Diamonds and rust

(Diamantes e )

Off the coast of Namibia, the rust-ridden, diamond-mining ship The Spirit of Namibia cruises the area controlled by the De Beers syndicate. Waiting for their overdue leave, the oddly assorted crew put up with breakdowns, crises, suspicion, tensions and solitude. The film follows the daily life of six members from South Africa, Namibia, Cuba and lsrael.
This observation of the crew's living conditions and different mentalities-particularly racial discrimination-uncovers an isolated microcosm, where rank is all important and work is hard... particularly for the Namibians. A world of contrasts is revealed between these tiny priceless diamonds and the pittance earned by the sailors.

La mémoire dure

(A memória permanece)

"In a "language initiation class", primary school children who have just arrived in France follow intensive language training so that they can join a class corresponding to their level. Non-French-speaking children, aged 6 to 12, and a school teacher face to face with an almost insoluble dilemma, These are the main characters of a film in which the distance between two countries, two languages and two ages is explored, What emerges is a territory where our models are overturned, where our adult and European words resound too loudly... often with a false ring. The children from China, Black Africa, North Africa, South America and elsewhere are faced with this schoolroom captivity, which we have all experienced then forgotten. Yet, these children escape through glances, dreams and an experience of the world they have brought with them in their small bags, and remain as obstinately silent as water carriers.
The camera accompanied them for 9 months", (R, Ragazzi)

Na casa de Vanda

"In Ossos (1997), Pedro Costa filmed the social outcasts of the Fontainhas district on the oUtskirts of Lisbon. Expelled from the human Community, the characters float in the endless hiatus induced by drugs, hunger and poverty: (...) In the present film, narrative, the outside world and even the film crew have alI disappeared. What remains is a face-to-face experien ce between Vanda Ouarte, the physically wasted young woman of 05505, Pedro Costa, who films her with a small digital camera and, off camera, the deafening noise of mechanical shovels, which advance like death to wipe the district and its inhabitants off the face of the earth. Apart from a few rare visitors, conversations with her sister and quarrels with her mother, the film's subject matter centres on Vanda's emaciated, almost absent body-which is nonetheless constant I y present in an obsessive ritual devoted tothe deadly grip of narcotics. " (Jacques Mandelbaum)

Shijakhaneun soongan

(O primeiro dia de Doomalee)

In 1994, the local authorities decided to close the small primary school at Doomealee. After put ting up a year of hard fight, the villagers lost their case and the school was closed down. Whilst their appeal against this decision was in progress, the inhabitants tried renting a classroom and set up an alternative school. Unfortunately; the expense was too great, and they experienced another; even more trauma tic defeat. Effectively; their struggle was to become an example to many; and found echoes of sympathy throughout the country; with the result that a national association for the protection of small schools was subsequently created. As Mr Wang, one of the first to join the protests, comments "We may have lost, but our victory is that we have made a first step. "
"When 1 return to the village, 1 no longer go to the school. listen to the village's breath, 1 drink up its fragrances. My efforts will help bring back the shine of honour to the villagers. Even though defeated, they are praiseworthy. This is why 1 took my camera and made this film. " (Hyung-Sook Hong)

De tijd, de stroom

(O tempo, o rio)

Close to the River Elbe, which delimited the frontier between East and West Germany 40 years long, stands the village of Gross Lüben with its 300 inhabitants, most of whom are farmers.
As everywhere in Europe, traditional farming life is threatened by economic pressures that force farmers either to expand and modernise, or else abandon their way of life. Fifty years of the Cold War, however, have left their trace. The villagers recall the troubled events which have marked their existence since the end of the Second World War: the arrival of the Russians, the confiscation of land, compulsory collectivisation, departures to the West and, finally; reunification.
This film is not only a rural chronicle of unfolding seasons and human rituals. It also traces the broader perspective of a fifty-year-old struggle for ownership of land and for power within the village community.

West, 47th street

(Rua 47)

For more than fifty years, Fountain House in New York has been welcoming persons suffering from mental disorders. Thanks to this partly self-managed structure, the patients are able to find lodging and support to help become rehabilitated.
Over three years, the filmmakers followed the life of its residents, filming them in the hostel, supervised for many years by the understanding yet firm directress, in the streets, at the hospital, at work... The film focuses on four characters: Fitzroy, the Rastafarian who lived for a long time on the streets; Zeinab, the Egyptian woman whose generosity finds expression in her cooking; Frances who ploughs what is left of his strength into a crusade to obtain free transport for his fellow sufferers and Tex, who treats himself to his first holidays where he is entirely responsible for himself. We share their difficult moments and crises, but also their energetic attitude to overcoming obstacles and their tremendous sense of humour.