This year, the festival focuses on intercultural dialogue in general and cooperation with Russia.
Continuing the traditions of previous years, as part of the cultural exchange, the festival will once again bring together filmmakers and film lovers from all over the world to show real masterpieces of Kurdish cinema.
The geography of the participants is very diverse - the programs include films from 12 countries - Iraq, Turkey, Iran, France, Syria, Canada, the Netherlands, etc.
A separate focus is on films about the Yazidis and their ancient Mesopotamian religion. This is also reflected in the festival’s visual concept: the central symbol of this year’s poster is a peacock feather, which is a powerful symbol for the Kurdish people, especially in the context of Yazidism, the ancient ancestral religion of all Kurds. It emphasizes the importance of preserving and popularizing Kurdish culture through cinema.
The lilac background is reminiscent of the headscarves traditionally worn by Kurdish women. This element emphasizes the connection with culture and traditions passed down from generation to generation.
The Feature Film Competition includes the experimental film "Mosul, My Home", which is a walking tour of the ruins of Mosul in an attempt to explore the aftermath of war, as well as the energy of the city and its multinational residents; the drama "Transient Happiness", which captured the vulnerability of an idyll; the historical drama 1988, based on real events and telling the story of a gas attack at the height of the Iraqi-Iranian war in the border town of Halabja; the tragic saga The "Horse" about the hero's attempts to return to his own home after the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime; and the sports drama Baghdad Messi, about how a ten-year-old boy with a serious injury experiences an unquenchable passion for football in war-torn Iraq. Also in the program are "Mahsa Laughed" about emigration as a way to escape from social and religious problems, and "Good Day" - the story of Kurdish theater actors trying to re-stage a play banned 25 years ago.
The documentary feature competition consists of films that touch on various areas of Kurdish life. In particular, the program includes the film "Daughters of the Sun", which tells about the attempts of Yazidi women and girls, who were used as sex slaves by the Islamic State, to rebuild their lives; the film "Massacre in the Desert", dedicated to the attack of the Baath regime on the village of Dekan; the film "For Justice", which tells about the daily attempts of a mother to free her convicted son from prison. In addition, the competition includes the film "Hopes from Wood", whose hero makes wooden prostheses for people who have lost limbs; "Minstrels of the Sacred Mountains" - a musician's journey through the history and myths surrounding the ancient mystical instrument tanbur; the biography "Mustafa Pasha Yamulki, the Fighter for Justice" about the life of a Kurdish military officer who was appointed chairman of the Ottoman Trials in 1919-1920; "Portrait of a Refugee" about a Kurdish civil-political activist who was forced to make many sacrifices for the freedom of his homeland, and "The River of Sorrow" about one of the most famous singers of Eastern Kurdistan, who has been fighting for his art for many years.
The Short Feature Film Competition includes 14 films from Iran, Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Canada. These are political and social dramas, as well as films that touch on issues of violence, executions, and the expression of tragedy through art.
The Short Documentary Film Competition includes 9 projects from Iraq, Turkey, Iran and France. Many of the short documentaries and feature films are dedicated to the problems of women in Kurdistan - their political, social and cultural status, as well as crimes against them.
The festival screenings will take place in Moscow cinemas (venues will be announced later).
All films will be shown in their original languages with Russian subtitles.