Cinema Under the Stars presented by Funambules Médias is pleased to unveil all of its summer programming. From June 26 to August 30, 61 free screenings focused on subjects covering local and international news will be screened in public spaces in 15 parks and public places in the city with the aim of raising public debate.
This year again, Cinema Under the Stars offers a rich and diversified program, composed of the best social and political documentaries from here and elsewhere. More than just outdoor screenings, it’s a unique and citizen-centered experience. Each of the screenings is followed by a meeting with the filmmakers or with experts on the issues addressed, creating a safe space for public discussion.
Documentaries to Understand the World and Act:
Documentary cinema is the platform of choice for dissecting complex issues which have a direct impact on our communities. The films being screened will present a global portrait of the major social and political issues of recent history. Questions will be asked both about the phenomenon of mass migrations, questioning its root causes, and about women’s rights, the rights of workers, the struggles for respect for territories and the environment across the country and the globe. In addition to raising questions about the influence of agri-food and pharmaceutical industries on populations, and to explore the harmful consequences of climate change upon our communities.
With 45 short/medium length films as well as 29 short films, Cinema Under the Stars presented by Funambules Médias is an annual rendezvous of social and political documentary cinema.
OPENING FILM | VIVRE RICHE JOEL AKAFOU – 26 JUNE PARC DU PELICAN
Presented at the opening on June 26th, and a Quebec premiere, the film Vivre Riche (Joel Akafou, Burkina Faso/France/Belgium) shines light on the Ivorian youth lack of landmarks in Abidjan, a city undergoing social change following the political crises and economic upheaval of recent years. Sex, alcohol, etc. punctuate the daily life of “Rolex the Portuguese” and his friends who live by “grazing” or by ripping off Europeans in the hope of living like the rich, against a backdrop of a post colonial environment.
The opening night, organized in collaboration with MaBrasserie, will start with a picnic accompanied by a dj set from 7pm at Parc du Pélican. Comedians Lili Boisvert and Colin Boudrias-Fournier will perform on stage for the opening of the festival.
PROGRAMMING | AN OVERVIEW
Over the summer, several works which have garnered attention on the documentary cinema circuit this year will be presented:
The Judge (Erika Cohn, Palestine, United States). Despite the controversy, lawyer Kholoud Al-Faqih has become the first female Shariah judge in the Middle East. She has been in charge of Family Matters cases since 2009. This film, which proposes a new angle on Palestine, will be presented for the first time in Quebec, in collaboration with the Filministes.
Whose Streets? (Sabbah Folayan and Damon Davis, USA) A powerful war cry of a generation fighting for the right to live. This film is an unflinching look at the Ferguson uprising, led by activists and leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement. This is a premier screening in French, presented in collaboration with Cinema Politica.
Bras de Fer (Jean-Laurence and Jonathan Seaborn, Quebec) Recounts the environmental and civic struggle of a young couple from Limoilou as a red dust saturated with heavy metals spreads over the port of Quebec and their neighborhood.
Destierros (Hubert Caron-Guay, Quebec) Documents the journey of migrants from shelter to shelter, from train to train, heading north through Mexico to reach the United States and Canada. On the eve of the US election, this could be their last chance to cross the border. A screening presented in collaboration with L’Espace Filmique.
Cinema Under the Stars is also partnering with the Réalisatrices Équitables and Présence autochtones for the screening of This Silent Killing (Kim O’Bomsawin, Quebec) twice this summer. 1,181 Aboriginal women disappeared or were murdered in 2014, according to the RCMP. Why are these women eight times more likely to be murdered than any other citizen in Canada?
Among the highlights of the short film selection is Roundup to Judges, which chronicles the health scandal of Roundup, the world’s best-selling herbicide; Malaria Business, which is about institutions that have been trying to fight malaria for 50 years; Visages villages, which follows the artists Agnès Varda and JR traveling through the countryside in France aboard their truck photo booth that photographs and then displays the portraits of people met; The Power of Tomorrow, exploring three corners of the world, in Gaza, Colombia and Germany, where communities unite and organize to resist. Newly arrived in Montreal, teenagers reveal the story of their migration and integration through drama workshops in the film Bagages.
Website: cinemasouslesetoiles.org
Musique – Gaïa Bolo, par La Gypsy Kumbia Orchestra
Motion Design – Nicolas Goyette et Felipe Bello
Montage – Steve Patry
Graphisme – Romain Lasser
