28 February 2016,
 Off

 

29. 2. 2016. – Independent cinemas across Croatia are once again hosting the Women’s Day Weekend (Ženijalni vikend), a feast of film celebrating the International Women’s Day, celebrated on 8 March. The second Women’s Day Weekend takes place 5-8 March and screens five must-see stories about women. Celebrate Women’s Day with in the company of these complex, funny, vulnerable and courageous heroines and let their screen stories inspire you.

This year’ Women’s Day Weekend will include 20 cities and towns and 26 independent cinemas and present new titles and reruns focusing, naturally, on women.

The second ever Women’s Day Weekend features a pre-premiere of Zrinko Ogresta’s On the Other Side, whose world premiere took place in 66th Berlinale’s Panorama section, winning Europa Cinemas Label jury special mention. This is Ogresta’s seventh feature, to be released nationally on 10 March, and it focuses on visiting nurse Vesna, who moved to Zagreb with her children 20 years ago, running away from the events that nearly destroyed their lives. However, one unexpected phone call unearths the secret Vesna has been trying to hide all these years. The brilliant Ksenija Marinković stars in the leading role, one of our busiest actresses, and Tihana Lazović, who was introduced in Berlin in the Shooting Stars programme as one of 10 most promising European actors, appears in one of the supporting roles. On the Other Side cast and crew will attend the pre-premiere in Split, arriving after they appeared at FEST – Belgrade International Film Festival.

Another premiere appears in the line-up – the romantic drama Brooklyn, directed by John Crowley and written by famous writer Nick Hornby. Brilliant up-and-comer Saoirse Ronan plays Ellis Lacey, a girl who decides to leave Ireland and move to the States. She moves to Brooklyn and befriends an Irish priest and falls in love with an Italian guy called Tony. However, news from home will tear them apart. Brooklyn was an Academy Award nominee for best film, best actress, and best adapted screenplay. Twenty-two-year-old Saoirse has recently been included in Vanity Fair’s list of the most relevant actresses of today.

Another romantic story is Todd Haynes’ Carol, an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s novel about an affair between two women of different age and social status in the early 1950s in New York City. The film stars Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, both Oscar-nominated for their performances. The film was also nominated for best adapted screenplay, cinematography, costume design and music.

Drama biopic Joy by David O. Russell was based on a true story about an emotional journey of a woman determined to keep her eccentric family together despite seemingly unsurmountable differences. Led by her genius and wish to make her life dream come true, Joy succeeds and becomes the founder of a billion-dollar worth of business empire, transforming her life, as well as the lives of her family. Joy earned Jennifer Lawrence an Oscar nomination for best leading role.

Apart from blockbusters, Women’s Day Weekend features one European co-production. The Bulgarian-Greek film Lesson by Kristina Grozeva and Petar Valchanov is a story of Nadezhda, an English teacher from around Sofia. Shocked by the information of a theft committed by one of her students, she decides to find the culprit and punish him. However, as the school situation evolves, her private life drastically changes and Nadezhda forgets all the lessons she used to teach her students. The film won a host of awards and honours at famous world festivals, including those in San Sebastián, Gothenburg, Thessaloniki, Tokyo and Warsaw.

The second Women’s Day Weekend is organised by the Croatian Network of Independent Cinemas in association with the Croatian Audiovisual Centre and it takes place at 26 independent cinemas:

Čakovec Centre for Culture – 5-8/3
30th May Cinema (Daruvar) – 3-6/3 and 8/3
Đakovo Centre for Culture – 7/3
Velebit Cinema (Koprivnica) – 5-9/3
Moslavina Cinema (Kutina) – 5 and 6/3
Pobjeda Cinema (Metković) – 8/3
Novska Cinema – 5 and 6/3
Urania Cinema (Osijek) – 5-9/3
Croatian House Cinema (Pakrac) – 8/3
Pazin Cinema – 5/3, 10/3 and 12/3
City of Prelog Centre for Culture – 7 and 8/3
Art Cinema Croatia (Rijeka) – 5-8/3
Samobor Cinema – 4-8/3
Sinj Town Cinema – 7 and 8/3
Kristalna kocka vedrine Centre for Culture (Sisak) – 5 and 6/3
Slatina Cinema – 8/3
Karaman Cinema (Split) – 8/3
Zlatna vrata Cinematheque (Split) – 5-8/3
Galerija Cinema (Varaždin) – 5 and 6/3
Gorica Cinema (Velika Gorica) – 8/3
Zabok Cinema – 7 and 8/3
Metropolis Art Cinema (Zagreb) – 5 and 8/3
Europa Cinema (Zagreb) – 8/3
MM Centre (Zagreb) – 7/3
Tuškanac Cinema (Zagreb) – 6/3
KIC Docucinema (Zagreb) – 3-6/3

Details regarding the screening schedule are available on the respective cinemas’ websites or Facebook pages, and all other info is available on the event’s Facebook page.

See you at Women’s Day Weekend!

Comments are closed.