Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Doha: French New Wave cinema legend Agnès Varda, prolific Japanese director and writer Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Polish filmmaker Pawel Pawlikowski have been confirmed as the first three Qumra Masters of the Doha Film Institute’s (DFI) dedicated industry incubation and talent development event scheduled from March 15 to 20.
The three leaders in global cinema will nurture the development of local and international upcoming filmmakers in Qatar in a series of masterclasses and mentoring sessions at the fifth edition of Qumra. A selection of pivotal works of Agnès Varda, Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Pawel Pawlikowski will be screened as part of the programme that provides unique professional development opportunities to emerging filmmakers and introduces them to some of the finest works in global cinema by true vanguards of the industry.
Delegates with projects will also participate in workshops and working sessions with industry experts, advancing their progress, covering all stages of the production life cycle from scripting and direction through to post-production, distribution and marketing.
“We are honoured to welcome three true masters of cinema to be our 2019 Qumra Masters, and to share their wisdom, learning and insights with emerging filmmakers,” said Fatma Hassan Alremaihi, Chief Executive Officer of DFI. “The participation of these three living legends who have established remarkable identities in cinema will expand the possibilities of the medium for Qumra delegates. Agnès Varda, Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Pawel Pawlikowski have redefined storytelling, inspiring generations of filmmakers around the world to create fearlessly and to be true to their creative spirit.”
“The assembly of masters of filmmaking Agnès Varda, Kiyoshi Kurosawa and Pawel Pawlikowski conjures the essence of ‘Seven Samurai’ in providing essential protection of the cinematic community from the ‘looting’ of global cultural bandits” said Elia Suleiman, the Doha Film Institute’s Artistic Advisor.
Born in 1928 to Greek father and French mother, Agnès Varda founded Cine-Tamaris in 1954 to make La Pointe Courte, which earned her the title of ‘Grand Mother of the French New Wave’. Her body of work includes 33 short and feature length documentary and narrative films. She has won several recognitions including the Silver Bear Prize at Berlinale (1965) for her film Cleo from 5 to 7 (1965); Golden Lion at Venice International Film Festival (1985) for her film Vagabond (1985), Léopardo d’Onore at the Locarno Film Festival (2014), Palme d’Or d’Honneur at Festival de Cannes (2015), Grolsch Audience Award for Best Documentary at Toronto Film Festival (2017) for Faces, Places (2017), and an Academy Honorary Award® for her contribution to cinema.
Born in 1955 in Hyogo Prefecture, Kiyoshi Kurosawa is a world-renowned film director, writer, film critic, and professor at Tokyo University of the Arts. Initially attracting international attention with Cure (1997), he then delivered the notable License to Live (1998), Barren Illusion (1999), Charisma (1999), and Pulse (2000), which was awarded the FIPRESCI Prize in the Un Certain Regard at 2001 Festival de Cannes. Kurosawa continued to garner awards with Tokyo Sonata (2008), taking the Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard and Best Film at the 2009 Asian Film Awards; Seventh Code (2013), which won Best Director at Rome Film Festival; and Journey to the Shore (2014), winner of Best Director in Un Certain Regard.
Born in Warsaw, Pawel Pawlikowski has lived in London, Germany and Italy since the age of 14. He started making short films during his postgraduate studies at Oxford, later joining BBC’s documentary department. He started making unique documentaries in 1987, moving into narrative fiction 1996 with Twockers while teaching documentary and narrative film directing at the National Film School. Among Pawlikowski’s acclaimed narrative works are Last Resort (2000); My Summer of Love (2004); The Woman in the Fifth (2011), Ida (2015 Best Foreign Language Film Oscar®); and Cold War (2018), winner of Best Director at Festival de Cannes and Polish submission for Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award®.
Previous Qumra Masters include iconoclastic Oscar® winning actor Tilda Swinton, Oscar® winning British costume designer Sandy Powell, Best Foreign Language Film Oscar® winning Iranian master Asghar Farhadi, Mexican actor/ director/ producer Gael Garcia Bernal, and Best Foreign Language Film Oscar® winning Bosnian writer/director Danis Tanović.
