A Long And Happy Life (Rus)

Dir Boris Khlebnikov

The director of Roads To Koktebel, Free Floating and Help Gone Mad returns with A Long And Happy Life (Dolgaya Schastlivaya Zhizn), the story of a city boy turned farmer who decides to help his fellow villagers to protect their land from the state. But getting caught up in someone else’s fight could end up costing him everything. Starring Alexander Yatsenko, Eugene Sitiy and Anna Kotova, the film’s cinematographer is Pavel Kostomarov, who won the outstanding artistic achievement Silver Bear at Berlin in 2010 for How I Ended This Summer.

Contact Films Boutique - info@filmsboutique.com

An Episode In The Life Of An Iron Picker (Bos & Herzeg-Fr-Slov)

Dir Danis Tanovic

The fifth film from Tanovic — whose 2001 debut No Man’s Land won the Oscar and Golden Globe for best foreign-language film as well as best screenplay at Cannes — An Episode In The Life Of An Iron Picker (Epizoda U Zivotu Beraca Zeljeza) is the bleak tale of Nazif (Nazif Mujic) who struggles to make ends meet while his partner Senada (Senada Alimanovic) looks after their young daughters, with another child on the way. When she has a miscarriage they cannot pay hospital bills and must return home to their Roma community in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, with Nazif willing to do anything to save her life.

Contact The Match Factory - info@matchfactory.de

Camille Claudel 1915 (Fr)

Dir Bruno Dumont

The unique vision of arthouse favourite Dumont (The Life Of Jesus, L’Humanité, Flanders) and a strong cast including Juliette Binoche and Jean-Luc Vincent will mean this should attract much attention, especially with Dumont heading into period territory with this film, shot on location at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, about sculptor Camille Claudel (Binoche) and her tragic end. Set in 1915, Camille has been confined to an asylum by her family, where she waits for a visit from her brother, Paul Claudel (Vincent).

Contact Wild Bunch - www.wildbunch.biz

Child’s Pose (Rom)

Dir Calin Peter Netzer

Luminita Gheorghiu (The Death Of Mr Lazarescu) stars in Child’s Pose (Pozitia Copilului), which looks at the relationship between a domineering mother and the 32-year-old son she tries to protect after an accident. The film is also a metaphor for the state of modern Romania. It also features Bogdan Dumitrache and Florin Zamfirescu. Netzer picked up several prizes at Locarno for his debut feature, 2003’s Maria, while his Medal Of Honor won five prizes at Thessaloniki in 2009.

Contact Beta Cinema - beta@betacinema.com

Closed Curtain (Iran)

Dir Jafar Panahi

While still banned from film-making in his native Iran (he was given a 20-year ban in 2010), acclaimed director Panahi (The Circle, Offside, This Is Not A Film) has teamed with co-director Kambozia Partovi, who also co-wrote Panahi’s 2000 Venice winner The Circle, for Closed Curtain (Parde). The film is set in a house by the sea, where a man is hiding with his dog to write a screenplay. A mysterious young woman appears, who refuses to leave. At daybreak another arrival flips everyone’s perspective.

Contact uConnect - www.umedia.eu

Gloria (Chile-Sp)

Dir Sebastian Lelio

Gloria, which won the Films In Progress Industry Award at San Sebastian last year, follows 58-year-old Gloria (Paulina Garcia) who busies herself with activities to make up for her loneliness, and at night seeks love at singles events. When she meets 65-year-old Rudolfo (Sergio Hernandez) she thinks she has a final chance at happiness, but his dependency on his ex-wife and children impact on their relationship. Writer-director Lelio’s first film, La Sagrada Familia, competed at San Sebastian in 2005.

Contact Funny Balloons - sales@funny-balloons.com

Gold (Ger)

Dir Thomas Arslan

Writer-director Arslan (Dealer, Vacation, In The Shadows) mixes up the Western genre with this drama about a group of German immigrants who are making their way through the Canadian wilderness in the summer of 1898 to make their fortune in the Klondike goldrush. Their journey through the harsh wilderness becomes increasingly dangerous and internal clashes tear the group apart. The strong cast includes Nina Hoss, Marko Mandic, Uwe Bohm, Lars Rudolph and Peter Kurth.

Contact The Match Factory - info@matchfactory.de

Harmony Lessons (Kazakh-Ger)

Dir Emir Baigazin

The debut feature from Baigazin, Harmony Lessons (Uroki Garmonii) follows a boy who murders a classmate after developing an obsession with perfectionism. The psychological drama was the winner at the inaugural Spotlight: New Kazakh Cinema projects market that took place during the Eurasia film festival in 2011. Baigazin is a graduate of the Kazakh National Academy of Arts and has also studied at the Busan International Film Festival’s Asian Film Academy. He is also an alumnus of the 2008 Berlinale Talent Campus.

Contact Films Distribution - info@filmsdistribution.com

In The Name Of (Pol)

Dir Malgoska Szumowska

A film that broaches the topic of homosexuality in the priesthood, In The Name Of (W Imie…) tells the story of a Catholic priest living in a village in rural Poland who harbours a secret. Produced by Mental Disorder 4, the film stars Andrzej Chyra, Mateusz Kosciukiewicz and Lukasz Simlat. Szumowska’s Elles, which starred Juliette Binoche, premiered at the Berlinale last year.

Contact Memento Films Int’l - sales@memento-films.com

Layla Fourie (Ger-S Afr-Fr-Neth)

Dir Pia Marais

The third film from director Marais (who won a Tiger award in Rotterdam with The Unpolished in 2007), Layla Fourie is an English-language thriller shot in South Africa and Cologne. Starring Rayna Campbell, August Diehl and Rapule Hendricks, the film was produced by Pandora Filmproduktion and co-produced by South Africa’s DV8 Films/Spier Films, Topkapi Films, Cinema Defacto, WDR and Arte.

Contact The Match Factory - info@matchfactory.de

Nobody’s Daughter Haewon (S Kor)

Dir Hong Sang-soo

Korean auteur Hong (Hahaha, In Another Country) returns with Nobody’s Daughter Haewon (Nugu-Ui Ttal-Do Anin Haewon) about a young woman who likes to dream. With her mother about to emigrate to Canada, she decides to end her affair with her professor — only for fellow students to find out about it. Confused, she visits an old fortress in the mountains above Seoul. Hong was last in the Berlin Competition in 2008 with Night And Day.

Contact Finecut - cineinfo@finecut.co.kr

The Nun (Fr-Ger-Bel)

Dir Guillaume Nicloux

Pauline Etienne, Isabelle Huppert, Louise Bourgoin and Martina Gedeck star in The Nun (La Religieuse), a period drama set in France in the 1760s. Adapted from Diderot’s novel, it tells the story of a woman trying to resist imposed religious values after she is sent to live in a convent. Director Nicloux’s credits include A Private Affair and That Woman.

Contact Le Pacte - contact@le-pacte.com

On My Way (Fr)

Dir Emmanuelle Bercot

Catherine Deneuve stars as a grandmother who sets off on an impromptu road trip across France in On My Way (Elle S’En Va), the latest from actress and director Bercot, who co-wrote and appeared in gritty drama Polisse and also directed one of the sketches in Jean Dujardin and Gilles Lellouche’s The Players. Produced by Fidélité Films, French distribution is through Wild Bunch.

Contact Elle Driver - sales@elledriver.eu

Paradise: Hope (Aust-Fr-Ger)

Dir Ulrich Seidl

The third film in Seidl’s Paradise trilogy (after Paradise: Love in Cannes and Paradise: Faith in Venice), picks up a new story from the same family — sex tourist Teresa, from the first film, sends her daughter Melanie, aged 13, to an Austrian diet camp while she is away in Kenya. Melanie falls in love with the much older camp director. The film is described as the ‘gentlest’ of the three films. The cast features Melanie Lenz, Vivian Bartsch, Joseph Lorenz and Michael Thomas.

Contact Co-production Office - sales@coproductionoffice.eu

Vic+Flo Saw A Bear (Can)

Dir Denis Coté

Quebecois auteur Coté brought Bestiaire to Berlin 2012 and returns with this French-language psychological thriller, his seventh feature. Romane Bohringer, Pierrette Robitaille and Marc-André Grondin star in a film about a woman who looks for peace after her release from prison, but receives a disruptive visitor. Coté’s films have also shown in Cannes, Toronto and Locarno and this is thought to be one of his most accessible for audiences. This feature was pitched at Paris Project in 2011.

Contact Films Boutique - info@filmsboutique.com

The Croods (US)

Dir Kirk DeMicco, Chris Sanders

From DreamWorks Animation, The Croods is a 3D animation following a prehistoric family who embark on an adventure when the cave they call home is destroyed. Featuring the voices of Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone and Ryan Reynolds, the film opens in the US in March.

Contact 20th Century Fox

Night Train To Lisbon (Ger-Switz-Port)

Dir Bille August

Jeremy Irons leads a starry European cast assembled for this English-language adaptation of Pascal Mercier’s best-selling novel. He plays a reserved Swiss teacher who goes to Portugal after becoming intrigued by a philosophical book that changes his life. Oscar-winner August premiered Goodbye Bafana at the 2007 Berlinale. This is the first partnered film from Studio Hamburg and C-Films. K5 has already sold a number of territories.

Contact K5 Media Group - info@k5mediagroup.com

A Fold In My Blanket (Georgia)

Dir Zaza Rusadze

This feature debut will open the main Panorama programme and centres on Dmitrij, who befriends a stranger and convinces him to accompany him on climbing trips. But the man disappears. The film stars Tornike Bziava and Tornike Gogrichiani and is produced by Zazarfilm. Backers of A Fold In My Blanket (Chemi Sabnis Naketsi), which featured in Karlovy Vary’s Works In Progress last year, include Global Film Initiative and Rotterdam’s Hubert Bals Fund.

Contact Ida Martins, Media Luna New Films - idamartins@medialuna.biz

Belated (Arg-Col-Nor)

Dir Barbara Sarasola-Day

Ménage a trois drama Belated (Deshora) marks the feature debut of Argentinian director Sarasola-Day. It centres on married couple Ernesto and Helena who form a love triangle with distant cousin Joaquin — only to be surprised by the attraction that is sparked between the two men. Produced by Argentina’s Pucara Cine, Colombia’s Antorcha Films and Norway’s Faction Film, it stars Luis Ziembrowski, Maria Ucedo and Alejandro Buitrago. It was the first feature to be supported by new Norwegian fund Sorfond, which awarded the production $135,000 (€100,000).

Contact Pucara Cine - fedetut@gmail.com / Antorcha Films - Hendrix@antorchafilms.com

Cold (Tur)

Dir Ugur Yücel

The fourth feature from Turkish actor-director Yücel, Cold (Soguk) is his follow-up to serial-killer drama Dragon Trap in 2010. Set in a Turkish border town, it tells the story of a man who falls in love with a beautiful Russian woman who works in a brothel with her sister. Yücel’s 2005 film Toss Up won awards for best film, director and screenplay at film festivals in Antalya and Istanbul.

Contact TMC Film - yasemin@tmc.com.tr

Habi, The Foreigner (Arg-Braz)

Dir Maria Florencia Alvarez

Argentinian director Florencia Alvarez makes her feature debut after a decade directing and producing shorts. Produced by Argentina’s Lita Stantic Producciones and Kramer & Sigman Films, and Walter Salles’ Videofilmes in Brazil, Habi, The Foreigner (Habi, La Extranjera) centres on a girl who moves to Buenos Aires and passes herself off as an Iranian immigrant. The cast includes Martina Juncadella, Martin Slipak, Maria Luisa Mendonca and Lucia Alfonsin. The film is backed by Argentina’s National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts and the National Film Agency of Brazil.

Contact Pierre Menahem, MPM Film - www.mpmfilm.com

Brothers For Life (India)

Dir Abhishek Kapoor

Based on the bestselling novel The 3 Mistakes Of My Life, Brothers For Life (Kai Po Che) centres on three friends who decide to fulfil their dream of opening a training academy for sports stars. Directed by Kapoor, whose credits include Rock On!!, the film stars Sushant Singh Rajput, Raj Kumar, Amit Sadh and Amrita Puri. It is produced by Disney-owned UTV, which will also distribute.

Contact UTV - neha.kaul@disney.com

It’s All So Quiet (Neth-Ger)

Dir Nanouk Leopold

The tale of a father-son relationship between an old farmer and his closeted gay son, It’s All So Quiet (Boven Is Het Stil) will open the Panorama Special section. Based on Gerbrand Bakker’s novel The Twin, the drama is Dutch director Leopold’s follow-up to 2010’s Brownian Movement and is produced by Circe Films and N279 Entertainment in the Netherlands, and Germany’s Coin Film. The cast includes Jeroen Willems (who passed away in December), Henri Garcin, Wim Opbrouck and Martijn Lakemeier, and producers are Stienette Bosklopper and Els Vandevorst. It will be released in Belgium and the Netherlands by Cineart on April 24.

Contact Films Distribution - fry@filmsdistribution.com

Lifelong (Tur-Ger-Neth)

Dir Asli Ozge

Turkish director Ozge follows up her award-winning debut Men On The Bridge with a feature centring on a bourgeois couple, played by Defne Halman and Hakan Cimenser. Lifelong (Hayatboyu) is co-produced by Bulut Film, Razor Film, Augustus Film, Kaliber Film, The Post Republic and Sodamedya Interactiv.

Contact Films Boutique - info@filmsboutique.com

Lose Your Head (Ger)

Dirs Stefan Westerwelle, Patrick Schuckmann

Inspired by the true story of a young Portuguese man who disappeared in 2009, Lose Your Head is set in Berlin and follows Madrid student Luis (Fernando Tielve) who bears a resemblance to a Greek student who has gone missing only a few weeks earlier. Co-director Stefan Westerwelle attended the Berlinale last year with gay-rights activist documentary Detlef, while his 2006 debut feature Solange Du Hier Bist won awards at festivals such as Locarno and Turin.

Contact Mutter-Film - info@mutter-film.de

Love Battles (Fr)

Dir Jacques Doillon

Starring Sara Forestier, who won the 2011 best actress Cesar for The Names Of Love, Love Battles (Mes Séances De Lutte) focuses on a couple who feel they have to physically confront each other to find themselves. Director Doillon has appeared three times in competition at Venice and twice at Cannes. Produced by his own production company, Doillon et Cie, Love Battles will be released by Sophie Dulac Distribution in France.

Contact Doc & Film International - sales@docandfilm.com

Maladies (US)

Dir Carter

James Franco reteams with Carter for the director’s second feature, a wise-cracking drama about three characters on the fringes of society, pushing and pulling at the bonds that bind them. Franco, Fallon Goodson and Catherine Keener star. Carter’s experimental first feature Erased James Franco in 2009 saw Franco re-enact scenes from his career to date.

Contact Voltage Pictures - sales@voltagepictures.com

My Sisters (Ger)

Dir Lars Kraume

My Sisters (Meine Schwestern), director Kraume’s fifth feature, centres on a few days in the life of three sisters, one of whom suffers from heart disease. They decide to embark on one last journey before a major operation. Two of Kraume’s previous films have screened in Berlin: Keine Lieder Uber Liebe and Guten Morgen, Herr Grothe.

Contact Badlands Film - doehmann@@badlands-film.de

Reaching For The Moon (Braz)

Dir Bruno Barreto

Reaching For The Moon tells the story of Pulitzer Prize-winning US poet Elizabeth Bishop’s relationship with Brazilian architect Lota de Macedo Soares. Barreto’s Four Days In September was nominated for a foreign-language Oscar in 1998. The film was written by Carolina Kotscho (Two Sons Of Francisco) and Matthew Chapman. The cast includes Miranda Otto, Gloria Pires and Tracy Middendorf. It will be released by Imagem Filmes in Brazil on March 29.

Contact The Film Consultancy - penny@thefilmconsultancy.com

Something In The Way (Indon)

Dir Teddy Soeriaatmadja

The latest from Indonesian filmmaker Soeriaatmadja stars Reza Rahadian as a taxi driver in Jakarta who falls for a prostitute. Soeriaatmadja was nominated as best director at the 2012 Asian Film Awards for his previous film Lovely Man.

Contact Karuna Pictures - karuna.pictures@gmail.com

So Much Water (Urug-Mex-Neth-Ger)

Dirs Ana Guevara Pose, Leticia Jorge Romero

The debut feature from Uruguayan directors Ana Guevara Pose and Leticia Jorge Romero, So Much Water (Tanta Agua) concerns a divorced father who takes his young son and teenage daughter on vacation and struggles to keep them happy and the family united. The film has won three awards at films in progress events, including the Norteado-Films in Progress Award at San Sebastian, and is supported by Rotterdam’s Hubert Bals Fund.

Contact Alpha Violet - info@alphaviolet.com

Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow? (Taiwan)

Dir Arvin Chen

Richie Jen, Mavis Fan, Stone, Kimi Hsia and Lawrence Ko star in Chen’s Taipei-set romantic comedy, his first feature since 2010 romance Au Revoir Taipei, which picked up the NETPAC award for best Asian film when it played in Berlin in 2010. Chen also won a Silver Bear at the 2006 edition for his short Mei.

Contact Media Asia Film Distribution  frederick_tsui@mediaasia.com