Sister Cities International Film Festival

Photo courtesy of Chito Graphics and Design

TAIKO. Returning this year for opening night Feb. 4 will be Taiko drummers from Stadium High School.

Beginning Feb. 4, Tacomans will be given an opportunity to see some of the most outstanding cinematic offerings from around the world at the eighth annual Sister Cities International Film Festival. Continuing every Thursday through April 8 at the Blue Mouse Theatre, each evening features cultural performances at 6:30 p.m. followed by a film at 7:30 p.m.

This year 10 of Tacoma’s 11 Sister Cities will be showcased in the fest: Kitakyushu, Japan; George, South Africa; Kiryat-Motzkin, Israel; Taichung, Taiwan; Vladivostok, Russia; Cienfuegos, Cuba; El Jadida, Morocco; Gunsan, South Korea; Aalesund, Norway; and Davao City, Philippines (Fuzhou, China will not be featured this year).

Formerly known as the International Film & Food Festival, this year organizers have dropped the food portion of the event while maintaining the highest quality in films and cultural entertainment. The ticket price has been lowered to reflect this change too – $10 per film or $90 for the whole series if purchased by Feb. 4 (that is 10 films for the price of nine). Raffles and drawings held each night will help raise funds to support programs in the respective Sister City.

“This year, so many of the films are award-winning films,” noted Frances Lorenz, chair of the Tacoma-El Jadida (Morocco) Sister City Committee and Sister Cities volunteer since its inception. This certainly applies to the opening night film “Okuribito,” winner of an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Celebrating Tacoma’s very first Sister City – Kitakyushu, Japan – opening night kicks off with performances by Taiko drummers from Stadium High School and traditional Japanese songs performed by students from University of Puget Sound. The film, “Okuribito,” translates as “Departures.” Director Yojiro Takita and writer Kundo Koyama examine the rituals surrounding death in Japan with this tale of an out-of-work cellist who accepts a job as a “nokanashi” or “encoffineer” (the Japanese equivalent of an undertaker) in order to provide for himself and his young wife.

The remaining festival schedule is as follows (see full descriptions in the guide inserted in this issue):

• Feb. 11 – George, South Africa: “Faith Like Potatoes,” an uplifting, inspirational story of courage in the face of bitter adversity. “This is a phenomenal film,” according to Lorenz, “one of the greatest films out of South Africa.”
• Feb. 18 – Kiryat-Motzkin, Israel: “Noodle.” A melancholy Israeli flight attendant finds new meaning in life on her quest to reunite a 6-year-old Chinese boy with his missing mother.
• Feb. 25 – Taichung, Taiwan: “Orz Boys.” A pair of youthful troublemakers has a hard time navigating the path of the straight and narrow in this drama.
• March 4 – Vladivostok, Russia: “The Island.” An unusual man with bizarre conduct makes others think he has the power to heal and tell the future.
• March 11 – Cienfuegos, Cuba: “Nada.” A young girl must choose between a future of her own in Cuba and a future planned by others in Miami.
• March 18 – El Jadida, Morocco: “Raja,” a winner of numerous film festival awards, tells the story of a young girl and the cultural and economical differences that come between her and her love interest.
• March 25 – Gunsan, South Korea: “Christmas in August.” An achingly tender romantic drama about a terminally ill man who falls in love, voted an audience favorite at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival.
• April 1 – Aalesund, Norway: “Troubled Water.” A man convicted of murdering a child finds himself recognized by the mother upon his release back into society.
• April 8 – Davao City, Philippines: “Love Will Lead Us Home,” a sweet and sentimental family tale filled with laughter and tears.

Visit http://www.SisterCityFilmFest.org for ticket information.

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