11,000 people visited the 16th Verzió Film Festival in last November. From the 129 screenings in Budapest 43 were sold out and 41 successful screenings took place in 6 towns at the countryside.
The traditional Spring film club of Verzió will bring you once more some of the most beloved films from the program of the latest festival edition. 8 films will be shown - including the winners and audience favorites - followed by discussions with the filmmakers, experts, journalists and human rights activists.
Venues: Blinken OSA Archive & Central European University
THE PROGRAM:
February 20, 6pm // Blinken OSA
COLLECTIVE (Romania, Luxembourg) - directed by Alexander Nanau, 2019, 109 min
In Romanian and English with Hungarian and English subtitles
In 2015, 27 people perished in a tragic fire at the Romanian music club, Colectív, and a shocking 37 more died in hospitals due to inadequate facilities and rampant infections. Following the tragedy, masses were taken to the streets in protest, and a team of investigative journalists started to uncover a vast corruption network in the health care system.
Winner of the International Audience Awards at 16th Verzió.
The screening is followed by a discussion, in Hungarian. Our guest will be Márton Asbóth, Head Of Privacy Project at Hungarian Civil Liberties Union and coordinator of the campaign against the hospital infections.
Moderator: Etelka Tamás
✔ Please register to attend: https://forms.gle/1J3KXKGgNVVBohrP7
March 5, 6 pm // Blinken OSA
THE EUPHORIA OF BEING (Hungary) - directed by Réka Szabó, 2019, 83 min
In Hungarian with English subtitles
Éva Fahidi was 20 years old when she returned to Hungary from Auschwitz Birkenau. She was all alone, 49 members of her family were murdered, including her mother, her father and her little sister. 70 years later, aged 90, Éva is asked to participate in a dance-theatre performance about her life. Réka, the director imagines a duet between Éva and the young, internationally acclaimed dancer, Emese. Réka wants to see these two women, young and old, interact on stage, to see how their bodies and their stories can intertwine. Éva agrees immediately. Three women – three months – a story of crossing boundaries. Whilst key moments of Éva’s life are distilled into theater scenes, a powerful relationship forms between the three women.
Winner of the Hungarian Audience Award at 16th Verzió.
March 19, 6 pm // Blinken OSA
STILL RECORDING (Syria, Lebanon, France, Germany, Qatar) - directed by Saeed Al Batal & Ghiath Ayoub, 2018, 128 min
In Arabic with English and Hungarian subtitles
Saeed is a young cinema enthusiast in Eastern Ghouta, Syria, teaching other young people the rules of filming. The realities they face, however, are too harsh for rules. His friend Milad is finishing his studies in Fine Arts on the other side of the fence, in Damascus, under the control of the regime. At one point, Milad decides to leave the capital and join Saeed in besieged Douma, where they set up a local radio station and film studio. They film everything, until one day the camera films them…
2nd place winner based on the Audience votes at the 16th Verzió.
April 2, 6 pm // Blinken OSA
On this day we screen the winner of the Facebook vote. Vote between February 10 and 16.
April 16, 6 pm // CEU - 15 Nádor str. Auditorium
ADVOCATE (Israel, Canada, Switzerland) directed by Rachel Leah Jones & Philippe Bellaiche, 2019, 108 min per
In Arabic and Hebrew with English subtitles
Advocate follows the caseload of human rights lawyer Lea Tsemel in real time, including the high-profile trial of a 13-year-old boy, her youngest client to date. The film also revisits her landmark cases and reflects on the political significance of her work, as well as the personal price she pays for taking on the role of “devil’s advocate”.
Winner of the Best Human Rights Film Award at 16th Verzió.
May 7, 6 pm
PUSH (Sweden) - directed by Fredrik Gertten, 2019, 92 min
In English, Spanish, Italian, German, Korean with Hungarian subtitles
Housing prices are skyrocketing in cities around the world. Incomes are not. Push sheds light on a new kind of faceless landlord, our increasingly unlivable cities and an escalating crisis that is effecting us all. This is not gentrification, it’s a different kind of monster. The film follows Leilani Farha, the UN Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, as she travels the globe to understand who’s being pushed out of the city and why.
The event is co-organized by Budapest100.
May 14, 6 pm // Blinken OSA
BREATHLESS (Belgium) - directed by Daniel Lambo, 2018, 75 min
In Dutch, English, French, Hindi with English and Hungarian subtitles
Following the deaths of many from his village, including his father, filmmaker Daniel Lambo sets off on a passionate quest to uncover the truth about the deadly asbestos industry. His search takes him to the largest asbestos waste dump in India and reveals that the cold-blooded industry is still endangering the lives of workers and consumers around the world. A gripping story about the fight of individuals against a thriving asbestos industry.
The screening takes place in cooperation with the 3rd OFF-Biennale.
May 28, 6 pm // CEU - Nádor u. 15. Auditórium
TINY SOULS (Jordan, Qatar, France) - directed by Dina Naser, 2019, 86 min
In Arabic with Hungarian and English subtitles
Marwa, her mother and siblings are stranded at the Zaatari Refugee Camp in Jordan. They arrived there in 2012 after escaping the war in Syria. Marwa is nine, and like any child, her concerns revolve around school and play. Her fun-loving side emerges around her mischievous younger brother, Mahmoud, and her sassy younger sister, Ayah—a girl who carries the emotional scars of war. As the years go by, Marwa becomes attached to her life at the camp—her friends and make-shift home—until one day when the authorities show up to interrogate her elder brother about his association with militant extremists. Only then does their “settled” life take an immense turn, and the certainty of their narrative comes into question.
3rd place winner based on the Audience votes at the 16th Verzió.
The admission is free of charge, but requires registration.
Seating is on a first come first served basis and subject to capacity.