24th OPORTO FILM FESTIVAL WITH A STRONG NORTH AMERICAN PRESENCE
With the High Patronage of the Ministry of Culture and the Oporto City Hall, the 24th edition of Fantasporto (Oporto International Film Festival) will be held on the 20th February till March, 1st), with its main Competitive Sections beginning on the 20th February (Official Fantasy Film Selection and Directors Week). Retrospectives and Homages complete the programme, as usual. Showcasing, as usual, the best of European Cinema, the programme is also due to include in its Official Selection films coming from the United States, New Zealand, South Korea or Japan.
A programme preview
FEATURES FANTASY OFFICIAL SECTION IN COMPETITION
THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE – Marcus Nispel (EUA/USA)
THE LOCALS – Greg Page (N.Zea)
CABIN FEVER – Eli Roth (EUA/USA)
THE LAST HORROR MOVIE – Julian Richards (GB/UK)
KILLING WORDS – Laura Mañá (Esp/Spain)
DON´T LOOK BACK – Nicholas A. J. Sherard (GB/UK)
HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES – Rob Zombie (EUA/USA)
DOMINATOR – Tony Luke (GB/UK)
DEAD END – Jean-Baptiste Andrea & Fabrice Canepa (Fra/USA)
TEKNOLUST – Lynn Hershman Leeson (EUA/USA)
ASCENSION – Karim Hussain (Can)
BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR – Brian Yuzna (Esp/Spain)
BIBI BLOCKSBERG – Hermine Huntgeburth (Ale/Ger)
FEAR X – Nicholas Winding Refn (Din/Dan)
ACACIA – Park Ki-hyeong (Cor/Kor)
A TALE OF TWO SISTERS – Kim Jee-woon (Cor/Kor)
H – Lee Jong-Hyuk (Cor/Kor)
LUCKY EARS – Chisui Takigawa (Jap)
TEMPUS FUGIT – Enric Folch (Esp/Spa)
ROBOT STORIES – Greg Pac (EUA/USA)
FANTASY SHORT FILM
IN COMPETITION
THE MAN WITHOUT A HEAD – Juan Solanas (Fra) 13’
EXTN.21 – Lizzie Oxby (GB/UK) 9’
LA ROUTINE – Cédric Babouche (Fra) 5’30
I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS – Miguel Angel Vivas (Port) 20’
HOJE FOI AMANHÃ – Quaresma Vieira (Port) 11
O ÚLTIMO DOS SONHOS – Luis Miranda (Port) 6
EL SEGUIENTE – Luis Quilez (Esp/Spa) 16
INDECISION – Charles Barker (GB/UK) 3
MECHANIKA – David Sukup (Rp.Che/Chec Rep) 10
ESCAPE FROM PARADISE – Freark Broersma (Hol/Neth) 10´30
CITY WITHOUT WINDOWS - Karim Hussain & Julien Fonfrede (Can) 13’
AS MUXICAS – Carlos Alberto Alonso (Esp/Spa)
LA FIN DE NOTRE AMOUR – Hélène & Bruno Forzani (Bel) 9’30
SIMONES LABYRINTH – Ivan Sainz-Pardo (Al/Ger) 15’
O DESALMADO – Afonso Cruz (Port) 6’
DIRECTORS WEEK OFFICIAL SECTION
IN COMPETITION
O HERÓI – ZÉ Zé Gamboa (Port)
EL OTRO LADO DE LA CAMA – Emilio Martinez-Lazaro (Esp/Spain)
YU – Franz Novotny (Austria)
PERFECT STRANGERS – Gaylene Preston (N.Zea)
STRUGGLE – Ruth Mader (Austria)
DEAD MAN´S MEMORIES – Markus Heltschl (Port/Austria)
800 BALAS – Álex de la Iglesia (Esp/Spain)
THE GREEN BUTCHERS – Anders Thomas Jensen (Din/Dan)
SEE GRACE FLY – Pete McCormack (Can)
ENQUETE SUR LE MONDE INVISIBLE – Jean Michel Roux (Fran)
TUBE – Woon-Hak Baek (Cor/Kor)
OFFICIAL SECTION PREMIÈRE & PANORAMA
Opening Film:
NORTHFORK – Michael Polish (GB/UK)
Closing Film:
THE COOLER – Wayne Kramer (EUA/USA)
STANDING IN THE SHADOWS OF MOTOWN – Paul Justman (EUA/USA)
ELVIRA´S HAUNTED HILLS – Sam Irvin (EUA/USA)
AUTO DA COMPADECIDA – Guel Arraes (Brasil)
I´M NOT SCARED – Gabriele Salvatores (It & Esp/Sp & GB/UK)
WRONG TURN – Robert Schmidt (EUA/USA & ALE/GER)
INNOCENCE – Paul Cox (Australia)
MÉLIÈS D’ARGENT COMPETITION
THE LAST HORROR MOVIE – Julian Richards (GB/UK)
KILLING WORDS – Laura Mañá (Esp/Spain)
DON´T LOOK BACK – Nicholas A. J. Sherard (GB/UK)
DOMINATOR – Tony Luke (GB/UK)
BIBI BLOCKSBERG – Hermine Huntgeburth (Ale/Ger)
ORIENT EXPRESS SECTION
ACACIA – Park Ki-hyeong (Cor/Kor)
A TALE OF TWO SISTERS – Kim Jee-woon (Cor/Kor)
H – Lee Jong-Hyuk (Cor/Kor)
LUCKY EARS – Chisui Takigawa (Jap)
TUBE – Woon-Hak Baek (Cor/Kor)
AUDITION/ANJO OU DEMÓNIO – Takashi Miike (Jap)
SORUM/O TERRÍVEL SEGREDO – Yoon Jong-Chan (Cor/Kor)
SCOUT MAN/TRÁFICO DE MULHERES – Masato Ishiota (Jap)
FRIEND/AMIGO – Kwak Kyung-Taek (Cor/Kor)
The Oporto International Film Festival is held annually in February. The first edition of FANTASPORTO, as the festival is usually known, was held in 1981 and was non-competitive. All the following editions included a Competitive Section. The Oporto Festival was founded by the editors of the film magazine Cinema Novo and is sponsored by the Portuguese State and private sponsors. Yet it is not committed to any political influence or outside directions other than the wish of its organizing committee. It is therefore an independent film festival.
The awards granted yearly include feature and short films presented to the competitive Sections. The New Directors Section includes first and second feature films. The festival receives entry forms from all over the world, mostly from European countries and the United States of America.
The Festival runs now in five screens (2.500 seats alltogether) and shows over 200 new feature films each year, in the Official Competitive Section (Fantasy films), Directors Week (non-fantasy films), Directors Week (non-fantasy films), Music Videos section and in the Retrospective Sections (general). The press coverage of the Festival is made by all the national and local newspapers, radio stations and television networks. This allows pressdossiers of nearly 5.000 clippings each year, which represents a unique media coverage in Portugal for similar cultural events.
Chatelin Bruno 
