Susya is an Israeli/Palestinian production shot on location in the archaeological site and ancient Jewish settlement of the same name, which until 25 years ago was a Palestinian cave village.
This rough, 15–minute short documents father and son, Mohammed and Nassir Nawaj‘ah, returning to see their home by way of purchasing tickets to the tourist site that now only remembers a Roman-era Jewish occupation. Documentary and activist filmmakers Dani Rosenberg & Yoav Gross spontaneously suggested and filmed this unfolding “Direct Cinema” piece in an afternoon and succeeded in capturing some powerful moments, revealing a story of loss and human rights violations.
Sadly, just as Fassbinder ended too early, as does cinematheque’s retrospect of him. To send us out we have The Third Generation (1979) and In A Year of 13 Moons (1978); quite the stark contrast to each other.
Coming off the success of The Marriage of Maria Braun, Fassbinder’s The Third Generation continued to cause both commercial success and controversy. Featuring a cast of Fassbinder regulars and some of Europe’s most well-known screen icons at the time (Hanna Shygulla, Bulle Ogier, Eddie Constantine…) Fassbinder wrote, directed and shot the film himself.
Here, Fassbinder departs from his WWII films, instead focusing on the current political, social and economic conditions of Germany in the late 1970s. It is carnival season and we follow a group of bourgeois intellectual terrorists who have kidnapped an industrialist and plan on spreading revolution, seemingly to drawing on the teachings from German philosopher Arthur Shopenhauer. But not all is as it seems, as mistaken identities, double-crossings, capitalist tendencies, and second-thoughts abound – it is only a matter of time before it all starts to unravel.
The Third Generation
Within Germany The Third Generationcaused great unease among cinema goers and disdain from critics, all of whom felt unease with Fassbinder making a farce of the post-war succeeding generations. At the Cannes festival that year it was upheld for its accomplishments, and is now viewed as one of Fassbinder’s best films.
To finish: In A Year of 13 Moons, a film as personal as ever. It follows Erwin Weishaupt who had undergone a sex change in the hope of winning the heart of his heterosexual business partner, Anton after he once remarked, “too bad you aren’t a woman”. Now known as Elvira, the film follows her final days as she seems to drift through life trying to find the happiness she was sure would follow her transition. A mix of tainted memories and joyous flashbacks – along with a slaughter-house scene that leaves nothing to the imagination – Fassbinder was able to find a way of beautifully paying respect to his recently deceased lover, the actor Armin Meier.
Melbourne Cinematheque plays every Wednesday at the Australian Cinematheque. Read Last weeks Fassbinder, and all Eleanor’s other Cteq posts here.
From June 19-26 the Melbourne International Animation Festival (MIAF) will be running at ACMI in Federation Square. Over 400 films will be screened at this ever growing animation event. Come and witness animation from all over the world and experience an array of visual and aural styles you never thought possible.
MIAF is my number 1 pick of all the film festivals available to us Victorians. It is easily accessible, tickets are very reasonable (especially the season pass), you are able to meet the filmmakers, and it focuses purely on hand-made cinema: animation, where the possibilities are limitless. There is so much variety that everyone will be able to appreciate certain aspects of it.
Last night I was fortunate enough to attend the Gala Opening screening where we were given a taste of what to expect from the collection of themed sessions. These films ranged from the themed nation – Poland, other international films, some classic UPA films, films from the UK’s Royal College of the Arts, some cut-out films as a part of the themed style, and films from our own back door. If I could judge the rest of this metaphoric book by the cover I witnessed last night, then I’d be saying this is gonna be one damn good book.
With an eclectic assortment of screenings to attend, the one I am most anticipating is the Australia Showcase which will be screened at 4:15pm on Saturday the 25th. Last year’s Australian Showcase blew me away. I was truly astounded at this nation’s ability to create magnificent animation. If you have ever doubted Australia’s artistic abilities, prepare to have your faith regained because animation is where so much of Australia’s talent has been hiding, and I believe it is damn well time that more people realised this. At the end of the Australian session there is a meet & greet where the audience is introduced to the filmmakers. I’ve already got my spot booked!
If you get the chance at all this week you absolutely must make an effort to see at least one screening of this festival. It is one of the only festivals dedicated to animation in the country. You have my word that it will be a memorable experience. These Australian animators need your support and this is the way to show it.
For more information head to the MIAF official website or the ACMI website:
