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On October 30, 2015, a fire broke out in a club in Bucharest. That evening, a spark from a firework caught the club’s plastic soundproofing insulation, setting off a rapidly-spreading fire that devoured the highly-flammable material in less than 2.5 minutes. Of the 400 people who were trapped in the club that night without access to emergency exits, 27 people died on the scene, and  38 people succumbed to injuries and infections in the weeks and months following at various hospitals.

It’s a strange time we live in. As the coronavirus spreads across the globe, human systems and movement, as we have known them, have been put on hold. People all over the world are keeping each other posted on their safety, worries and needs. In a time that can be scary and strange, initiatives have been launched to support each other. Those with time on their hands offer to volunteer, make arts and crafts and send birthday cards to strangers who can’t receive visitors. Despite these acts of beauty, the sadness of the situation cannot be overlooked. At Verzió, we are aware of the impact this virus has, especially on those who cannot afford or have no access to proper healthcare. Our hearts go out to those families for whom this is an extra frightening time.

A powerful and personal documentary on the Venezuelan public health crisis is participating at this year’s Human Rights Competition of Verzio. Está todo bien’s director Tuki Jencquel gave us some insights on the day of the premier at Verzio.

Interview with Alexander Nanau, director of Colectiv (2019), Verzio16 opening film by Oksana Sarkisova

Ilham Tohti, an Uyghur economist fighting for the rights of China’s Uyghur minority, is the winner of the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 2019.

The winner was chosen by Parliament’s political leaders on 24 October 2019.

Rosie Garthwaite is the producer of the multi award-winning film The Workers Cup that premiered on the opening night of Sundance 2017 and was screened in the 15th Verzio Film Festival. We talked to her about the shooting, and her insights of the immigrant workers’ situation in Qatar.

Entering CEU last Friday evening was a very different experience from the usual serene atmosphere that one is used to just before the weekend. Loud chitchat, people waiting outside the auditorium, and nervous excitement in the air – it was the End-of-Semester Documentary Film Screening. These screenings have grown into a somewhat friendly tradition at the university where students have the unique opportunity to share their hard work with the CEU and wider community. After months of sweat and tears, sharing your work on a huge screen in front of a big audience can be a very daunting experience, particularly for the majority of students who never expressed themselves visually before. A completely packed auditorium arguably did not ease the worries of these fresh filmmakers either…

Marish is a modern day slave in Hungary, owned by a lady, Eta, who is proud to “own” multiple servants in her home. Growing up in the heart of the more developed parts of Asia in Singapore and Hong Kong, where the domestic helper industry is large, I did not find it bizarre to have someone living in the house and doing all the cooking and cleaning.

No Obvious Signs (Alina Gorlova, 2017) won 5 awards, but what makes this movie really worth to watch is its in-depth content, a honest, natural portrait of a traumatised person. The first salient thing we notice is Alina Gorlova’s line of vision: there is a notable non-large-scale lens shot with a camera, which creates the emotion of claustrophobia, belonging to the protagonist.
 

Complicit is not merely documenting injustice, will to survive and a fight for human rights; this heart-breaking, eyes-opening documentary is asking you to take action on that. The movie is a wake-up call to anyone who has been dormant on the situation of occupational diseases and exploitation of labour in China so far.