Montreal International Documentary Festival – November 12-22, various locations LiveEvents November 4, 2015 4222 18th Edition Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) The best of reality film bringing together great thinkers and new talents to discover. The 18th annual Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) will be held from November 12 to 22. With 144 films from 42 countries and more than a hundred guests, the RIDM is, more than ever, an essential destination for anyone who appreciates reality based cinema. The festival will present 25 world and international premieres, 23 North American premieres, 23 Canadian premieres and 43 Quebec premieres. With 49 short and feature films from Quebec, the RIDM is once again proving itself to be a fine launch platform for local works. The RIDM is very pleased to open the festival with the world premiere of the new film by Pascal Sanchez, Les vaillants. A proud standard‐bearer for Quebec’s long tradition of direct cinema, this immersion in the life of a public housing project in Montreal’s Saint-Michel neighbourhood is a profoundly compassionate work that goes straight to the heart. To close the festival, the RIDM presents one of the most original and acclaimed films of the festival season. Straddling the line between fiction and documentary, Olmo and the Seagull by Petra Costa and Lea Glob takes us inside the lives of an actor couple whose routine is disrupted by pregnancy. A luminous work about the links between life and creativity. International Feature Competition The ten films in the international feature competition are a strong, diverse group that collectively reflect the vitality of the documentary genre and its unique ability to take the pulse of the world as it is. Canadian Feature Competition The many different approaches taken in the 12 films in the Canadian feature competition are very much in the same league as their international counterparts, demonstrating convincingly that Quebec and the rest of Canada boast an enviable group of talented documentarians. RETROSPECTIVES Thom Andersen This year the festival will celebrate the career of Thom Andersen, one of North America’s most influential documentary filmmakers. A leading figure in the essay genre, Andersen has twin passions for the history of cinema and architecture, as exemplified by his revered film Los Angeles Plays Itself. He will give a guest lecture on the topic at the Canadian Centre for Architecture. A Photographer’s Eye: photography and the poetic documentary The festival has invited the filmmaking and photography team of Melanie Shatzky and Brian M. Cassidy (The Patron Saints, Francine) to program a series of documentaries made by important photographers, or films whose aesthetic is grounded in still photography. The 20 titles in this retrospective will illustrate the fascinating relationships between still and moving pictures. The selection includes famous names in photography and cinema such as Helen Levitt, Ed van der Elsken, William Klein, Agnès Varda, Chris Marker, Johan van der Keuken, Harun Farocki, JH Engström, Roger Ballen, Richard Billingham, Ulrich Seidl and Jem Cohen (who will present his new film, Counting), and illustrious Canadian artists including Arthur Lipsett, Guy Borremans, Michel Lamothe and Donigan Cumming. For the full line-up of movies and events visit: www.ridm.ca
