Hail director Amiel Courtin-Wilson is in distinguished company, one of 70 filmmakers from around the world who have contributed to an innovative film marking the 70th anniversary of the Venice Film Festival.
Each director has made a short film of 60-90 seconds for Venezia 70 – Future Reloaded, which both celebrates the world’s oldest film festival and reflects on the future of cinema.
Among the filmmakers invited to participate are Bernardo Bertolucci, Paul Schrader, Walter Salles, Catherine Breillat, Shekhar Kapur, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Abbas Kiarostami, Monte Hellman and Peter Ho-Sun Chan. All have had films screened in Venice over the past 20 years.
Courtin-Wilson’s 90-second film is bound to be controversial as it features a couple having graphic, animalistic sex.
He told IF it’s based on several Scandinavian creation myths, is set in a world of endless night and ends with a solar eclipse. Screen Australia and Film Victoria supported the project.
The shorts will be have their first public screenings at the Lido during the festival, which runs August 28-September 7.
Ruin, a metaphysical love story road movie set in Cambodia, co-written, directed and produced by Courtin-Wilson and Michael Cody, will screen in Venice’s Orrizonti section, which recognises new trends in world cinema.
Among the other films competing in Orrizonti are Werner Herzog’s La Boheme, Joe Dante’s The Movie Orgy: Ultimate Version, Alex Cox’s Repo Chick and Peter Greenaway’s The Marriage.
Paul Schrader will serve as president of the international jury for the Orrizonti section.