image: Las Lindas (Melisa Liebenthal) - ID: gender.net

Themed programme within Bright Future is ID: gender.net
ID: gender.net is a programme geared to our own identities. After all, it is impossible to relate to someone else without a sense of your own identity. Today, we seem to have far more freedom in the interpretation of this than ever before. Following nationality, belief or race, these days gender is also open to interpretation and offers opportunities for self-expression, exploration and the formation of identity in both the offline and virtual worlds.
 
Themed programme within Voices is ID: The Generic Self
We often make adjustments to our identities within social open spaces. We sacrifice certain specific qualities in order to participate in the communal experience. We become generic. For some, this is accompanied by a feeling of loss or alienation – of going through life ‘blankly’. Others flourish through the sense of safety this new anonymity brings – feeling part of a greater whole, and willing to give something up for this. But in so doing, are we making ourselves vulnerable?
 
Themed programme within Deep Focus is ID: Community Cameras
In a series of documentaries drawn from all over the world, in Community Cameras IFFR is looking for elements that promote the formation of communities. From television pirates to VHS smugglers and from Hollywood rebels to porn activists: the common factor is always the film camera, which not only records, but also brings people with a particular vision together, offering an anchor point for a micro-community amidst a constantly shifting society.
 
Themed programme within Perspectives is ID: Burma Rebound
Some fascinating social developments are taking place on the other side of the world. Burma Rebound is a unique exhibition in which artists from Burma will give an artistic impression of what a Burmese identity means. Once one of the most insular states in the world, Burma is a country at present undergoing the most spectacular social, political and demographic transformations.
 
For four decades now, IFFR has developed and proudly presented auteur cinema by helping filmmakers reach the broadest possible audiences. The festival has an international reputation for its idiosyncratic, innovative programming, with a special eye for talented filmmakers starting out on their careers. High-quality films from all over the world are presented to a large international public in Rotterdam, with the aim of inspiring and expanding horizons.
 
IFFR is one of the biggest cultural events in the Netherlands and one of the biggest audience-based film festivals in the world – the 45th IFFR takes place this year from Wednesday 27 January to Sunday 7 February. With the latest feature films, documentaries, short films, exhibitions, performances, talkshows and debates, for twelve days Rotterdam is a scintillating, global film capital. Official ticket sales start on Friday, 22 January. For more information, see IFFR.com.