2022 San Sebastian: Borș’ “Carbon”, Drukarova’s “Grand Marin” & Baumeister’s “Daughter of Rage” Selected in New Directors
Last week we got the first set of titles that will (for the most part) premiere at the 2022 San Sebastián International Film Festival. Earlier today, the Donostia folks lassoed thirteen films for their New Directors section. They include projects that we’ve been keeping an eye out on for a good stretch including Laura Baumeister‘s Daughter of Rage – a social issue drama that has taken its sweet time in post (there might be some EFX elements). We also find Dinara Drukarova‘s Le Grand Marin – which was co-wrote with Raphaëlle Desplechin and sees Drukarova, Dylan Robert, Antonythasan Jesuthasan and Sam Louwyck in the book to film project set in Iceland. Set in a world of men, our lead faces fear, physical exhaustion, the unleashing of nature. She will also have to choose between her feelings for the one she calls “the lion man” and her freedom. We also have Romanian Ion Borș‘ Carbon, which received support via the WIP Latam and WIP Europa and is pitch as a 90s-set black comedy. Here are the selections and more bio info on each title.
From the website:
Jeanne Aslan (Sorgun, 1976) and Paul Saintillan (Versalles, 1971) French moviemakers are two of the helmers who will show their debut film in New Directors. Together they co-directed Fifi / Spare Keys, the tale of a teenager who establishes a relationship with her girlfriend’s brother during summer.
The Nicaraguan Laura Baumeister (Managua, 1983) will present her first movie, La hija de todas las rabias / Daughter of Rage, a story about an 8-year-old girl who gets by as she can in a rubbish dump. The film was made partly thanks to the support of San Sebastian Festival, where she landed the best project award at the VIII Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum (2019) and the WIP Latam Industry Award (2021), among others.
For his part, the director from the Republic of Moldova Ion Borș (Chisinau, 1990), who carried off last year’s WIP Europa Industry and WIP Europa awards thanks to his feature film, CARBON, will participate with this black comedy set in the early 90s during theTransnistria War.
The Danish filmmaker Katrine Brocks (Copenhagen, 1989) will compete with her first full-length movie, Den Store Stilhed / The Great Silence, following a young novice whose quiet life is threatened when her brother pays her an unexpected visit in the convent.
The Russian actor settled in France Dinara Drukarova (Saint Petersburg, 1976) will present her first feature behind the camera, Grand Marin. She herself plays the starring role of a woman who leaves everything behind to set sail on a fishing boat and head for the northern seas.
The moviemaker Carmen Jaquier (Geneva, 1985) will also make her feature debut with Foudre / Thunder, the portrait of a woman’s emancipation in early 20th-century Switzerland.
Jeong-sun is the directorial debut of Ji-hye Jeong (Busan, 1995), the Korean competition winner at Jeonju Festival with this movie about a woman who becomes embroiled in a covert affair with a colleague at the factory where both work.
The Japanese filmmaker Takeshi Kogahara (Nagasaki, 1982) will also show his debut in feature films with the title of Nagisa, following the love story between a brother and sister driven apart by death.
For her part, the director and producer Rocío Mesa (Granada, 1982) will participate in New Directors with her first fiction, the feature film Secaderos, tinged with magical realism set in tobacco drying rooms.
The directing trio Masahiko Sato (Shizuoka, 1954), Yutaro Seki (Kanagawa, 1987) and Kentaro Hirase (San Francisco, 1986) make their debut with Miyamatsu to Yamashita / Roleless, addressing the trials and tribulations of a cable-car operator who side-lines as a film extra.
The Indian moviemaker Parth Saurabh (Darbhanga, 1993) will present his first inroads as a director, Pokhar Ke Dunu Paar / On Either Side of the Pond, following a couple who, forced by the economic difficulties caused by the pandemic, return from Delhi to their hometown, where their relationship starts to unravel.
In addition, the Croatian Josip Žuvan (Trogir, 1987) will show his debut, Garbura / Carbide, about two friends who try to keep their friendship alive despite the quarrelling between their respective families.
Joining these titles are the first feature from Maria Elorza (Vitoria-Gasteiz, 1988), the already announced A los libros y a las mujeres canto / To Books and Women I Sing, about an anonymous and unarmed legion of women who take care of books.
