Roy Stafford

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The Global Film Book Blog

Ciao Ciao (France-China 2017) November 20, 2018
Ciao Ciao is the latest DVD release from Matchbox Films and a welcome surprise. Matchbox Films pick up a diverse range of films, but not usually a film like this which comes with the support of a Cannes Cinéfondation ‘Atelier’ tag and both a World Cinema Support Fund and CNC credit. Screened at the Berlinale in … Continue reading Ciao Ciao (France-China 2017 […]
Spike Lee Joint 3: Four Little Girls (US 1997) November 7, 2018
I’ve been prompted by shootings of African-Americans in far too many incidents over the last few years to dig out some notes I used in 2003. The crime investigated in Four Little Girls, the Spike Lee documentary, is also alluded to in Selma, the 2014 film about Martin Luther King. I thought that Spike Lee had … Continue reading Spike Lee Joint 3: Four Little […]
The Girl Who Kicked in the Hornet’s Nest (Luftslottet som sprängdes, Sweden/Denmark/Germany 2009) October 4, 2018
(I discovered this in a pile of unpublished posts. I’m posting it now as a tribute to Mikael Nykvist who died ridiculously young (of lung cancer) at 56 in June 2017. I also note that a second ‘follow up’ title in the Millennium series by David Lagercrantz has been published in the UK and that Sony … Continue reading The Girl Who Kicked in the Hornet’s Nest ( […]
Purple Butterfly (Zi hudie, China-France 2003) September 25, 2018
MUBI has recently included several films by the Chinese auteur Lou Ye as part of its rolling monthly programme. They titled their mini-season of Lou’s films ‘Freedom and Defiance: The Cinema of Lou Ye’. Lou Ye (born 1965) made his first features in China in 1994 and 1995, but it was not until 2000 that … Continue reading Purple Butterfly (Zi hudie, China-Fr […]
Under the Tree (Undir trénu, Iceland-Poland-Denmark 2017) August 21, 2018
At first, I was under the misapprehension that Under the Tree was a follow-up to Rams (2015), the Icelandic film that became a surprise arthouse hit in the UK in 2016. I was wrong. Under the Tree is a different writing and directing team. Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurðsson wrote and directed the film with Huldar Breiðfjörð as … Continue reading Under the Tree (Undi […]
The Bridges of Sarajevo (France-Bosnia-Herzogovina-Germany-Italy-Switz-Portugal-Bulgaria 2014) July 25, 2018
This compendium/portmanteau film features the work of 13 European directors who were asked to represent aspects of Sarajevo’s turbulent history. The film was completed for the centenary of the 1914 assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand which triggered the First World War. Since then the city, which had been in Austrian-Hungarian control since 1978 after […]

Media Student’s Book Blog

Balancing left and right
The Labour leadership election appears to have got the UK press and broadcasting media in a real tizz. One of the most aggravating aspects of the reporting is the constant appendage of ‘left-wing’ to any reference to Jeremy Corbyn. He is … Continue reading →
Defining the other
The 10th anniversary of the ‘7/7 bombings’ in 2005 in London saw a range of remembrance events across the UK. These resulted in a great deal of media coverage. One BBC radio reporter referred to the four young bombers and … Continue reading →
Getting the balance right
The local elections in England last week produced two examples of quandaries for broadcasters. The big story for the BBC and other commentators was the rise of the UK Independence Party (UKIP), led by a curiously charismatic Nigel Farage. UKIP are … Continue reading →
Welsh TV noir: Hinterland (UK 2013)
Hinterland is a good example of the global/local. Like some other modern states the UK has statutory requirements and cultural policies that protect the other languages in the Home Nations and this means support for both Welsh and Gaelic broadcasters … Continue reading →

Cineuropa

LIVE: European Film Awards 2018 - European Film Awards 2018
Watch the livestream of the ceremony for the 31st European Film Awards, taking place in Seville on Saturday 15 December at 19.30
The best of Italian cinema in Barcelona - Festival – Italy/Spain
The 7th edition of Barcelona Italian Cinema Festival kicks off today with ten films showcased at major international film festivals
Series Lab Brussels: What’s new in Belgium? - Television – Belgium
For its third edition, the event set up shop in Brussels as an integral part of the Are You Series? Festival, and we took the opportunity to take stock of RTBF and VRT’s upcoming Belgian series
Solothurn Film Days unveils its rich festival programme - Solothurn 2019
The films selected for the festival's 54th edition all question the meaning of life and spirituality: universal themes that never cease to fascinate
Interview: Frédéric Boyer • Artistic director, Les Arcs Film Festival - "Things change, as does distribution, and you have to evolve" - Les Arcs 2018
Frédéric Boyer, Les Arcs Film Festival selector (10th edition, 15 to 22 December), talks about the festival’s Work in Progress event
Interview: Cai Gongming • Producer and distributor, Road Pictures - “The Chinese film industry is concentrating intensely on European content now”
Road Pictures’ Cai Gongming chatted to us about the Chinese film market at the latest Bridging the Dragon event, which unspooled from 11-14 November in Beijing
When East Meets West announces 22 selected projects from 14 countries - Industry – Italy
The spotlight territories are Central Eastern Europe and Benelux, the selection includes two guest projects from Baltic Event and DOCSP Brazil, and a new award has been announced
Les Arcs Film Festival organises a Focus on Poland - Les Arcs 2018
This year, the French event is taking a closer look at recent Polish films and upcoming projects

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