Jonathan Rhys Meyers Q&A, Shia LaBeouf workshop and ten must see films at Manchester Film Festival in March
| 15th February 2018
With a line-up that includes documentaries, music videos and short and experimental cinema, the fourth Manchester Film Festival 1-4 March 2018 has more than 100 films.
It all kicks off with a preview screening at HOME on Monday 26 February 2018 of BERNARD AND HUEY, the ‘Allenesque’ UK premiere from SLAMDANCE founder and author Dan Mirvish, who will also be in attendance to answer questions from the LIVE audience.
Workshops during Manchester Film Festival include Shia LaBeouf (Transformers, Fury, Internet Memes), Dan Mirvish (Between Us) and Manchester Film Festival alumni Stef Dawson (The Hunger Games, Creedmoria).
Food and drinks are provided by Almost Famous, Home Sweet Home, and Seven Bro7hers brewery, alongside a feast of full length films at Odeon Great Northern including…
Painted Woman – Opening Night Film – 7:30pm, Thursday 1st March – UK PREMIERE
Returning to Manchester Film Festival after an Audience Pick and Best Production win for her 2017 breakout film Creedmoria (dir. Alicia Slimmer), Stef Dawson is the star of Painted Woman. From director James Cotten, this is an adaptation of Dusty Richards’ Western, “Mustanger and the Lady.” Cotten tells a story of betrayal, danger and feminine power with a phenomenal cast.
Can’t Say Goodbye – 1pm – Saturday 3rd March – SPANISH LANGUAGE with ENG SUBTITLES – UK PREMIERE
With Can’t Say Goodbye, Manchester Film Festival hosts the UK Premiere of the latest from Spanish director Lino Escalera. The film is a character study of a woman, Carla, who receives a phone call informing her that her estranged father has just months to live. She takes him to Barcelona in an attempt to save his life, whilst the trip exposes truths, lies and honesty of a father-daughter relationship.
Love is Dead – 6:15pm Friday 2nd March – FRENCH LANGUAGE with ENG SUBTITLES – UK PREMIERE
Love is Dead is the latest from Eric Capitaine, a French director making his MANIFF debut. Starring Benjamin Lavernhe as Mathias Lonisse as an entrepreneur behind “Love is Dead” business which takes care of break ups. The narrative kick-starts when his mother requests a break-up with his father and Mathias’ conflict comes to a head.
Hippopotamus – 3.20pm – Saturday 3rd March – UK PREMIERE
Hippopotamus is the debut feature length film from Edward Palmer. It stars rising actress Ingvild Delia in her first leading role after a brief speaking part in Avengers: Age of Ultron and as Carrie Fishers-CGI mapping template in Star Wars: Rogue One. It is the story of a kidnapped girl, Ruby, who awakens to find herself in the basement of a house she doesn’t recognise with her legs broken. Her kidnapper, Tom, explains that she is his captive until she falls in love with him. This screening is set to have a Q&A accompaniment.
Touched – 3.15pm – Saturday 3rd March – UK PREMIERE
A ghost story; Touched is a multi-genre mystery movie where a landlord attempts to find one of his constituents after she disappears. The Karl R Hearne directed feature stars Hugh Thompson as the landlord. This screening is set to have a Q&A accompaniment.
Damascus Cover – 7:45pm – Saturday 3rd March – UK PREMIERE
Jonathan Rhys Meyers (Match Point, The Tudors, Vikings) stars alongside John Hurt in the late actors’ final film. A drama set around the Middle East, featuring a spy, Ari Ben-Zion, tasked with smuggling a chemical weapons scientist out of Syria. This screening is set to have a Q&A accompaniment from Jonathan Rhys Meyers himself!
Buckout Road – 5:25pm – Saturday 3rd March
Danny Glover stars alongside Evan Ross in a film from Mathew Currie Holmes, which is based around a college class project gone wrong – as the class discover that evil urban legends that dwell on New York’s famous Buckout Road might be more real than they had ever expected.
Behind the Blue Door – 2:20pm – Sunday 4th March – POLISH with ENGLISH SUBS
Behind the Blue Door is the stylish new film from Polish director Dominik Kowalczyk, which centres around young, 11-year-old protagonist Lukas’ journey into a secret passage that resides within his Aunt Agatha’s house.
Silk Road – 4.35pm – Sunday 4th March – DUTCH WITH ENGLISH SUBS
A story about the infamous dark web website Silk Road. A twenty-year-old girl gets caught up in the drug trade whilst getting to know a charismatic new neighbour. The narrative unfolds into a dangerous game involving dodging police, mingling with criminals and huge secrets.
NONA – Closing Night Film – 7pm, Sunday 4th March – SPANISH WITH ENGLISH SUBS
Kate Bosworth stars in the closing night film, a Spanish language feature from Mexico. NONA, is the story of a cross-country immigration story from Mexico to America, where a girl named Hondouras faces a challenging journey with a seemingly-charming boy named Hecho.
NONA will precede the closing night awards ceremony, where an Oscars-style ceremony will award films for categories including Best Feature, Best Production, Best Short, Audience Pick and many more.
For more details on Manchester Film festival 1-4 March 2018 visit: maniff.com