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European films in the spotlight
2 minIn 2019, 30 recent European films, offered by the European Film Festival, were screened at many festivals around the world. Discover some of these European films in pictures!

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2/11Diamantino, by Gabriel Abrantes and Daniel Schmidt (Portugal, 2017)
Synopsis: Diamantino, an invincible football icon, loses the most important match of his life. His career having ended abruptly, the fallen star finds himself drawn into a wild adventure, full of expanding neo-fascism, the migrant crisis, outrageous genetic trafficking and the unbridled quest for perfection.
Diamantino is the first feature film directed by Gabriel Abrantes and Daniel Schmidt, two American directors born in 1984.

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3/11King of the Belgians, by Peter Brosens and Jessica Hope Woodworth (Belgium, 2016)
Synopsis: Wallonia having declared its independence, the King of the Belgians, who is on a state visit to Istanbul, must immediately return to his country in an attempt to save it. A solar storm that paralyses airspace and communications networks forces him on a journey through the Balkans, accompanied by an English filmmaker and a group of Bulgarian singers.
One American, the other Belgian, in 2019 Jessica Woodworth and Peter Brosens are working on their 4th feature film, Kebab Royal.

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4/11Bloody Milk (“Petit Paysan”), Hubert Charuel (France, 2017)
Synopsis: Pierre, who has taken over his family farm, dedicates his life to rearing his dairy cows. One day, he discovers that one of his animals has been affected by an epidemic raging through France. Unable to resign himself to losing his cows, he does everything he can to save them.
A graduate of the Fémis, recognised by the Gan Foundation for cinema in 2015, Hubert Charuel participated in the Angers Ateliers in 2015.

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5/11The Silence of others (“El silencio de otros”), by Almudena Carracedo and Robert Bahar (Spain, 2018)
Synopsis: The Silence of Others follows the epic struggle, for justice and against obscurity, of the victims of the Franco dictatorship.
This film, which was filmed over 6 years, is the 2nd co-production by Almudena Carracedo and Robert Bahar, following Made in LA in 2008.

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6/11Louise by the Shore (“Louise en hiver”), by Jean-François Laguionie (France, 2015)
Synopsis: Louise, a fragile and elegant elderly lady, tries to survive winter in the deserted and isolated seaside resort of Biligen, far removed from the world.
Jean-François Laguionie, director and graphic novel author (born in 1939 in Besançon) was introduced to animation by Paul Grimault. Louise by the Shore is his 5th feature film.

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7/11Sami, a youth in Lapland (“Sami, une jeunesse en Laponie"), by Amanda Kernell (Sweden, 2016)
Synopsis: At a boarding school in the 1930s, a 14-year-old girl of Sami origin, exposed to racism and the humiliation of ethnic assessments, tries to free herself by cutting all ties with her family and culture.
Sami, a youth in Lapland is the first feature film by Amanda Kennell, born in 1986 in Sweden and herself of Sami origin.

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8/11Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe (“Stefan Zweig, adieu l’Europe”), by Maria Schrader (Germany, 2016)
Synopsis: In 1936, from Rio de Janeiro to Buenos Aires, from New York to Petrópolis, Stefan Zweig chooses exile and decides not to return to Europe.
Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe is the third film directed by German actress, director, and screenwriter Maria Schrader, born in 1965.

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9/11Stranger in Paradise, by Guido Hendrikx (Netherlands, 2016)
Synopsis: In a classroom in Sicily, just inside the walls of the European fortress, recently arrived refugees attend the classes of Valentijn Dhaenens, a unique teacher who alternates between rejection and compassion.
Stranger In Paradise is the first feature film by Dutch filmmaker and writer Guido Hendrikx.

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10/11The Distant Barking of Dogs, by Simon Lereng Wilmont (Denmark, 2017)
Synopsis: Oleg, 10 years old, grew up in eastern Ukraine at a time of war. He lives with his grandmother, who has taken care of him since his mother died.
Documentary director Simon Lereng Wilmont has toured several festivals with The Distant Barking of Dogs.

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The Institut français and the project

The European Film Festival promotes the screening of European films at festivals around the world by offering a catalogue of 30 films.
The first festivals to benefit from this programme took place in May 2019 in Indonesia, Mozambique, Haiti, Benin, Cameroon, Kosovo, Chile and Japan.
The Institut français is involved in implementing the European Film Festival, managed by the Goethe-Institut.
Read more about the European Film Festival