Claus Mueller

The annual New Directors / New Films festival organized by the New York Museum of Modern Art and Film at Lincoln Center has maintained its leading position as the film festival for avant-garde global filmmaking.  It was held in the theatres of MoMA and FLC from March 28 to April 9, 2023. ND/NF provides a rare perspective unmatched by other film festivals, focusing on the innovative approaches new and future filmmakers are embracing. It has been providing this enlightening service for more than fifty years and the 2023 edition did not disappoint, presenting 27 features and 11 short films from 41 filmmakers. ND/NF 2023 showcased productions from 32 countries including Angola, Argentine, Brazil, China, Indonesia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Thailand. Most screenings were followed by discussions with the directors. The selection committee identified their ND/NF picks at major current film festivals like Berlinale, Rotterdam, Sundance and Venice. About half of the films shown were North American premieres, adding to the festival’s attraction. ND/NF has a special appeal for seasoned attendees. Like other innovative screening events, only a few of the films shown may be acquired for theatrical and streaming markets and even for those selected there is a considerable delay before they can be accessed by public customers.  The curatorial work for this festival is apparent in its embrace of a variety of excellent thematic and production perspectives without a single outranking the others.  The majority of thematic preferences held by viewers and media professionals were  met. Some of the themes covered were surreal and phantasy driven visions, declining family links, precarious social structures, children’s understanding of their world, urbanization, post-colonial views, personal disconnections, and identity formation issues to name but a few. If pressed, I would suggest current survival problems in post-modern and “traditional” societies as a principal (and appropriate) strain of the ND/NF 2023.

Among the most compelling and sensitive productions was TÓTEM by Lila Avilés, a 2023 Mexican French Danish co-production. TÓTEM is Avilés second feature after her 2018 acclaimed debut THE CHAMBERMAID and has been received several awards at the Berlin and Hong Kong international film festivals as well as positive assessment by most critics. It depicts the intimate experiences of a seven-year-old girl, Sol, over one single day in the large home of her extended family celebrating the 27^th birthday of her father. Sol, played by Naíma Sentíes in her first film acting role, delivers an impressively authentic performance.  Sentíes mannerisms convincingly display the perspective and interpretations of a young child and her family. She reacts to the interactions between her relatives which are shaped by conflicts, problems, antagonism, and in short, a crisis ridden chaotic family life. TÓTEM flows from the beginning of the day, preparing the birthday celebration, to the ending with a party attended by most family members and neighborhood friends.  Sol follows and reacts with a growing maturity to the carefully drawn characters inhabiting or visiting the family’s home. From a child’s perspective, she copes with the issues of everyday life, including the ailments and death surrounding her. The superb ensemble cast includes her father Tona, an artist, who suffers from terminal cancer, rarely leaving his room, the family patriarch Roberto obsessed with growing bonsai plants but needing an electronic device to communicate, and several aunts and their children who bicker frequently. Sol prefers exploring the house, which also features an elderly shaman trying to liberate the home from evil spirits to cleanse it for the birthday event. Towards the evening, Sol makes a presentation for her family and guests and Tona decides to join the celebration. Through the eyes of a child TÓTEM  conveys enduring bonds keeping a family together.

Wu Lang’s ABSENCE premiered at the 2023 Berlinale and in North America at ND/NF 2023.  Superbly photographed, the feature provides the subdued profile of a former convict, Han Jiangyu, who reunites with his old girlfriend Su Hong, played by Li Mengnow. Su Hong works as a hairdresser and has a daughter who is apparently Han Jiangyu’s child.  An essential part of the film draws from Wu Lang’s effective depiction of the ending housing construction boom in the island resort of Hainan where Han lived before his incarceration. The feature expands on the short film of the same name, ABSENCE, by Wu Lang produced several years earlier and is the director’s inventive debut film. There is little narrative dialogue, and the superb visual elements gain more importance. Lee Kang-Sheng’s portrayal of Han Jiangyu complements the camera work of ABSENCE. The cinematography avoids the generic approaches often used in similarly themed features. ABSENCE contains two parallel overlapping themes. After spending ten years in prison, partly due to his prior real estate involvement, Han Jiangyu attempts through his old girlfriend to reintegrate into society, to have a family, and get close to his daughter. They get married, advised that their changed civil status facilitates getting an apartment.  Han does not give up on his goals though the dramatic changes in his former Hainan home make getting work or a place to live in problematic. The second theme defining ABSENCE is the dramatic changes prompted by the real estate housing boom on the island. The background for most outside scenes is dominated by tall residential buildings or skeletons of abandoned ones. Individuals and families, including Su Hong, cannot get their deposits back which funded the abandoned buildings. Meanwhile. Han Jiangyu has returned to working for a real estate investor. Su is told that her construction deposit has no value. Because Su was evicted from her home, she decides to move, with Han, into the semi-constructed shell of an abandoned building and create their own apartment. The circumstances of their lives are stressful and corruption in the construction industry is paramount, but both seem to be content. It is also noteworthy that Wu Lang had no problems getting the necessary film production permits from the authorities.

Claus Mueller,  New York  filmexchange@gmail.com