14. Millennium Docs Against Gravity Film Festival w Lublinie

The MILLENNIUM DOCS AGAINST GRAVITY film festival, the biggest documentary film festival in Poland will take place for the first time in Lublin, at the Centre for the Meeting of Cultures. The festival has made documentary films fashionable in Poland, generating popular interest among audiences and the leading opinion makers. Since its inception, the festival has championed documentary cinema of the highest order and in-depth discussions on the issues of contemporary life. We invite you on a journey around the world and deep into ourselves. The philosophy – exemplified by the festival motto – invites you to tear yourself away from your habits and preconceptions, to open yourself up to the world as shown by the most interesting and most dynamically developing film genre: documentaries.

 

Raving Iran

MAY 11, 2017 | 20:30 | Screening Room (level -1)

Switzerland, 2016, 84 min.

Directed by: Susanne Regina Meures

Anoosh and Arash are at the center of Teheran’s underground techno scene. Tired of hiding from the police and their career stagnation, they organise one last manic techno rave under dangerous circumstances in the desert. Back in Teheran city they try their luck selling their illegally printed album without permission. When Anoosh is arrested, there seems to be no hope left. But then they receive a phone call from the biggest techno festival in the world. Once they land in Switzerland, the haze of the instant euphoria evaporates quickly when the seriousness of the situation starts to down on them.

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 - Hotdocs Toronto, 2016 -Visions du Rèel Nyon, 2016 - DOK fest Monachium, 2016 - Cracow FF

 

Raving Iran – After Party

MAY 11, 2017 | 22:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

Blade & Beard (i.e. Arash and Anoosh), main characters of a documentary movie “Raving Iran”, will perform at the CMC’s Music Club. The party will open the 14th Millennium Docs Against Gravity Film Festival that will be held in Lublin for the first time!

Arash and Anoosh are two djs from Tehran, who promote techno music in Iran despite the oppressive actions of the authorities. The invitation to the Swiss festival was a breakthrough for Blade & Beard. They have decided to stay in Europe, as it gives them more opportunities for a dynamic music career.

Botanica (live) is a mysterious music producer. Despite his long stage presence, his projects preserve autonomy and purity of musical message. Within the Botanica project, he links perfectly the sounds of wild nature with dub techno and micro house, into e.g. a sound design or a characteristic musical theme. His album “The Beginning” is his vinyl debut, where his magnificent talent and delicacy flourish. Privately, Botanica is a nice and kind Internet lover.

Sin – vinyl dj. He has supported many legends of techno music scene. Sin is a founder of the Poznań collective Analogen and a member of Urbanum agency. Sin’s energy is unstoppable and his sets are full of charisma. It flows straight from him and is infectious. He has been performing for over 15 years in e.g. the legendary Tresor Club in Berlin.

The party, starring Blade & Beard and Polish techno artists, will be our next club event with highest-class electro music.

 

20:30 Movie “Raving Iran”, Screening Room

22:00 Party, Music Club, CMC

Tickets available at the CMC’s ticket office.

Tickets 15 PLN/ Free admission with a ticket for any MDAG movie

 

Untitled

MAY 12, 2017 | 14:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

Austria, 2016, 107 min.

Directed by: Monika Willi, Michael Glawogger

”I want to give a view of the world that can only emerge by not pursuing any particular theme, by refraining from passing judgment, proceeding without aim. Drifting with no direction except one’s own curiosity and intuition” (Michael Glawogger). More than two years after the sudden death of Michael Glawogger in April 2014, film editor Monika Willi realizes a film out of the film footage produced during 4 months and 19 days of shooting in the Balkans, Italy, Northwest and West Africa.

Selected festivals and awards: 2017 - IFF Berlin

 

A German Life

MAY 12, 2017 | 16:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

Austria, Germany, 2016, 113 min.

Directed by : Christian Krönes, Florian Weigensamer, Roland Schrotthofer, Olaf

Selected festivals and awards: 2017 – Zagrebdox, 2016 – DocPoint Helsinki, 2016 – Visions du Réel Nyon

Although Brunhilde Pomsel always described herself as just being a side-line figure and not at all interested in politics, she nevertheless got closer to one of the worst criminals in world history than anyone else presently alive. Today aged 105, Pomsel used to work as secretary, stenographer and typist for the Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels. Brunhilde Pomsel’s life mirrors the major historical ruptures of the 20th century and German life thereafter. Nowadays, many people presume that the dangers of war and fascism have long been overcome. Brunhilde Pomsel makes it clear that this is certainly not the case. “A German Life” forces viewers to ask themselves what they would have done and whether they would have sacrificed any possible moral principles in order to advance their own careers. Her extraordinary biography and unique personal journey into the past lead to disturbing and timeless questions: have we moved on or are we still unclear about our own morals and humanism? And more importantly: where do I stand on these issues today?

 

To Stay Alive – A Method

MAY 12, 2017 | 18:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

The Netherlands, 2016, 60 min.

Directed by: Erik Lieshout

Iggy Pop’s way of surviving as an individual in an impersonal world, based on Michel Houellebecq’s ”To Stay Alive”, and on his own experiences in rock. Did they help each other to survive? From his sunlit garden in Miami Iggy Pop recites Michel Houellebecq’s ”To Stay Alive”. In France we meet Houellebecq and the people whose life stories inspired this essay, in which Iggy recognizes his own struggle as a young artist. A film of musings, interviews and dialogues, with Iggy speaking directly to the audience through Houellebecq’s words. A call to break free from our chains and to ”go for it.”

 

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 - IDFA Amsterdam

 

Marina Abramović in Brazil. The Space In Between

MAY 13, 2017 | 13:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

Brasil, 2016, 86 min.

Directed by: Marco Del Fiol

Marina Abramović travels through Brazil in search of the spiritual forces of nature that are embedded in the culture of native Brazilians. Through communing with locals, partaking in local traditions, and venturing out into caves and forests, she embarks on a voyage to elevate her emotions and consciousness and create a new piece of art that will lift up the people she meets along the way.

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 - SXSW Austin, 2016 - FF Stockholm, 2016 - IFF Moscow, 2016 - IFF London, 2016 - IFF Geneva, 2016 - IFF Durban

 

Safari

MAY 13, 2017 | 15:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

Austria, 2016, 91 min.

Directed by: Ulrich Seidl

Africa. In the wild expanses, where bushbucks, impalas, zebras, gnus and other creatures graze by the thousands, German and Austrian hunting tourists are on holiday. They drive through the bush, lie in wait, and stalk their prey. They shoot, sob with excitement and pose next to the animals they have bagged. A vacation movie about killing and unveiling the truths about human nature.

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 - IFF Venice, 2017 - IFF Rotterdam, 2016 - IFF Toronto

 

Zero Days

MAY 13, 2017 | 17:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

USA, 2016, 110 min.

Directed by: Alex Gibney

In his new film, Oscar - winning documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney explores the phenomenon of Stuxnet, a self-replicating computer virus discovered in 2010 by international IT experts. Evidently commissioned by the US and Israeli governments, this malware was designed to specifically sabotage Iran’s nuclear programme. However, the complex computer worm ended up not only infecting its intended target but also spreading uncontrollably. Although to this day officially denied, Stuxnet was created by two allied forces who were each pursuing their own agendas, and in doing so opened up the Pandora’s box of cyber warfare … In Gibney’s film, insiders chronicle the development of a programme code-named “Olympic Games” – a malware which can paralyse the infrastructure of entire states in a split second without leaving any trace of those responsible. But with the emergence and exponential growth of cyberspace, it’s not necessary anymore to physically attack or even be physically present anywhere to do irreparable harm.

 

Selected festivals and awards: 2017 - Writers Guild of America: Nomination for Documentary Screenplay, 2016 - IFF Berlin: Nomination for Golden Berlin Bear

 

 

I am Not Your Negro

MAY 13, 2017 | 19:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

USA, France, Belgium, Switzerland, 2016, 93 min.

In 1979, James Baldwin wrote a letter to his literary agent describing his next project, ”Remember This House”. The book was to be a revolutionary, personal account of the lives and successive assassinations of three of his close friends: Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. At the time of Baldwin’s death in 1987, he left behind only thirty completed pages of his manuscript.

Selected festivals and awards: nomination for Oscar Best Documentary, 2017, IFF Berlin: Special Mention from the Ecumenical Jury and Panorama Audience Award, IFF Toronto, 2016 / IDFA Amsterdam

 

Tokyo Idols

MAY 14, 2017 | 12:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

United Kingdom, Canada, 2016, 89 min.

Directed by: Kyoko Miyake

”Tokyo Idols” is an exploration of Japan’s fascination with girl bands and their music. The movie follows an aspiring pop singer and her fans, delving into the cultural obsession with young female sexuality and the growing disconnect between men and women in hypermodern societies.

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 – IDFA Amsterdam, 2017 – FF Sundance

 

How to Meet a Mermaid

MAY 14, 2017 | 15:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

The Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, 2016, 90 min.

Directed by: Coco Schrijber

In ”How To Meet a Mermaid” the sea connects the lives of Rebecca, Lex and Miguel in, on and under the surface of the water. The sea is both beauty and danger, friend and foe. Through the mood of the ocean, the audience becomes part of the doubts, sadness and courage of the protagonists who seek help in the ocean. Director Coco Schrijber also turns to the ocean for answers about her missing brother Lex, but however understanding, vigorous or tranquil the sea is, eventually it is just water and as such it is indifferent to our questions. Rebecca, Lex, Miguel and their family left behind must fend for themselves.

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 - IDFA Amsterdam

 

Amateurs in Space

MAY 14, 2017 | 17:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

Denmark, 2016, 89 min.

Directed by: Max Kestner

In today’s money, the Apollo space programme would have cost a hundred billion dollars; at its peak, it employed around 400,000 people. Peter Madsen and Kristian von Bengtson are two Danish friends who dream of spending a tiny fraction of that sum, working with the smallest possible team, to build a do-it-yourself rocket for the first amateur mission into space. Madsen himself will have the honour of following in Neil Armstrong’s footsteps, though his chance of success is as slight as an amateur soccer team winning the Champions League. They embark on their crackpot enterprise armed with some serious technical skills and an adventurous spirit. When they need materials, they simply go to the local DIY store, and they always find practical solutions to complex issues.

Selected festivals and awards: 2016 – IDFA Amsterdam / 2016 –Docspoint Helsinki

 

Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape

MAY 14, 2017 | 19:00 | Screening Room (level -1)

UK, 2016, 92 min.

Directed by: Zack Taylor

”Cassette” started in late 2011 as a Kickstarter campaign, during which we were fortunate enough to meet our funding goal of $25,000, thanks to our wonderful and generous backers. Since then, we've been interviewing musicians, collectors, record labels, authors, and historians about the cassette. ”Cassette” is a feature-length documentary detailing the history and importance of the audiocassette.

Selected festivals and awards: 2017 - IFF Rotterdam, 2017 - IFF Leeds
 

 

Cassette - After party

MAY 14, 2017 10:00 p.m. | PANIE PRZODEM BISTRO | CMC

At the end of the Festival we invite you to Panie Przodem Bistro for Record tape - After pary held by Piotr Tyczyński who's party promoter and event manager. He's a founder of such clubs as Dom Kultury, Plener or Podwórko. He has invented a whole cycle of concerts "Scena Perła Export" (Polish alternative music) during Kozienalia. He hasn't been playing record tapes parties since 1999.

Free admission
 

Tickets:

ordinary: 13 PLN

PACKAGE 5 +

With a purchase of minimum 5 tickets the price of one ticket is 10 PLN.