by the El Reportero’s news services
With a varied and broad film program of almost 200 Uruguayan and foreign films from 50 countries, the 36th International Film Festival of Uruguay was opened today until April 7.
The festival was opened at the Montevideo Cinematheque with the screening of the French film ‘Visages, villages’ by veteran director Agnes Varda and photographer JR, who tackle the power of art to change life.
In the 10 day-event, the juries will award the best film prizes to foreign and Latin American feature films and new filmmakers, as well as human rights films and foreign and Uruguayan short films.
The Festival includes various sections as Ensayo de Orquesta (Orchestra’s Rehearsal), in which films on music or related to music will be screened, as Around Luisa (Switzerland), Diante dos meus olhos (Brazil), Fevereiros (Brazil), French waves (France) and The Last Hot Lick (United States).
Another section Ojo con el Cine (Be careful with Cinema) will screen three films related to the works within the film industry, In the Mood for Melville (France), Las Cinephilas (Argentina) and Mi tia Loly (Ecuador).
The festival will be closed on April 7th by the French film La Villa by filmmaker Robert Guediguian.
Dancers from 18 Countries to Perform at Havana’s Festival
Artists from 16 countries will perform in Havana from April 11th to 15th at the International Dance Festival in Urban Landscapes, said organizers today.
The program of the 23rd International Dance Festival in Urban Landscapes, also known as Old Havana, City in Motion, includes exhibitions, concerts, audiovisual screenings and dance performances on streets, at squares, parks and museums in Habana Vieja.
As every year, the festival fosters opportunities for professional development through courses, workshops and lectures, given by Cuban and foreign teachers.
It is organized by the dance-theater company Retazos and the Office of the Historian of the City, with the support of the Theater Center of Havana.
Some of the techniques tackled will be Afro-Cuban Dances, Mixed Techniques, Arara, Contemporary Dance, Tango, Retazos and Contact Improvisation, by professionals such as Sofía Barriga from Ecuador, John Fandiño from Colombia, Luca Carco and Paula Zacharias from Argentina, Reinado Echemendia, Jhoannes García and Isabel Bustos from Cuba.
According to director of the event Isabel Bustos (National Dance Award 2012), this festival promotes the link between inhabitants of the city with their surroundings through movement, and contributes to the culture in a new and enthusiastic way.
The event is expected to be attended by 29 Cuban groups and representatives from countries such as Germany, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, United States, Italy, Norway, Uruguay, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Switzerland and Mexico, the one with the largest delegation.
Venezuelan guitarist José Luis Lara dies
The South American country laments the death of Venezuelan guitarist José Luis Lara, who was the president of the International Guitar Festival of Angostura. He died on Sunday, April 1. Lara, who was shot to death, was a prominent exponent of the guitar, who focused his career on the interpretation of the Venezuelan and Latin American repertoire, and shared that activity with teaching and composition.
