News
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Buta: Film Review
Azerbaijan’s submission to the Academy Awards is a contemporary tale of art and love, told from a child’s point of view. PALM SPRINGS — Though it has one of the world’s oldest national cinema traditions, Azerbaijan has been invited to submit films to the foreign-language Academy Award competition only since 2006. Buta, its fourth official submission, draws upon folk traditions in a simple contemporary tale, at its center a self-possessed 7-year-old who lives with his grandmother in a mountain village. The film didn’t receive an Oscar nomination and is not destined for a high profile on the international theatrical circuit, but it’s sure to find warm welcomes from festival programmers.…
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Buta – Review
A countryside schoolboy tries to stand up against an albino bully in the charming and gorgeously assembled “Buta,” this year’s foreign-language Oscar submission from Azerbaijan. The titular orphan is named after the paisley shape that finds its way into both the carpet he receives for his birthday and an enormous stone monument he’s constructing on a scenic mountaintop. This naturally acted contempo fable has been making the fest rounds, and will also appeal to tube buyers looking for exotic, G-rated fare. ByBoyd van Hoeij A countryside schoolboy tries to stand up against an albino bully in the charming and gorgeously assembled “Buta,” this year’s foreign-language Oscar submission from Azerbaijan. The…
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Azerbaijani movie continues global success
By Laman Ismayilova Azerbaijan’s “Pomegranate Orchard” movie by Ilgar Najaf continues to achieve global success. Ilgar Najaf won the prize of the 11th Asia Pacific Screen Awards, Trend Life reported. The filmmaker gained victory in the “Young Cinema” nomination. Earlier, movie’s scriptwriters Ilgar Najaf, Asif Rustamov and Roelof Jan Minneboo (the Netherlands) received the “Best Screenplay” prize at the 24th “Listopad” International Film Festival in Minsk. “Pomegranate Orchard” features a story about an old man, who lives along with his grandson and daughter-in-law in the decrepit house amidst of the huge pomegranate garden. Sudden comeback of his wayward son has changed a gentle rhythm of their peaceful existence. Forgotten bitter memories have…
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APSA to Honor Late Abbas Kiarostami, Newcomer Ilgar Najaf
The Asia Pacific Screen Awards are to honor the late Iranian auteur Abbas Kiarostami with a special prize. It has commended Kiarostami’s final feature “24 Frames” and will give him posthumous admission to the APSA Academy. “’24 Frames’ is an exquisite reverie on scenes from nature. Through still, but precise frames, and aided by subtle staging or effects, he captures the haunting, haiku-like poetry of nature, its beauty, amorousness and brutality. The play with the double meaning of ‘frame’ reflects his profound mediation on the cinematic form,” said Kim Hong-joon, hair of the APSA international nominations council. Director of “Certified Copy,” “Taste of Cherry,” and “Through the Olive Trees,” Kiarostami died…
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Azeri film bidding for Oscar
A movie by Azerbaijani filmmakers has been presented for an Oscar nomination, the state news agency AzerTac reported. The film Buta has passed the first stage successfully, member of the Oscar National Committee, Ali Isa Jabbarov, said. Jabbarov said that further to the success in international festivals and contests, the film was sent to the U.S. by the committee. Buta has already been included in the initial list of the Oscar. 12 films will proceed to the next stage and 5 films to the final, he said. “Buta” is a story about a lonely seven-year-old boy Buta, who lives in a mountainous village with his grandmother. He is befriended by…
