Each year for a long time now, VanRamblings has most looked forward to the Vancouver International Film Festival’s Shorts Programme, as curated by VIFF programmer Sandy Gow, a person of immense humanity and goodness, a man of heart, wit and intelligence, and a man who loves film.
Whether a Short be five minutes in length, like British filmmaker Chris Ullens’ Leanne Womack’s “Hollywood”, or 14 minutes in length, as is the case with Taiwanese director Clifford Liu’s moving, muted yet powerful Grandpa, the 35 films Sandy Gow has curated into the four International Shorts programmes in 2019 are punch-in-the-gut films of the first order, or as Sandy was telling VanRamblings last week, “Each of the 35 filmmakers included in this year’s Shorts programme have more to say in six minutes than most feature filmmakers do in two hours.” And so it is, and so it is.
According to Sandy, in 2019 shorts submissions hit record numbers …

“We were up close to 90% in submissions this year, with over 1320 shorts made available to VIFF in 2019. Although there’s a team of six people who assist in the screening of the shorts, at the end of the day, the final choice is mine. Before handing films off to the screening team, I watched all or part of 950 films, watching 250 all the way through — after having done this for as long as I have, you come to know what works and what doesn’t. Out of the 1320 submissions only 35 films were chosen for the VIFF 2019 International Shorts programme, and as per usual the selected shorts were placed into four themed shorts programmes.”

Those four themed 2019 International Shorts programmes are as follows …
A Matter of Identity | | 8 shorts | 112 minutes

Thursday, October 3rd, 6pm, International Village 8
Saturday, October 5th, 12:30pm, International Village 8

“In A Matter of Identity we have the world première of flush from Sheridan O’Donnell, a filmmaker who was here last year,” says Sandy Gow, “when I introduced him to Squamish-based cinematographer Todd Duym. The two of them got together, and the result is the world première of flush. Todd also shot Tolerance, which is part of another one of our shorts programmes, Modern Tales from a Conflicted World.”

“We also have the world première of O Holy Ghost, a delightfully surreal comedy along the lines of The Lobster, from a few years back.”

Modern Tales from a Conflicted World | 10 shorts | 111 minutes

Friday, October 4th, 3pm, International Village 8
Monday, October 7th, 6pm, International Village 8
In a world defined by unrelenting, unforgiving change, in spite of and perhaps because of social media and the daily announcements of technical innovations that are supposed to make our lives easier and create a sense of connection, loneliness and isolation in societies across the globe remains rife. From the experimental documentaries to animation and almost everything in between, the shorts in Modern Tales from a Conflicted World mean to help us break down our pervasive sense of anomie, while delivering thought-provoking insight into the questions which besiege us, spanning the spectrum of our existence, and perhaps a few answers, too.
Troubled Voices, Teen Lives | | 8 shorts | 106 minutes

Tuesday, October 1st, 11am, International Village 9
With apologies to Sandy for not publishing our International Shorts Programme column earlier, the teen shorts programme is always the most popular of each year’s four shorts programmes Sandy curates, with a packed house for the initial screening yesterday, and only standby tickets available for tomorrow’s 11am screening of Troubled Voices, Teen Lives.
Each year, the international teen shorts programme presented by VIFF explores the breadth and complexity of teen lives, and the challenges teens face at school, in their homes, and in the larger world. While teens often struggle to both express their feelings and be heard, especially when their perspective challenges the conventional norm, each year this international shorts programme has always managed to capture the full range of teen lives, comedic, dramatic, revealing, that should you attend tomorrow’s screening will surely more fully inform your perspective on teen lives.
Somebody Dies | | 8 shorts | 107 minutes

Friday, October 4th, 6pm, International Village 8
Sunday, October 6th, 12:15pm, International Village 8
Says Sandy Gow, “Most of the films submitted to VIFF this year had featured, in some measure, a perspective on death. That’s true, surprisingly, of each of our four international shorts programmes this year, the tenuousness of our existence. As I wrote in the programme …

Death is the common denominator, often forcing difficult choices, emotional upheaval and a more philosophical understanding of life on those who are left behind.

Somebody Dies is my favourite of the four programmes this year, each of the eight films included in the programme stunningly beautiful and heartbreaking in their realization, a coterie of films that while spanning the filmic form gives a sense of meaning to each life lived.”
Sandy is wont to point out that there are many more Shorts Programmes than the four programmes he creates, totaling some 100+ films overall, that are included in VIFF 2019’s schedule this year, all worth checking out.

According to IndieWire’s Kate Erbland, Eric Kohn, Anne Thompson, Christian Blauvelt, David Ehrlich, Tambay Obenson, Jude Dry — superb and discerning film critics all — from buzzy awards players to unexpected gems, this year’s edition of the New York Film Festival is packed with thrilling choices. Today on VanRamblings, seven of those NYFF57 films that are also screening at the 38th annual Vancouver International Film Festival!
Atlantics

Most films that chronicle the plight of Africans undertaking the treacherous traversing of the Atlantic in search of better lives tend to be male-centric and grounded in stark realism. Mati Diop’s “Atlantics” upends that archetype, and harnesses fantasy and social relevance to tell a haunting story that focuses on the women who are often left behind. It’s one of the most original films of the year, and should continue to generate intrigue at both NYFF and VIFF en route to its Netflix launch.
Along the Atlantic coast, a soon-to-be-inaugurated futuristic tower looms over a suburb of Dakar, Senegal, but the construction workers haven’t been paid for months. Seventeen-year-old Ada (Mama Sané) is in love with Souleiman (Ibrahima Traoré), one of the construction workers, but has been promised to another man by her family. One night, the workers (including Souleiman) decide to leave the country by sea, in search of brighter futures. Whether they make it is a mystery.
Several days later, a fire ruins Ada’s wedding. Meanwhile, a mysterious fever starts to spread with incalculable ramifications. The strange, poetic circumstances keep piling up. “Atlantics” is a fantastical blend of romance and socio-political commentary at once, laced together by a surreal dreamscape.
But above all, this is a story about an impossible love, destroyed by injustice. Not since Diop’s own uncle, director Djibril Diop Mambety, made the seminal “Touki Bouki” has cinema seen an African couple worthy of the tragedy that is “Romeo and Juliet.” Diop made history when the film premiered at Cannes earlier this year — becoming the first black woman to direct a film featured in the festival’s Competition section. It won the Grand Prix, kicking off a festival run that will come to a head when it arrives at NYFF and VIFF with much-deserved hype. — TO
Cunningham

Legendary modern dance choreographer Pina Bausch presaged her American contemporary Merce Cunningham in a few non-dance-related areas: The lauded German artist passed away mere weeks before Cunningham did in 2009, and her work inspired a jaw-dropping 3D film eight years before Cunningham’s received the same sort of cinematic treatment. It’s hard to imagine a more fitting double feature than Wim Wenders’ “Pina” and Alla Kovgan’s upcoming “Cunningham,” a pair of 3D documentary features that bring to vivid life the work and artistry of two icons of modern dance through contemporary means.
Much like “Pina,” Kovgan’s film attempts to translate the magic of Cunningham’s live work (much of it crafted in New York City itself) to the big screen through 3D technology and an array of key archival material. Also like Bausch and the many devoted students she left behind, “Cunningham” grapples with the question of a choreographer’s legacy and what can actually remain of the kind of work that can be so literally fleeting. A choreographer is surely a creator, but when they make something as ephemeral as a dance — not a painting or a film or a sculpture, something that can be held — what becomes of their work? It’s a complicated question, and one that takes center stage in “Cunningham,” which helps unpack the choreographer’s own forward-thinking take on how to preserve his own legacy. — KE
Marriage Story

Netflix launched the “Marriage Story” bandwagon with raves at Venice and rolled into Telluride when Martin Scorsese presented his stunned “Silence” star Adam Driver with his tribute medallion. (The 35-year-old actor also showed “The Report” at both Telluride and Toronto.) But the role that will nab him his first Best Actor Oscar nomination (he scored a Supporting Actor nod this year for “BlacKkKlansman”) is Noah Baumbach’s wrenching (and painfully funny) divorce drama.
In fact, all three of its stars could land Oscar attention. Driver plays a New York stage director whose actress wife (never-nominated Scarlett Johansson) hires a hard-driving lawyer (fast-talking two-time Oscar nominee Laura Dern) in order to keep their young son in Los Angeles. NYFF and VIFF audiences will likely enjoy the push-and-pull between the two coasts; the film is both a look at the quieter reaches of LA and a distinctly New York valentine. When Driver is forced to take a crucial phone call in the middle of a busy street, Gothamites will sympathize.
While Baumbach gives both divorce parties plenty of attention, Driver gets to sing Stephen Sondheim at classic New York hangout Knickerbocker. Advantage Driver. — AT
Pain and Glory

Filmed in filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar’s real-life home and cast with longtime collaborators Antonio Banderas and Penélope Cruz, “Pain and Glory” has been touted as the closest thing to memoir we may ever see from the beloved Spanish auteur. Not only is Almodóvar one of the select few living filmmakers known only by their last name, that last name has become synonymous with a certain poetic intrigue, a colorful but emotionally-grounded aesthetic, and a joyous sensuality.
With his 21st feature film, the director turns the camera inward in what may be his most personal film to date. Banderas won the Best Actor award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival for his performance as Spanish director Salvador Mallo, whose crisp Jordans and color-blocked shirts make him a none-too-thinly-veiled ringer for the stylish Almodóvar. Preoccupied by the aches and pains of aging, memories of a love affair, and a fraught project, Salvador tries heroin on a whim.
Moving between time periods, “Pain and Glory” visits his ’60s-era childhood, with Cruz as the filmmaker’s mother, the heyday of the ’80s, and his mid-career conflicts in the present day. A return to form for the filmmaker who never truly left, “Pain and Glory” sees the master pushing himself to newer depths. NYFF played a key role in elevating Almodóvar’s U.S. profile, and this year, he repaid the favor by designing the festival’s poster. (He’ll also celebrate his birthday at the festival.) But his movie is the real star of this year’s show. NYFF and VIFF have always been firmly filmmaker-focused, and “Pain and Glory” offers a distinct and fresh take on what it means to be a true auteur. — JD
Parasite

For sheer storytelling bravura, it’s hard to top the armrest-gripping, breath-snatching suspense of “Parasite,” a thriller that also manages to be a blistering critique of trickle-down economics. This is one Palme d’Or winner that nobody will contest — a propulsive yarn more exciting than the most exciting action films released this year.
Except it’s not an action film: It’s a character study about a family of grifters who slowly worm their way into the life of an industrialist’s wife and her family. Are they feeding off their wealthy hosts like the title suggests? Is director Bong Joon Ho saying that crime is the natural outgrowth (and perhaps the only recourse for the marginalized) of capitalism? You decide. (But you probably won’t until well after the end credits have rolled because you’ll just be so caught up in finding out what happens next.)
“Hitchcockian” is one of the most over-used and inexpertly applied adjectives in film debates, but “Parasite” deserves the label not just because of its high-wire plot but its scathing dissection of class politics as set in a modernist house even the famously interior design-minded Master of Suspense would adore. (Seriously, this piece of real estate may even top the homes in “North by Northwest” and “Suspicion.”) Hitchcock famously said that his films were not a slice of life but a slice of cake. By the time the credits roll, Bong shows that even that kind of confection may not go down so easily. — CB
Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Céline Sciamma’s absolute barnburner of a romance may not be in the running for Best International Feature Film at the Oscars — France submitted Ladj Ly’s “Les Misérables” instead, despite the fact that nothing has a real shot of beating “Parasite — but “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” still has plenty of kindling to keep it lit. A profoundly tender story of self-discovery and creation that sparks when a reluctant 18th century bride-to-be (the brilliant Adèle Haenel) meets the beautiful woman who’s hired to paint her wedding portrait (the just-as-brilliant Noémie Merlant), this heart-stopping masterpiece not only won the Best Screenplay prize at Cannes this year, it was also named one of IndieWire’s 100 Best Films of the Decade; one accolade may be slightly more prestigious than the other, but it’s worth putting Sciamma’s accomplishment into proper context.
Austere where Sciamma’s “Tomboy” was anxious, and restrained where “Girlhood” was outgoing, “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” is a period romance that’s traditional in some ways, progressive in others, and altogether so damn powerful that it will leave you weak in the knees (especially after that all-timer of an ending). “Portrait” may not be able to ride the “Best International Feature” wave, but here’s hoping that its New York and Vancouver premières will help propel the film towards other forms of recognition. — DE
Vitalina Varela

The winner of the Golden Leopard from this year’s Locarno Film Festival is a perfect opportunity to discover the wonders of Pedro Costa. The Portuguese director conjures dark, dreamlike portraits of post-colonial neglect and yearning that hover somewhere between fantasy and neorealism, horror and melodrama, spirituality and desperation. Costa’s fifth journey into the shantytown Fontainhas, which lies on the outskirts of Lisbon, once again showcases Costa’s masterful ability to mine cinematic poetry from a unique environment and the mournful figures who wander its murky depths.
The Costa Expanded Universe stems back to 2006’s “Colossal Youth,” when he first began exploring the Cape Verdean residents of Fontainhas by casting members of the immigrant community as themselves. The ravishing blend of light and shadow captures the characters as they explore the claustrophobic interiors of their ramshackle homes and muse about their aimless lives. Costa’s dour, humorless aesthetic takes time to settle in and certainly requires a degree of openness to his approach, but “Vitalina Varela” is a perfect distillation of the rewarding nature of that process.
At its centre, the eponymous Vitalina steps up from her supporting role in Costa’s “Horse Money,” playing a version of herself as a woman who returns to the shantytown after her estranged husband has passed. As Vitalina roams the town and wrestles with the past, she hovers in a mesmerizing labyrinth of soul-searching and grief (she also befriends a despondent priest, Ventura, who oversees an abandoned house of prayer as if preaching from the end of times). “Vitalina Varela” feels at once otherworldly and familiar in its evocation of perseverance amid dire conditions; it’s a tragic lament with the slightest glimmer of hope. NYFF did the right thing by putting “Vitalena” in its main slate, rather than its experimental sidebar; this is the sort of singular creative vision that everyone who cares about movies should seek out. — EK

C’mon back tomorrow when VanRamblings will present in-depth insight and information on this year’s can’t miss Shorts programme, and an interview with VIFF’s longtime Shorts programmer, the ever-so-humane Sandy Gow.
In the meantime, click on the graphic below to access all of VanRamblings’ coverage to date of our 38th annual Vancouver International Film Festival.

The 38th annual Vancouver International Film Festival is about to fall upon us, taking over cinemas across Vancouver with some 300+ films representing 70 countries. Running from this Thursday, September 26th through Friday, October 11th, our beloved film festival is best approached like a multi-country overseas vacation: with pre-planning, and lots of it.
While the 38th annual Vancouver International Film Festival will screen 300 films — 156 features, 60 documentaries and 90 shorts — and while that seems like a lot to the casual filmgoer, it’s a tiny fraction of the films that were considered for the festival this year. Those final 300+ films were chosen through an elaborate process that began at the outset of the year and involved thousands of films, dozens of people (VIFF has 35 people working in some capacity in programming, and an additional 45 who work as prescreeners), and probably not quite enough fresh air and sunshine.
Films chosen for VIFF come to the festival in many ways. One is by blind submission — films that are sent to VIFF for consideration in response to a general invitation. Associate Programming Director Curtis Woloschuk estimates that several thousand films were submitted for the 2019 festival; all were viewed by festival programmers, and less than 10% were chosen.

The primary question in the mind of most of those planning on attending VIFF 2019 is “What movies to choose?” Please find below a few informed tips to guide you (you’re going to want to read the expansive coverage of VIFF 2019 provided by VanRamblings this month for further insight into the film we write today, by clicking on the mighty purdy graphic above).
Award Winning Films Arriving on Our Shores from Global Festivals
Festival programming staff spend the year traveling to film festivals spanning the globe, and programme the best into the VIFF film schedule.
In total today, we’ll briefly present 24 films set to screen at VIFF 2019 that we believe are worthy of your time and consideration. First up …

Here’s an up-to-date list of Best International Film Oscar contenders that are set to screen at the 38th annual Vancouver International Film Festival:
The Invisible Life Of Eurídice Gusmão | Brazil | Karim Aînouz
Spider | Chile | Andrés Wood
The Painted Bird | Czech Republic | Václav Marhoul
Les Misérables | France | Ladj Ly
Those Who Remained | Hungary | Barnabas Toth
Adam | Morocco | Maryam Touzani
It Must Be Heaven | Palestine | Elia Suleiman
The Whistlers | Romania | Corneliu Porumboiu
Parasite | South Korea | Bong Joon-ho
Pain and Glory | Spain | Pedro Almodóvar
And Then We Danced | Sweden | Levan Akin
Each of the film titles above link to their VIFF online web page, allowing you to purchase your tickets online. In addition, VanRamblings has written, at some length, about all of the above nominated films in our VIFF coverage of the Best International Feature Film Oscar contenders, which may be accessed here (it’d be well worth your while to click on the preceding link).
There are four more films on the VIFF 2019 schedule that won acclaim and awards both at Cannes this year, and in their home countries:

Portrait of a Lady on Fire, directed by Celina Sciamma, arrives from France.
Plus, Iceland’s A White, White Day, directed by Hlynur Pálmason.
Scarborough, our favourite advance screened film.
And, finally, Synonyms, the acclaimed Israeli film.
Acclaimed Oscar Contenders set to screen at VIFF 2019

Ford v Ferrari will screen as a Special Presentation on the final day of VIFF 2019, on Friday, October 11th at 6pm at The Playhouse.
Harriet screens once, at 3pm at The Centre, on Saturday, October 5th.
A Hidden Life screens at The Centre, 8:45pm, Sunday, September 29th.
Jojo Rabbit will screen at VIFF 2019 just once, as a Special VIFF 2019 Presentation, at 6:15pm, on Wednesday, October 2nd, at The Centre.
Just Mercy screens at The Centre at 9pm on Saturday, September 28th.
The Laundromat screens at 3pm at The Centre on Sunday, October 6th.
The Lighthouse screens at The Centre at 6pm, on day three of the festival, Saturday, September 28th
Marriage Story will screen at The Centre, 8:45pm, Thursday, October 10th.
Motherless Brooklyn screens at The Centre, 8:45pm, Monday, Sept. 30th.
Waves will screen once, at noon, at The Centre, on Sunday, October 5th.
Click on the graphic below for more expansive coverage of the films above.

Note. Pick up a free, glossy Festival guide. They’re available all over town, at libraries, coffee shops, and bookstores, as well as your favourite haunts.
Film Programmes Remain at the Heart of the 38th annual VIFF
You’ll also want to make sure to catch VIFF films captured in the various film programmes, Sea to Sky (BC Spotlight), True North (Canadian), Gateway + Dragons & Tigers (Asia), as well as the “alternative” programmes: M/A/D, ALT, NEXT and Impact each of which pushes both boundaries, showcasing the best new work from across the globe.
And for heaven’s sake, don’t forget about VIFF 2019’s expansive Documentary programme, the always tremendous Shorts programme (about which we’ll be writing this upcoming weekend), and the always impressive Youth programme.
How and where do I buy tickets?
You can buy tickets online at viff.org when clicking on the title of a film, and print your tickets at home, or call the VIFF Infoline from noon to 6pm, daily, or use the VIFF app. During the Festival you can buy tickets at the various festival venues. Tickets for special screenings are $17, while most screenings cost $15, less if you’re a student or a senior. As always, the best deal comes should you purchase a festival pass: weekday matinee passes at $175 are the best deal. Full festival passes range in price from $125 (students), $345 (seniors), $435 (full pass) to $1,000 (the platinum pass). You may wish to consider a discount 6 or 10 ticket pack ($50 – $135).
What about all those lines outside the theatres?
Arrive early at the VIFF venue where your film is screening, the venues mostly the same this year as last: The Centre, the Vancity, Cineplex International, the Playhouse, SFU Goldcorp, the Cinematheque, the Vogue, the Rio, and new this year, The Annex at 823 Seymour Street.
Each VIFF screening will have three separate queues: a pass-holder line (for those with passes hanging around their necks; you know who you are), a ticket-holders line (for those with tickets in hand) and a rush line. Standby tickets, for screenings that are sold out, go on sale 10 minutes before showtime.
What about bus routes and parking?
Translink / Coast Mountain buses are the best way to get around, although most of the venues are within walking distance of one another. Skytrain will whisk you to The Rio in no time flat. There’s parking at Cineplex International Village, but you’re going to want to check in with Festival staff (they’ll be wearing bright yellow VIFF t-shirts) to register your vehicle.
What about crowds?
There will be crowds, particularly at the better-known films; not a lot you can do about that. Maybe you’ll meet somebody nice in line; it happens often. Weekday screenings generally have shorter lines, particularly for the less well-known films.