Over 7 days, the film festival at Spazju Kreattiv shall promote the diversity of European cultures and common values through the films that shall be screened.
The Law of love
Country: Czech Republic
Sunday, September 10, 2023 at 6.00pm
80 min
Cert: 12
Czech with English subtitles
It looks like the Czech society is LGBT + friendly. But when it comes to legalizing marriage, ignorance and hatred suddenly appear. Czeslaw, and his companions run a campaign to show that the fight for LGBT + rights in Europe is not over. Director: Barbora Chalupova (2022).
Breaking the ice
Country: Austria
Tuesday, September 12, 2023 at 6.00pm
102 min
Cert: 12
German with English subtitles
The movie tells the story of Mira, a young Austrian woman, who escapes from the pressure of running her family’s vineyard by playing ice hockey. Then a new player arrives to challenge herrigid worldview, leading to a life-changing night on the streets of Vienna. When Mira’s missing brother Paul also turns up and all three get lost in late-night Vienna, Mira discovers the freedom it means to break rules, to reinvent herself – and that you can only love if you let go.
Director: Clara Stern / Producers: Nikolaus Geyrhalter, Markus Glaser, Michael Kitzberger, Wolfgang.
Zen sul ghiaccio sottile – plus Q&A with director Margherita Ferri
Country: Italy
Tuesday, September 12, 2023 at 8.30pm
87 min
Cert 12
Italian with English subtitles
Maia, called ZEN, a rowdy yet solitary 16-year-old tomboy, lives in a small village on top of the rough and beautiful Italian Apennines. She’s the only girl of the local ice hockey- team and she is constantly bullied by her teammates for her masculine attitude. When Vanessa – the beautiful and bewildered girlfriend of the team captain – runs away from home and hides in Maia’s family lodge, Maia feels free to trust someone for the first time. Led by the need to break away from the roles that the small community has forced them to play, Maia and Vanessa embark on a journey of self-discovery: an exploration of their gender identity and sexuality, liquid and restless like the troubled time of youth.
Director: Margherita Ferri (2018)
El Houb
Country: The Netherlands
Wednesday, September 13, 2023 at 6.00pm
102 min
Cert: 15
Dutch with English subtitles
When Moroccan-Dutch Karim is caught by his father with another man, he rushes to his parental home to engage in the conversation that follows. But how do you address the elephant in the room within a family that avoids sensitive subjects by definition? Especially with an intrusive neighbor who always buzzes around the house at the wrong moment. The difficult days that follow bring forth beautiful and poignant memories. Karim realizes that he must confront his family to finally break the deafening silence. But can he expect acceptance from his family if he has never come to terms with his own feelings? El Houb (The Love) is both a moving and humorous directorial debut by Shariff Nasr, starring Fahd Larhzaoui and award-winning actors Lubna Azabal (Incendies, Adam) and Slimane Dazi (Un prophète). El Houb is the first feature film that addresses the sensitivity of coming out in the Dutch- Moroccan community, and it had its world premiere at the prestigious Frameline Film Festival in San Francisco.
And then we danced
EU Representation in Malta
Wednesday, September 13, 2023 at 8.30pm
Georgian with English subtitles
Cert: 15
113 minutes
Merab has been training since a young age at the National Georgian Ensemble with his dance partner Mary. His world is suddenly turned upside down when the charismatic and carefree Irakli arrives and becomes both his strongest rival and desire. In this conservative setting Merab finds himself having to break free and risk it all. Premiering at the 2019 Quinzaine des réalisateurs in Cannes to a 15-minute standing ovation, Levan Akin’s queer coming of age drama has gone on to receive multiple accolades and awards from film festivals around the world, including the Grand Prix, Best Film and Best Actor at the Odesa Film Festival. In Georgia, however, where the film is set, audiences were subject to protests outside screenings, which at times turned violent, highlighting the courage required for the film to have been made in the first place.
Director: Levan Akin (2019).
Short film compilation Malta
Country: Malta
54 mins
Thursday, September 14, 2023 at 8.30pm
Cert N/a
1. Short Film – In his image – 10 min
Synopsis: One summer afternoon, a young man breaks into a middle-aged man’s house. It is not the first time he has done so. There, they have a conversation which leads to something more, and to nothing at all. This queer, arthouse two-hander is an exploration of identity, masculinity and the gaze.
Directed by Matteo Pullicino
2. Short Film – Searching for the wave – 14 min
Faye, heartbroken and confused, recalls her recent relationship with Ava in hopes of understanding why she left without a trace. This eventually leads Faye to a dark realization about her
former partner’s childhood. In this short drama, Chelsea Muscat explores queer love and heartbreak, and the cycle of childhood trauma.
Directed by Chelsea Muscat
3. Short Film – Venus Melite – 30 min
Synopsis: A queer photographer visiting the island of Malta finds inspiration and solace in a young beekeeper, but grapples with her role as an artist in the face of complex political forces.
Directed by Scott Lyman
Te Estoy Amando Locamente
Country: Spain
Friday, September 15, 2023 at 6.00pm
107 min
Spanish, with English subtitles
Cert: 12
It follows a mother involved in the homosexual movement of the 1970s.
Directed by Alejandro Marin / Scenario: Carmen Garrido Vacas (2023).
La revanche des Crevettes Pailletées – plus Q&A with director Cedric Le Gallo
Country: France
Friday, September 15, 2023 at 8.30pm
113 min
Cert: 12
On their way to the Gay Games in Tokyo, the Glitter Shrimps miss their connecting flight and find themselves stranded deep in Russia, in a particularly homophobic region. It follows the first film directed by Cédric Le Gallo entitled Les Crevettes Pailletées.
The film premiered in official competition at the 2021 Alpe d’Huez International Comedy Film Festival.
Directors: Cédric Le Gallo and Maxime Govare (2022)
Starring: Nicolas Gob, Michaël Abiteboul, Bilal El Atreby, David Baiot
Call for applications for the Artists Development Programme 2025 for one visual artist from an EU Member State to work on the theme “Art & Development” Thursday 19 December 2024
Benefit from a reduced tax rate as a creative practitioner Thursday 7 September 2023
Patryk Cutajar is representing Malta in the Babylon Europa event organised by EUNIC Berlin Thursday 11 May 2023
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