The 27th international women's film festival held outside Paris in Créteil that ran March 11- 20 demonstrates that the panorama of world cinema featuring powerful portraits of women continues. This under the excellent eye of director Jackie Buet! A first for the festival was the invitation of some of the Asian countries for a special spotlight on women filmmakers for that regions. For the first time also, a spotlight on experimental work by Maria Klonaris and Katerina Thomadaki. The two Greek women who have adopted France since the junta in their country are known for corporeal cinema dedicated to the movement of the body. They are leading artists in the experimental film movement in France

There was also a special homage to Alanis Obomsawin (Canada)

This year the festival honored Juliette Binoche as guest of honor with a retrospective of her work. Binoche was on hand to meet the public after the screening of Trois Coleur, Bleue, by Krysztof Kieslowki.The beginning scenes display an amazing Binoche smashing a window, inhaling a bottle of pills and then spitting them out after the fatal crash that killed her husband and child, then watching the funeral on TV in her hospital bed. The film confirms the role as one of her most powerful performances.

Also on hand was Julie Delpy, who met with the public after an advance screening of 'Before Sunset'. Delpy and Ethan Hawke wrote the script for together with Richard Linklater and Delpy wrote the songs she sang in the film.

The festival is the largest panorama of films made by women in the world. Previous guests of honor include Jeanne Moreau, Irene Papas, Catherine Deneuve and Charlotte Rampling.

Special films of the festival include:

Butterfly: Yan Yan Mak, Hong Kong (opening film)
'Butterfly' was selected for the international critic's week at Venice this past year. The film is a portrait of a school teacher who meets a young woman who reminds her of an earlier relationship her parents discouraged. Since then she has married and the new meeting jars her emotional core with loss and sorrow for her first girlfriend. Yan Yan Mak artfully weaves super 8 film with digital to create a mosaic of memory that unites the two time periods. One of the best films about lesbian relationships made to date.
Concrete Revolution rich documentary about the transformation of Beijing by Xiaolu Guo.

Whispering Sands by Nan T. Achnas. Timeless world class feature about a young girl and her mother who live on the shores of Indonesia, beset by sexual violence and abandoment.

Let's Love Hong Hong. Director Yau Ching is an outspoken representative of Hong Kong cinema and brought up the minority representation of women working in Asia as a key theme. Her film features two women who are visually shown editorially with footage of giraffes. Referred to as 'gentlemen' they are two women who eventually find each other among the bunk bed confusion and oversexualized imagery offered to the lonely in Hong Kong.

Sueño de una mujer despierta/Rêveries de femmes
Azucena De La Fuente (Espagne- Spain)
Tragi-comic role reversal about a woman who beats her husband and objectifies him as do all the women in the film. Powerful tribute against domestic violence against women.

SEPET --jury prize winner of festival
Yasmin Ahmad (Malasie, Malaysia)
Ahmad was part of the special Asian spotlight of the festival. She says she makes films about her parents, and said that in Malaysia, Muslim women are equal with their husbands.

FROZEN
Juliet McKoen (Royaume-Uni, GB)
Pour l’interprètation de la comédienne Shirley Henderson. ( special mention to actress)
Film about a young woman whose sister has mysteriously vanished and who journeys to the underworld to find her. Tragic view about status of women in society.

PROSTITUTION BEHIND THE VEIL
Nahid Persson (Danemark-Denmark)
Documentary bound for NYC about young women forced into prostitution and drug addiction in Teheran, abused by men and the police.

MOUSTACHE Vicky Sugars (Australie- Australia)
Gender bender short about a woman who decides to leave her moustache alone.

MERCY
Candida Scott Knight (Royaume-Uni- GB)
Featuring young actor from 'Spider' (starring Ralph Fiennes), who lives with his mother, a drug addict, and who is bullied at school.

Special shorts from Singapore by Tania Sng and Wong Lee reveal geographical areas and refreshing subjects that has never been seen at Créteil.




Palmarès du 27e du Festival International de Films de Femmes de Créteil et du Val-De-Marne/ 11 au 20 mars 2005
Prizes at the 27th International Women's Film Festival at Créteil March 11-20 2005:

*Grand prix du Jury
Grand prize of the Jury
Le Jury 2005 est composé de, the jury is composed of Jacques Bidou (Président), Julie Gayet, Suzette Glenadel, Cécile Helleu, Marie-Elisabeth Rouchy, Emmanuel Salinger et Thomas Sotinel

Meilleur long métrage fiction
Best feature film

SEPET
Yasmin Ahmad (Malasie, Malaysia)

Mention spéciale du Grand Jury
FROZEN
Juliet McKoen (Royaume-Uni, GB)
Pour l’interprètation de la comédienne Shirley Henderson. ( special mention to actress)

Prix AFJ (Association des Femmes Journalistes--Association of Women Journalists)
Meilleur long métrage documentaire
Best documentary feature
PROSTITUTION BEHIND THE VEIL
Nahid Persson (Danemark-Denmark)

Mention spéciale Prix AFJ
Special mention to
SOUPIR D'AMES
Helen Doyle (Canada)

Prix du Public Meilleur long métrage fiction
Public prize for best feature film
BROTHER
Susanne Bier (Danemark- Denmark)

Prix du Public Meilleur long métrage documentaire
Public prize for best documentary feature
PROSTITUTION BEHIND THE VEIL
Nahid Persson (Danemark- Denmark)

Prix du Public Meilleur court métrage français
Best French short film
Le Léopard ne se déplace jamais sans ses taches
Hélèna Klotz (France)

Prix du Public Meilleur court métrage étranger
Public prize to best interational short film
MOUSTACHE Vicky Sugars (Australie- Australia)


Prix Canal +
Meilleur court métrage
Best short film
HOI MAY / SALUT MAYA
Claudia Lorenz (Suisse- Switzerland)

Prix de l’Association Beaumarchais
Meilleur court métrage francophone
Best French short
LES COURANTS
Sofia Norlin (France)

Prix du jury Graine de Cinéphage
Youth jury
Best feature film

…ING
Eon-Hee Lee (Corée du Sud -South Korea)

Prix du jury Paris XII
Paris University XII
Meilleur court métrage européen
Best European short film
MERCY
Candida Scott Knight (Royaume-Uni- GB)

Mention spéciale du jury Paris XII
Special mention
Sueño de una mujer despierta /
Rêveries de femmes
Azucena De La Fuente (Espagne- Spain)

Prix du scénario Le Manuscrit
Screenplay award
Lise Bismuth(France)





FOCUS ON ASIA

- The Concrete Revolution (2004/Xiaolu Guo/China)
- Let’s love Hong Kong (2002/Yau ching/China/HK)
- …ING (2003/Lee Eon-hee/South Korea)
- Whispering Sands (2001/Nan T. Achnas/Indonesia)
- Arisan! (2004/Nia Di Nata/Indonesia)
- Yurisai (2001/Sachi Hamano/Japon)
- Rabun (2001/Yasmin Ahmad/Malaisia)
- Riles (2002/Ditsi Carolino/Philippines)
- Lim Poh Huat/ Short Series Tania SNG (2004/Lee Wong/Singapor)
- I-San Special (2002/Mingmongkol Sonakul/Thaïland)



AVANT GARDE : MARIA KLONARIS ET KATERINA THOMADAKI

- Cycle of the Angel
- Selva, Portrait of Parvaneh Navaï (1981/1983)
- Chutes.Désert.Syn (1983/1985)







Moira Sullivan