Hunt (Lee Jung-jae), Hot Blooded (Cheon Myoung-kwan), Spiritwalker (Yoon Jae-geun).

 

Upon deliberation by a jury composed of industry professionals, the winning film will be acquired by French premium Pay-TV Canal+ for future broadcast. Canal+ is also partnering with L’Étrange Festival to award the most strikingly original short out of 55 shortlisted oddities divided into 7 thematic blocks.

 

NEW VOICES + MONDOVISION

 

Central to both these sections’ mandate is bringing together audacious filmmakers and audiences seeking fresh perspectives far away from the dominant tent-pole culture. Whether it’s Masaaki Yuasa’s Inu-Oh (a psychedelic anime rock opera about a blind musician and a physically deformed amateur dancer who achieve superstardom in 14th-century Japan), Sebastien Marnier’s The Origin of Evil (a particularly deft combination of high melodrama and psychological horror), Adilkhan Yerzhanov’s Assault (a hostage-and-siege movie of the farcical kind, chok-full of social undertones) or Harry Cleven’s uniquely disquieting stop-motion animation film Zeria, rabid filmgoers will have plenty to feast their eyes on and debate about.

 

MASAHIRO SHINODA + MIKE DE LEON + STEVEN ARNOLD TRIBUTES

 

Although Masahiro Shinoda has never enjoyed the same critical reverence as other Japanese New Wave auteurs of the 60s (Nagisa Oshima or Shohei Imamura), he is nonetheless one of the most essential Japanese directors of the 20th century.

 

‘’As part of the tribute, we will showcase no less than 11 films’’ said General Delegate Frédéric Temps – among which the seminal Double Suicide, Pale Flower and Silence but also the lesser known Himiko or My Face Red In The Sunset.

 

Pale Flower and Gonza The Spearman will be presented in a brand new 4K restoration. Assassination, Himiko, Under the blossoming cherry trees, Samuraï Spy and The Ballad of Orin will be projected from 35mm prints.

 

Masahiro Shinoda said ‘’In my ninety first year, I have learnt that L’Étrange Festival was hosting a special overview program of my Works. Coming now at the end of my natural life, this news goes straight to my heart.’’

 

No less significant a filmmaker is Mike de Leon, one of the more original and bold voices of Philippine cinema. ‘’Although his output is relatively limited’’ said International programmer Marc Troonen, ‘’his body of work is unlike any other of his generation.‘’

 

As part of the tribute, Itim, Will Your Heart Beat Faster, Kisapmata and Batch’81 will be presented in a brand new 4K restoration.

 

The festival will also shine a light – in the truest sense of the word – on American queer artist, filmmaker, photographer Steven Arnold. ‘’While he was Salvador Dali’s protégé and was greatly admired by Vogue’s Diana Vreeland, George Harrison, Thimothy Leary, John Waters‘ star Divine, he remains criminally under-recognized’’ noted Marc Troonen.

 

In addition to Luminous Procuress, Arnold’s flamboyant avant-garde masterpiece from 1971, a program comprised of his earlier shorts and the Steven Arnold: Heavenly Bodies documentary will be shown to provide greater context to his fantastical career and unconventional lifestyle.

 

CARTE BLANCHE – COSEY FANNI TUTTI

 

‘’Cosey Fanni Tutti’s carte blanche has been a long time coming’’ shared Frédéric Temps. “Covid ultimately decided otherwise (not once but twice). The films she curated are not only étrange to their very core but are also a perfect reflection of her own artistic journey and experiences.’’

 

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (Russ Meyer)

Cosey Fanni Tutti: The film starts off crazy and gets crazier and crazier, the pace of insanity escalating into a frenzy [...]. It’s a great, fun, hugely satirical snapshot of America in the late 1960s / early 1970s.

 

In the Realm of the Senses (Nagisa Oshima)

Cosey Fanni Tutti: [It] was released when I was working in the sex industry in the 1970s. The sex magazines featuring me were banned from being exhibited. So when word about Oshima’s film got out I was eager to see it. He seemed to be making a stand against censorship and oppression and exploring sexuality, all things I was deep into at the time.

 

In the Shadow of the Sun (Derek Jarman)

Cosey Fanni Tutti: I knew Derek Jarman back in the late 1970s when Throbbing Gristle were active. In 1980 he asked us to compose a soundtrack to this film. It seemed a novel idea and we approached it as a special ritual in itself by recording it

in an old mortuary very late at night to create an eerie atmosphere. We took all our audio equipment and instruments and recorded ourselves improvising live as we watched the film on a small TV monitor.

 

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

 

‘’What makes L’Étrange so unique is that it is neither a traditional arthouse nor a pure genre film festival’’ said Frédéric Temps. ‘’It’s somewhere in between. Right from the start, our focus was on bridging the gap between what are often seen as radically opposite filmmaking styles, genres, narratives or audience sensibilities which may explain why, after 28 years, the event remains young at heart (70% of his viewers are in the 18 to 32 age group).’’

 

L’ÉTRANGE FESTIVAL

28th édition

September 6 to 18, 2022

Forum des Images - Paris

www.etrangefestival.com

 

OPENING NIGHT

- THE DIAMOND dir. VEDRAN RUPIC, French premiere (short)

- THE ROUNDUP dir. LEE SANG-YONG, French premiere

 

CLOSING NIGHT

- ALIENOID dir. CHOI DONG-HOON, European premiere

 

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM COMPETITION /

CANAL+ GRAND PRIZE AND AUDIENCE AWARD

 

- ATTACHMENT dir. GABRIEL BIER GISLASON, French premiere

- FAMILY DINNER dir. PETER HENGL, French premiere, in the director’s presence

- HOT BLOODED dir. CHEON MYEONG-GWAN, European premiere

- HUNT dir. LEE JUNG-JAE

- CAPTAIN VOLKONOGOV ESCAPED dir. NATALIA MERKULOVA & ALEKSEÏ CHUPOV

- LA PIEDAD dir. EDOUARDO CASANOVA, French premiere, presented by EDUARDO CASANOVA

- LIFE FOR SALE dir. TOM TENG, European premiere

- PROJECT WOLF HUNTING dir. KIM HONG-SUN, European premiere

- SICK OF MYSELF dir. KRISTOFFER BORGLI

- SPIRITWALKER dir. YOON JAE-GEUN, French premiere

- THE ROUNDUP dir. LEE SANG-YONG, French premiere

- WE MIGHT AS WELL BE DEAD dir. NATALIA SINELNIKOVA, French premiere, presented by NATALIA SINELNIKOVA + prod. JULIA WAGNER + crew

 

OUT OF COMPETITION

Canal+ screenings – hosted and sponsored by Canal+

 

- DUAL dir. RILEY STEARNS

+ APOLOGIE DES ZÈBRES ALBINOS dir. GUILLAUME TALVAS (short)

- SPEAK NO EVIL dir. CHRISTIAN TAFDRUP, French premiere

+ THE LAST MARIAGE dir. JOHAN TAPPERT & GUSTAV EGERSTEDT (short)

- SEOBOK dir. LEE YONG-JU

+ SUCCESSFUL THAWING OF MR. MORO dir. JERRY CARLSSON (short)

 

MONDO VISION

 

- TRIANGLE OF SADNESS dir. RUBEN ÖSTLUND, presented by RUBEN ÖSTLUND

- THE ORIGIN OF EVIL dir. SÉBASTIEN MARNIER, French premiere, presented by SÉBASTIEN MARNIER + crew

- TCHAIKOVSKY’S WIFE dir. KIRILL SEREBRENNIKOV

- RIMINI dir. ULRICH SEIDL

- THE TOWER dir. GUILLAUME NICLOUX, presented by GUILLAUME NICLOUX + crew

- ZERIA dir. HARRY CLEVEN, presented by HARRY CLEVEN

- INU-OH dir. MASAAKI YUASA

- HERD IMMUNITY dir. ADILKHAN YERZHANOV

- ASSAULT dir. ADILKHAN YERZHANOV

- THICK AND THIN dir. SÉBASTIEN BETBEDER, presented by SÉBASTIEN BETBEDER + crew

- PIERRE PINONCELLI, L’ARTISTE À LA PHALANGE COUPÉE dir. VIRGILE NOVARINA, presented by VIRGILE NOVARINA

 

NEW VOICES

 

- THE RASCALS dir. JIMMY LAPORAL-TRÉSOR, presented by JIMMY LAPORAL-TRÉSOR + crew

- THE WOODCUTTER STORY dir. MIKKO MYLLYLAHTI, presented by MIKKO MYLLYLAHTI (TBC)

 

STRANGE VISIONS

 

- WHO KILLED NANCY dir. OTOMO DE MANUEL, World Premiere, presented by OTOMO DE MANUEL

 

CARTE BLANCHE EVENTS + TRIBUTES + SPECIAL SCREENINGS

 

CARTE BLANCHE - OVIDIE Hosted and presented by OVIDIE

 

- THE PUNK SYNDROME dir. JANI-PETTERI PASSI & JUKKA KÄRKKÄINEN

- SHOWCASE ASTÉRÉOTYPIE followed by a Q/A with the band

- HI, HOW ARE YOU DANIEL JOHNSTON? dir. GABRIEL SUNDAY, French premiere

- DERAILROADED: INSIDE THE MIND OF LARRY «WILD MAN» FISCHER

dir. JOSH & JEREMY RUBIN, French premiere

 

CARTE BLANCHE - COSEY FANNI TUTTI Hosted and presented by COSEY FANNI TUTTI

 

- IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES dir. NAGISA OSHIMA

- UN CHIEN ANDALOU dir. LUIS BUÑUEL, restored copy

- IN THE SHADOW OF THE SUN dir. DEREK JARMAN (short)

- DUFFER dir. JOSEPH DESPINS & WILLIAM DUMARESQ, French premiere

- BEYOND THE VALLEY OF THE DOLLS dir. RUSS MEYER

- MISTRESS dir. BARBET SCHROEDER

 

CARTE BLANCHE - DOMINIK MOLL Hosted and presented by DOMINIK MOLL

 

- FOOD dir. JAN SVANKMAJER (short)

- THE SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE dir. VICTOR ERICE

- THE CASTLE OF PURITY dir. ARTURO RIPSTEIN

- MEDIUM COOL dir. HASKELL WEXLER

- PIÈCE TOUCHÉE dir. MARTIN ARNOLD (short)

- THE SECOND CIVIL WAR dir. JOE DANTE

- BEING THERE dir. HAL ASHBY

- ALL ABOUT ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ Hosted and presented by ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ

- BIRDBOY dir. PEDRO RIVERO & ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ (short)

- RAMIRO, SUCIA RATA dir. Alberto Vázquez (short)

- SANGRE DE UNICORNO dir.Alberto Vázquez (short)

- DECORADO dir.ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ (short)

- PSICONAUTAS dir.ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ & PEDRO RIVERO (feature)

- HOMELESS HOME dir.ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ (short)

- UNICORN WARS dir.ALBERTO VÁZQUEZ (feature)

 

STEVEN ARNOLD FOREVER!

 

- STEVEN ARNOLD: HEAVENLY BODIES dir. VISHNU DASS

- THE LIBERATION OF THE MANNIQUE MECHANIQUE dir. STEVEN ARNOLD (short)

- MESSAGES, MESSAGES dir. STEVEN ARNOLD (short)

- VARIOUS INCANTATIONS OF A TIBETAN SEAMSTRESS dir. STEVEN ARNOLD (short)

- LUMINOUS PROCURESS dir. STEVEN ARNOLD, new restored copy, European premiere

 

THE GOLDEN AGE OF FARSI CINEMA Hosted and presented by EHSAN KHOSHBAKHT

 

- FILMFARSI dir. EHSAN KHOSHBAKHT, French premiere

- AN EVENING IN HELL dir. SAMUEL KHACHIKIAN & MUSHEGH SARVARIAN

- THE MIDNIGHT TERROR dir. SAMUEL KHACHIKIAN, new restored copy, French premiere

- DIAMOND 33/ALMAAS 33 dir. DARIUSH MEHRJUI, French premiere

- THE COACHMAN / DOROSHKECHI dir. NOSTRATOLLAH KARIMI, new restored copy

 

RETOUR DE FLAMME Hosted and presented by SERGE BROMBERG

THE ROBBER SYMPHONY dir. FRIEDRICH FEHER, new restored copy, World Premiere

 

TRIBUTE TO MASAHIRO SHINODA

 

- BALLAD OF ORIN dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- UNDER THE BLOSSOMING CHERRY TREES dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- HIMIKO dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- DEMON POND dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- SILENCE dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- DOUBLE SUICIDE dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- SAMOURAÏ SPY dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- PALE FLOWER dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA, new 4K restoration

- ASSASSINATION dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- MY FACE RED IN THE SUNSET dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA

- GONZA THE SPEARMAN dir. MASAHIRO SHINODA, new 4K restoration, French premiere

 

WELCOME TO THE VILLAGE

 

- MIKADO - LA FILLE DU SOLEIL dir. PIERRE & GILLES (video clip)

- KNI CRIK - O MANA dir. JEAN MICHEL ROUX (video clip)

- LES WAMPAS - OÙ SONT LES FEMMES ? dir. ÉTIENNE LABROUE & JO DAHAN (video clip)

- ÉTIENNE CHARRY - OSMOSE dir. BERTRAND MANDICO (video clip)

- FUROR TEUTONICUS dir. JEAN-JACQUES ROUSSEAU & VINCENT HACHET (short)

- UNCOMMON MEN FROM MARS - PIZZAMAN dir. MARCO LAGUNA (video clip)

- LES INNOCENTS - UN MONDE PARFAIT dir. PASCAL BAES (video clip)

+ PARAMOUNT HOTEL (commercials)

- DOMINIQUE A - JE SUIS UNE VILLE dir. LAURENT TUEL (video clip)

- LE PROFESSEUR CHORON & CHARLY OLEG - FORMIDABLE dir. JAN KOUNEN

(video clip)

- MONDO TRASHO dir. FRÉDÉRIC TEMPS & MARC BRUCKERT (short)

- SUPERDISCOUNT - LE PATRON EST DEVENU FOU ! dir. MARIE DE CRÉCY (video

clip)

- ALEX GOPHER - THE CHILD dir. ANTOINE BARDOU-JACQUET (video clip)

- KOJAK - STUPID JACK dir. ÉDOUARD DELUC (video clip)

- LAURENT GARNIER - COLOURED CITY dir. MARC CARO (video clip)

- MICHEL HOUELLEBECQ - PLAYA BLANCA dir. CHARLES PETIT (video clip)

- GOOD BOYS USE CONDOMS dir. LUCILE HADZIHALILOVIC (short)

- UNE EXPÉRIENCE D’HYPNOSE TÉLÉVISUELLE dir. GASPAR NOÉ (short)

- IVRE-MORT POUR LA PATRIE dir. VINCENT HACHET (short)

 

INA FANTASTICA!

 

- PERRAULT 70 dir. JACQUES SAMYN (short)

- PRÉSIDENT FAUST dir. JEAN KERCHBRON

- L’ENFANT DE LA HAUTE MER dir. ROGER KAHANE (short)

- LE VOYAGEUR DU SILENCE dir. ALBERTO CAVALCANTI (short)

- THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM dir. ALEXANDRE ASTRUC (short)

- THE COLLECTOR OF BRAINS dir. MICHEL SUBIELA

- LA GRÂCE dir. PIERRE TCHERNIA (short)

 

THE OTHER SIDE OF VICTORIA ABRIL Hosted and presented by VICTORIA ABRIL

 

- CAMBIO DE SEXO dir. VICENTE ARANDA, new 4K restoration, French premiere

- MATER AMATÍSIMA dir. JUAN ANTONIO SALGOT

- NO ONE WILL SPEAK OF US WHEN WE’RE DEAD dir. AGUSTIN DIAZ YANES

- DON’T TEMPT ME dir. AGUSTIN DIAZ YANES

 

MIKE DE LEON TRIBUTE

 

- BATCH’81 dir. MIKE DE LEON, new 4K restoration, French premiere

- WILL YOUR HEART BEAT FASTER? dir. MIKE DE LEON, new 4K restoration, French premiere

- KISAPMATA dir. MIKE DE LEON, new 4K restoration, French premiere

- ITIM dir. MIKE DE LEON, new 4K restoration, French premiere

 

L’ÉTRANGE’S FORGOTTEN GEMS

 

- LES MOIS D’AVRIL SONT MEURTRIERS dir. LAURENT HEYNEMANN

- HAPPENING dir. MARC BOUREAU, never released before

- SHANKS dir. WILLIAM CASTLE, new print

- COULEUR CHAIR dir. FRANÇOIS WEYERGANS, never released before

- DEATH GAME dir. PETER S.TRAYNOR, new print

- VAUDOU (entre vivants et morts, le sang) dir. JEAN-LUC MAGNERON

- JE, TU, ELLES... dir. PETER FOLDÈS

- ALLER À DIEPPE SANS VOIR LA MER dir. NICOLAS ERRÈRA (short)

- MAN ON A SWING dir. FRANK PERRY, new print

- PARIS-SECRET dir. ÉDOUARD LOGEREAU, new print, presented by CHRISTOPHE BIER & SYLVAIN PERRET

 

INTERNATIONAL SHORT FILM COMPETITION

CANAL+ GRAND PRIZE and AUDIENCE AWARD

55 films – 7 thematic blocks