A secial focus con countries and regions whose films emerged as groundbreaking and topical. This year, we zero in on endearing works showing the reality of life in the Himalayas and in selected venues the thought-provoking and irreverent films out of Norway.
Festival Programme
Films — by Strand
Journeys
Agent of Happiness
“Agent of happiness” Amber sets out on a cross-country road trip surveying the satisfaction of the Bhutanese public, as this crowd-pleasing doco questions whether the Himalayan country really is the happiest place on Earth.
Armand
Winner of the Caméra d’Or for Best First Film at Cannes, this Bergman-esque drama entraps the viewer into a claustrophobic debate of fact and fiction when two boys’ parents are called to a meeting at their school.
The Monk and the Gun
Is “political freedom” worth the cost of familial or social discord? When Bhutan’s king abdicates in favour of democratic reform, a strange series of events unfolds, where the old and the new collide in wondrous fashion.
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Winner of multiple awards at Sundance this powerful and heartwarming documentary reveals an outwardly introverted gamer’s vibrant secret cyberlife following his death from a degenerative muscular disease.
Sex
A chimney sweep confesses to having sex with a male customer much to the surprise of his colleague and wife. Dag Johan Haugerud’s candid and refreshing comic drama takes a candid and refreshing look at modern gender roles.
Shambhala
How far would you go to prove yourself? Pema, accused of infidelity, embarks on a journey through the beautiful yet unforgiving Himalayan landscape to confirm her virtue.