FILMS THAT MAKE US CARE
FILMS THAT MAKE US CARE
GCFF 2021 | MAY 28-30, 2021
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
Global Cinema Film Festival of Boston (GCFF) is committed to bringing the best of global cinematography to Boston. Our unflinching mission is to spotlight films that make us care. In 2022, GCFF will continue to showcase unconventional styles that speak to the evolution of the narrative and documentary form. Moreover, through the visual language of film, we invite audiences to embark on a journey, exploring sensitive stories captured by unflinching lenses held by filmmakers with the audacity to inform, inspire and visually transport audiences to that sacred place called the cinema.
SCROLL DOWN TO VIEW 2021 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS & AWARD WINNERS!
SCROLL DOWN TO VIEW 2021 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS & AWARD WINNERS!
Village of Women | 2020 | Armenia | 83 MIN
DIRECTOR: Tamara Stepanyan
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: North American Premiere
A village where women, children, and the elderly reside. Men leave 9 months of the year to Russia to work. Summer, a slow and friendly atmosphere; women do the hay, cut the grass, and store for the winter. Fruits will be canned to be eaten during the cold winter. The sun arouses certain laziness, a sensual relaxation. Autumn, with its different shades of red, is the season of birth and potato harvest. Women and men find intimacy in the coldness of winter, hence women give birth in October and November. Fathers meet their children in December. Preparations start now to welcome men, waiting is long and tiring. Winter is near, a form of suspense sets in whose husband will come first? The men arrive with the snow. The women are shy, they need time to exist in the presence of men. The children are happy to be close to their fathers. Spring sets in, the atmosphere becomes tense. Men depart for the land of tsars. She is weak and sad but needs to find the strength to take care of the children.
The Sea Between Us
The Sea Between Us
| 2020 | Lebanon, Canada | 102 MIN
DIRECTOR: Marlene Edoyan
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
The Sea Between Us transports us to the city of Beirut in Lebanon, 25 years after the end of a bloody civil war, and into the lives of two strong and charismatic women, Hayat & Wafaa. With children of their own, they must now face the challenging task of passing on the civil war’s violent legacy onto a new generation. The film puts a human face on the impact of sectarian division, nationalism, and intolerance and shows that hope for peaceful coexistence is cross-cultural, universal, and part of the human experience. Through the intimate stories and memories of these two protagonists of different backgrounds, we understand why Beirut’s neighborhoods still feel walled in by invisible boundaries and why achieving forgiveness and reconciliation is so complex in a country that is still broken over religious and political ideology.
EST- Dittatura Last Minute
EST- Dittatura Last Minute
| 2020 | Italy, Romania, Hungary | 103 MIN
DIRECTOR: Antonio Pisu
CATEGORY: NARRATIVE FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
1989: a few weeks after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Pago, Rice, and Bibi, three twenty-five-year-olds from Cesena, leave their quiet lives behind in search of adventure. A ten-day vacation in Eastern Europe means heading to places where the Soviet regime is still in place. Once in Budapest, they meet Emil, in flight from the dictatorship in his native Romania. The man is worried about his family back home and asks the trio for a favor: to take a suitcase to his wife and daughter. The journey is long, towns are deserted, restaurants have no food, and people will give you the shirt off their back out of hospitality. Finally, the three Italians arrive in the capital. The moment they open the suitcase in front of Emil’s wife Andra, six-year-old daughter Adina, and grandma Costelia is highly emotional. Two months later, just before Christmas, the fall of Ceausescu is announced on television. By now, Pago, Rice, and Bibi have returned to their normal lives in Italy.
The Universality of it All
The Universality of it All
| 2020 | Costa Rica, Nicaragua, France, Germany | 90 MIN
DIRECTOR: Andres Bronnimann
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
How the friendship between a filmmaker and a refugee is connected to all the major events of the 21st century. An introspection into the topics of human migration, inequality, and climate change, taking place all across the planet. “The Universality of It All” blurs the boundaries between film and documentary. It’s as intimate and personal, as it is informative and educational. It explains the complexity of human migration by providing valuable data and information, but also by showing how it affects the reality of two friends and their day-to-day lives.
Lost Lives
Lost Lives
| 2019 | United Kingdom | 93 MIN
DIRECTOR: Michael Hewitt & Dermot Lavery
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: MA Premiere
“It is like sitting back and watching a nation committing suicide and there is not a thing you can do about it,” says a mother, begging people to lay down their weapons. This major cinematic work is inspired by the 1999 book Lost Lives, written over seven years by five journalists who remained politically neutral and recorded the circumstances of every single death throughout the Northern Irish Troubles. Accompanied by a hypnotic orchestral soundtrack, a backdrop of archival newsreels and cinematically compelling moments, some of Ireland’s most talented actors (including Kenneth Branagh, Brendan Gleeson, Roma Downey, Bríd Brennan, and Stephen Rea) read eloquently from passages in the book and pay homage to those who succumbed to the violence. A respectful and powerful film, Lost Lives stands as a cinematic requiem for the over 3,700 lives lost in the Troubles.
When The Roads End (Strade Interrotte)
When The Roads End (Strade Interrotte)
| 2020 | Italy | 67 MIN
DIRECTOR: Lorenzo Borghini
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: North American Premiere
Divided into four chapters, and narrated by Maurizio Lombardi, "When The Roads End" aims to raise awareness among road users, primarily the youngest, about the high degree of danger related to driving a motor vehicle. Through different witnesses, ranging from relatives of road accident victims to first-aid responders, the documentary tells the painful story of those involved in a road accident, recalling the enormous responsibility that affects anyone who drives on the road.
On The Line
On The Line
| 2020 | France, Mexico, United States| 68 MIN
DIRECTOR: Léo Mattei, Alex Gohari
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
In Tijuana, thousands of Mexicans are deported every year from the USA. For decades, some of them have lived, worked, paid taxes, and started a family on the other side of the border. Mothers and fathers living in the USA end up finding themselves separated from their children for decades. This border town has become an airlock between two worlds where the broken lives of migrants end up. South of the wall, paths of reconstruction are winding and the spiral of exclusion is ruthless for those deported from America. Every year, over 100,000 Mexicans living in the USA are deported to Mexico by USA. Richard, Rocio, and Sergio were deported after a ruling without an appeal. They now live in Tijuana, behind the wall.
Please Hold The Line
Please Hold The Line
| 2020 | Austria | 86 MIN
DIRECTOR: Pavel Cuzuioc
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: U.S. Premiere
The film follows cable technicians navigating our modern-day Tower of Babel; an ordered discordance of personalities and perspectives. With unflappable humor and a dose of philosophy, the technicians hold the line in a dissonant world.
Calendar Girl
Calendar Girl
| 2020 | United States | 91 MIN
DIRECTOR: Christian Ditlev Bruun
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
Ruth Finley, a pocket-sized woman of immense determination, has been the queen of the fashion industry since the 1930s. As a young mother, Ruth created the iconic pink Fashion Calendar, a publication that continues to organize and marshal American fashion today. Featuring Bill Cunningham, Carolina Herrera, Nicole Miller, Diane von Furstenberg, and more, this joyous profile is a love letter to fashion and the extraordinary life of one remarkable woman.
Red Card
Red Card
| 2020 | France, Comoros, South Africa | 87 MIN
DIRECTOR: Mohamed Said Ouma
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: U.S. Premiere
On Comoros, the women’s national basketball team is training for the Indian Ocean Island Games. In the past, this tournament played between different archipelagos in the Indian Ocean was the scene of political tension: in 2015, the team from the island of Mayotte, which is still French territory, decided to carry a French flag, prompting the athletes from the three independent islands to storm out. This year the team has to uphold the honor of Comoros, so the players get patriotic pep talks from their coach. In casually filmed scenes, we follow three of the players. Oulouhou combines training with caring for her children and working as a waitress; Hassanati is not only a basketball player but also a football coach and security officer, and Razia is building her own house. In musical extracts and voice-over, we learn about the background of the islands ravaged by corruption, poverty, and unemployment, and of the temptation to make the crossing into French territory. But despite losses or setbacks, “the ball of life must remain in the game,” according to the former national coach, and these free-spirited Comorian women show how that’s done.
Up At Night
Up At Night
| 2021 | Congo | 20 MIN
DIRECTOR: Nelson Makengo
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
As dusk fades and another night without electricity falls, Kinshasa's neighborhoods reveal an unstable environment of violence, political conflict, and uncertainty over the building of the Grand Inga 3 hydroelectric dam, which promises one day to bring a permanent source of energy to the Congo.
Journee Noire
Journee Noire
| 2020 | Senegal | 14 MIN
DIRECTOR: Yoro Mbaye
CATEGORY: NARRATIVE SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: U.S. Premiere
Ngor, 23, a brilliant law student, falls under the bullets of the forces of the orders after joining his comrades at the front.
Somerville For All
Somerville For All
| 2020 | United States | 17 MIN
DIRECTOR: Andrew Eldridge
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: World Premiere
A dedicated group of community organizers, activists, and families fight to keep their once “undesirable” city from succumbing to the powers of gentrification.
Expedition Ayiti
Expedition Ayiti
| 2021 | Haiti, United States | 41 MIN
DIRECTOR: Richard Serrao
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: MA Premiere
Ayiti, the native Taino people’s word for Haiti, translates to “land of high mountains.” The dominant narrative portrays Haiti as a land of natural disasters, corruption, and poverty — in essence, a story that masks its truth. Enter Expedition Ayiti, an experience borne from a passion to hike, to journey, and seek an expanded understanding of our world. The film creates a new story, one that captures a sense of wonder through the beauty of nature and the indomitable power of the human spirit. Perhaps a hike with a stranger is all it takes. Come, join the adventure!
Toward You
Toward You
| 2020 | Canada | 14 MIN
DIRECTOR: Meysam Motazedi
CATEGORY: NARRATIVE SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: U.S. Premiere
A day in the life of a tenacious teenage girl as she pursues her dream of becoming a socially conscious slam poet, agitating her stiflingly traditional surroundings in the process.
4/8 | Beirut
4/8 | Beirut
| 2020 | Lebanon, Germany | 28 MIN
DIRECTOR: Patrick Khol
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
Four intimate stories of trauma, despair, and hope. On August 4, 2020, a huge explosion shook Lebanon’s capital Beirut. The explosion was felt in Turkey, Syria, and parts of Europe, and was even heard more than 250km away. The blast caused more than 200 deaths, over 6,500 injuries, US$ 10–15 billion in property damage, and left an estimated 300,000 people homeless. Among them many Syrian and Iraqi refugees. The documentary sheds light on their lives after the cataclysm, tracing the hopes and perspectives of a community in transition. At a time when life has been plunged into uncertainty, and as Lebanon goes through a major political, economic and humanitarian crisis, this movie aims to listen to the too often neglected voices of refugees and to tell their story.
Until The Last Drop
Until The Last Drop
| 2020 | Palestine, United Kingdom | 20 MIN
DIRECTOR: Tim Webster
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
In an occupied land where water is a privilege, two farmers working the same land face increasingly unequal opportunities. The West Bank has been home to Palestinian communities like Al Hadidiya for generations. Since occupying it in 1967, Israel has made it increasingly difficult for communities like Al Haddidya to access, maintain and own water systems. Water shortages have critical impacts on agriculture, livestock, and households, while an abundance of water allows families and businesses to thrive in illegal settlements. Despite being physically connected to the same land, the two farmers’ experiences are detached and unequal. However, despite the odds and an uncertain future for his children, Abu is determined to keep farming and keep resisting until the last drop.
Rocky
Rocky
| 2020 | Sweden, United States | 8 MIN
DIRECTOR: Annika Ivarsson
CATEGORY: DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
PREMIERE STATUS: New England Premiere
Rocky is 15 years old and has stopped going to school. His social life is on the internet and he sits up every night to play computer games. One day he gets a friend request on Skype from Jackson. She lives in Phoenix, Arizona, and doesn’t go to school either. They fall in love, and Rocky starts a journey that will change his life.
INDUSTRY SPONSOR
INDUSTRY SPONSOR
PROUD SPONSORS
PROUD SPONSORS
