Montreal, Wednesday, August 14, 2024 – The Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) is pleased to announce the first four films of its 27th edition, which will take place from November 20 to December 1, 2024.
A selection intended to offer a first glimpse of a rich program that testifies to the artistic and political relevance of documentary film in these turbulent times.
Known for its remarkable festival run since its World Premiere at the Berlinale in February 2024, Intercepted by Oksana Karpovych (Don’t Worry, the Doors Will Open, New Visions Award at RIDM 2019) will be presented to audiences in Quebec for the first time. In this disturbing documentary, the director juxtaposes stark, static visuals of Ukraine’s desolate landscapes of bombed buildings and ruined homes, with intercepted phone calls recorded by Ukrainian intelligence. These calls capture conversations between Russian soldiers and their families, revealing their fears and anger, while depicting disconcerting cruelty. This striking portrait captures the conflict’s impact on both the invaders and the devastated nation they leave behind, offering a profound reflection on the human cost of war.
Tackling a sadly topical issue, the harrowing No Other Land co-directed by a collective of Israeli-Palestinian filmmakers composed of Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Hamdan Ballal and Rachel Szor will have its Quebec Premiere at the festival. Taking the perspective of a Palestinian activist and an Israeli journalist who are friends, the documentary exposes the devastating impact of Israel’s demolition campaigns in Masafer Yatta in the West Bank. The film has won several audience awards, notably at the Berlinale, CPH:DOX and Visions du Réel.
Returning to RIDM, Belgian filmmaker Alexe Poukine (That Which Does Not Kill, RIDM 2019) will unveil a new documentary, Who Cares? (Sauve qui peut), acclaimed at Cinéma du Réel (Young Jury) and at Visions du Réel (special mention in the national competition). In Switzerland, actors and actresses act out consultations with medical and nursing students. The scenarios are then discussed and analyzed. This revealing educational approach is gradually put into dialogue with improvisation workshops for health care professionals, from which emerges a collective discourse on the difficult reality of a system that exerts enormous physical and mental pressure on these professionals. In this film, which has no external commentary, filmmaker Alexe Poukine continues her formal, narrative and social exploration using re-enactments and acting to evoke an obscured truth and a vital message.
Winner of the Best Canadian Feature Documentary award at Hot Docs this year, The Soldier’s Lagoon (La Laguna del Soldado) by Pablo Alvarez-Mesa (Infinite Distances, Special Jury Prize in the national short or medium-length film competition at RIDM 2022) will also be featured. In this second part of a trilogy exploring the emblematic figure of Simon Bolivar in Colombia, the filmmaker takes a sophisticated artistic look at the páramo and its history. This work explores social, political, and environmental realities through the voices of environmentalists, native guardians, miners, and others connected to the place, in a visual and sonic exploration capable of expressing the intangible within a complex region, where the future carries its memories as a legacy.
The complete line-up for the 27th edition of RIDM will be unveiled on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.
About RIDM
Striving to showcase the most stimulating and diverse visions of documentary cinema, the Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) offers audiences a unique program that brings together the works of established filmmakers and promising new talents, while focusing on creating encounters between artists and audiences.
The 27th annual RIDM will take place from November 20 to December 1st, 2024.
Information: ridm.ca / info@ridm.ca
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For interview or visual material requests, please contact:
Caroline Rompré | pixelleX communications | 514-778-9294 | caroline@pixellex.ca