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E. Nina Rothe

Film. Fashion. Life.
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Favorite movies only need apply. Life is too short to write about what I didn't enjoy. 

Amr Gamal on his groundbreaking, award winning film 'The Burdened' at Berlinale

E. Nina Rothe September 16, 2023

The Yemeni film, which screened in the Panorama section and won the Amnesty International Film Award at this year's Berlin Film Festival, is a groundbreaking oeuvre which transcends the already strong power of cinema.

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In Film, Interviews, Film Festivals, Features Tags Amr Gamal, The Burdened, Berlinale, Film Boutique, Yemen, Rana Eid
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Olmo Schnabel talks directing 'Pet Shop Days', dual identities & laws of attraction

E. Nina Rothe September 5, 2023

Olmo Schnabel’s directorial debut is everything you could wish for in a film, from a man with such an impressive background — artist and filmmaker Julian is his dad and mom is Spanish actress Olatz López Garmendia — but also someone who is perfectly at ease with both his American and Spanish sides. And refreshingly believes life is best when lived outside the boxes of convention.

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In Film, Interviews, Film Festivals Tags Olmo Schnabel, Pet Shop Days, Pet Shop Boys, New York stories, Venice International Film Festival, Orizzonti Extra, Jack Irv, Jack Irving, Dario Yazbek Bernal, Galen Core, New York story, Mexico, Olatz López Garmendia, Maribel Verdú, Jordi Mollá, Louis Cancelmi, Willem Dafoe, Emmanuelle Seigner, Peter Sarsgaard, La Biennale di Venezia, Martin Scorsese, Francesco Melzi d'Eril, Michel Franco
Comment

'Stane' by Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović is the latest must-watch from Miu Miu Women's Tales

E. Nina Rothe September 3, 2023

When the filmmaker of 2021 Cannes Camera d’Or winner ‘Murina’ becomes the latest in a line of wondrous women filmmakers to feature in the beloved fashion brand’s series, the result is definitely something worth writing about!

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In Interviews, Film, Film Festivals Tags Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović, Brigitte Lacombe, Stane, Miu Miu Women's Tales, Venice International Film Festival, Murina, Prada, Mubi, Danica Čurčić, Agnes Varda, Lucrecia Martel, Ava DuVernay, Miranda July, Naomi Kawase, Haifaa Al Mansour, Lynne Ramsay, Mati Diop, Giornate degli Autori

Talking 'A Calling . From the Desert . To the Sea' with filmmaker Murad Abu Eisheh

E. Nina Rothe August 31, 2023

With his latest short, the Jordanian, Germany-based filmmaker proves once again that he can tackle women's stories perfectly, while also bringing a special sensitivity to them -- all the while gently educating audiences. And, last but not least, making great cinema in the process! From the MIME.news archives.

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In Interviews, Film Tags Murad Abu Eisheh, A Calling from the desert to the sea, Jordan, Syria, Germany, Hollywood, Arab cinema, MIME news, Yasmine Nawarj, Raean Al Masri, Hassan Mutlag Al Maraiyeh, Tala'vision, VFX, Filmakademie BW in Ludwigsburg, Oscar shortlisted, Animationsinstitut, Philip Henze, Nils Wrasse, Rand Abdelnour, Farah Karouta, Mario Bertsch, Lennard Fricke, Max Pollmann, Till Sander-Titgemeyer, Cairo International Film Festival
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Why Mario Martone's 'Somebody Down There Likes Me' is a must-watch for all world cinema lovers

E. Nina Rothe February 19, 2023

On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the birth of the late Massimo Troisi, Martone puts together a documentary homage to a man who changed the landscape of Italian cinema and also influenced filmmakers from the MENA with his groundbreaking vision and irreverent works of art.

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In Interviews, review Tags Mario Martone, Massimo Troisi
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A doc that feels like a thriller: talking to Shlomi Elkabetz about 'Black Notebooks: Ronit'

E. Nina Rothe November 3, 2022

More than just an homage to a beautiful, inimitable woman, Shlomi Elkabetz's film about his sister and collaborator Ronit is a journey to the heart of cinema and a fantastic treasure hunt which, if followed through, brings us to the perfect depth of our human connection.

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In Features, Interviews, review Tags Ronit Elkabetz, Shlomi Elkabetz, Black Notebooks, Cnnes, Vertigo, Gett, Israeli cinema, Bernard Herrmann, Hitchcock music, documentary
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Birgitte Larsen in a still from ‘Gritt’ the debut feature by Itonje Søimer Guttormsen

Birgitte Larsen in a still from ‘Gritt’ the debut feature by Itonje Søimer Guttormsen

'Gritt' is the film you need to watch in this brave new world. Why? I'll let filmmaker Itonje Søimer Guttormsen tell you.

E. Nina Rothe January 30, 2021

In her debut feature ‘Gritt’ filmmaker Itonje Søimer Guttormsen, with the help of leading actress Birgitte Larsen, makes Gritt the perfect anti-heroine we will all aspire to be, once we’ve watched her quiet masterpiece.

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In Film, Film Festivals, Interviews Tags Gritt, freedom, Norway, Norwegian cinema, Oslo, Itonje Søimer Guttormsen, Birgitte Larsen, Retrett, International Film Festival Rotterdam, IFFR, Marianne Stranger, Tromsø International Film Festival, Norwegian Film Institute, Mer Film
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Lebanon's 'Wine and War': An interview with filmmakers Mark Johnston and Mark Ryan

E. Nina Rothe October 8, 2020

In their latest documentary ‘War and Wine’, filmmakers and world travelers Mark Johnston and Mark Ryan explore the world of winemaking in Lebanon. And in the process, they manage to show us perfectly the humanity, resilience and beauty of both the country and its people.

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In Film, Interviews Tags Wine and War, documentary, Lebanon, Beirut, Mark Johnston, Mark Ryan, Michael Karam, Wines of Lebanon, wine, Serge Hochar, Nadine Labaki, CAP-HO, Chateau Musar, Ghazir, Father Joseph, George Sara, Helene Sader, Laure Salloum, Patrick McGovern, Carignan grape, Cinsault, Orson Welles
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Achintya Bose and Manish Chauhan in ‘Yeh Ballet’, image courtesy of Netflix

Achintya Bose and Manish Chauhan in ‘Yeh Ballet’, image courtesy of Netflix

"The poetry of it!": An interview with Sooni Taraporevala on her 'Yeh Ballet' currently streaming on Netflix

E. Nina Rothe July 4, 2020

If you google the film ‘Yeh Ballet’ you’ll find that the Wikipedia short description reads like this: “Discovered by an eccentric ballet master, two gifted but underprivileged Mumbai teens face bigotry and disapproval as they pursue their dancing dreams.” And those sort of stories are always the best kind — yet Sooni Taraporevala’s film goes one step further. Or rather several beautiful, seamless dance steps further.

As someone who had fallen in love with Taraporevala’s heartfelt way of making films through her directorial debut ‘Little Zizou’ — a childhood story taking place in the Parsi community in South Bombay — ‘Yeh Ballet’ only intensified this cinematic love story.

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In Film, Interviews Tags Yeh Ballet, Sooni Taraporevala, Netflix, interview, Julian Sands, Bombay, Mumbai, India, ballet dancers, Virtual Reality, documentary, film, Manish Chauhan, ehuda Maor, Amiruddin Shah, Achintya Bose, Supriya Kantak, Memyses Lab, Aanand Gandhi, Jahan Bativala, Shubhangi Swarup, The Namesake, Mississippi Masala, Salaam Bombay, Little Zizou, Parsi community, Irrfan Khan, Royal Ballet, Cindy Jourdain, Tony Kushner, Abraham Verghese, Hari Kunzru, Mira Nair, Shahrukh Khan
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Ziad Bakri and Maria Zreik in Zain Duraie’s ‘Give Up the Ghost’

Ziad Bakri and Maria Zreik in Zain Duraie’s ‘Give Up the Ghost’

"Choose love over fear, always": Zain Duraie talks about her short film 'Give Up the Ghost'

E. Nina Rothe June 5, 2020

One of the hottest button issues for a modern woman concerns her ability to have a child. Depending on which society you are born into, it ranges from being a duty to a God-given right, with all shades of grey in between.

In her haunting, beautifully shot (by Benoît Chamaillard) and perfectly sound designed (by Israel Bañuelos) short film ‘Give Up the Ghost’, Jordanian filmmaker Zain Duraie explores the consequences on a marriage around the ability or inability to have a child.

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In Film Festivals, Film, Interviews Tags Give Up the Ghost, Zain Duraie, Benoit Chamaillard, Ammemarie Jacir, byIsrael Bañuelos, Jordan, Arab cinema, support Arab cinema, women filmmakers, support women filmmakers, short film, Oscar-qualifying, Venice Film Festival, Orizzonti, Maria Zreik, Ziad Bakri, Palm Springs International Shortfest, fertility, women's rights
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Actress Lyna Khoudri in a still from 'Papicha' by Mounia Meddour

Actress Lyna Khoudri in a still from 'Papicha' by Mounia Meddour

“Redefine what a heroine is”: Algerian filmmaker Mounia Meddour on her film ‘Papicha’ in Cannes

E. Nina Rothe May 29, 2020

I believe that if there were more women film critics, the business of cinema would be much different. There would be better films made, more communication between what audiences want and filmmakers create, and those projects which portray the truth of our humanity would receive the attention they deserve. 'Papicha' by Mounia Meddour would be one of those projects. Now let me explain what I mean.

‘Papicha’ is now streaming as part of the Virtual Cinema of Film at Lincoln Center, through June 4th. An act of courage if you read my piece!

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In Film Festivals, Film, Interviews Tags Papicha, Mounia Meddour, Algerian cinema, Arab cinema, Festival de Cannes, Thrive Global, Un Certain Regard, film, women filmmakers, Lyna Khoudri, Qumra, Doha Film Institute, Film at Lincoln Center, streaming
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A still from The Present

Farah Nabulsi on her haunting film 'The Present' and the "misrepresented Palestinian stories" she was born to tell

E. Nina Rothe May 27, 2020

The discovery of Farah Nabulsi’s stunning, honest and beautiful film ‘The Present’ I owe to Palestinian favorite actor Saleh Bakri. I mean, as soon as I saw his name on the Brooklyn Film Festival line-up page, I was hooked. But while his presence is undeniably a wonderful pull into the film, Nabulsi’s perfect oeuvre stands on its own.

The title ‘The Present’ could refer to a gift, the one Yusuf, Bakri’s character goes to buy for his wife on their wedding anniversary. But it also means, to me, the current state of affairs, the here and now, for the Palestinian people.

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In Interviews, Film Festivals, Film Tags Farah Nabulsi, The Present, Brooklyn Film Festival, BFF, Palestine, Kuwait, Lebanon, Palestinian cinema, Saleh Bakri, short film, Naksa, filmmaking, women filmmakers, Nael Kanj, Maryam Kanj, Hind Shoufani, Philistine Films, Covid-19
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Geeta in 'Brother Move On'

Antshi von Moos's 'Brother, Move On' is an ode to the courage of one woman driving her taxi at night in Delhi

E. Nina Rothe May 26, 2020

Antshi von Moos’s debut documentary short ‘Brother, Move On’ is one of those unmissable films which possesses the right appeal, even on paper. The story of a Delhi woman who drives a taxi at night, catering to an all-female clientele to make sure they get home safely, made up the perfect storm of place, leading character and premise to secure I’d yearn to watch it. That it is a real story, told with kindness and a deep understanding of the subject matter at hand, is just icing on the cake.

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In Film, Interview, Interviews, Film Festivals Tags Antshi von Moos, Brother Move On, India, Delhi, female taxi driver, women-only taxi, Mumbai, Brooklyn Film Festival, Geeta, Rangoli Agarwal, Valérie Sauvin
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'Truth' in Journalism, Honesty in Life with James Vanderbilt

E. Nina Rothe April 11, 2020

I was always a huge fan of the CBS news show 60 Minutes. To this day, there are some indelible segments that have stayed with me, like the Mike Wallace interview with tobacco industry insider Jeffrey Wigand and the Dan Rather expose on George W. Bush and how the 43rd President of the United States of America came to be in the Air National Guard during the time of the Vietnam War.

Incidentally, both those segments have been made into films and these days 60 Minutes continues to be a trailblazer in US news reporting, with an analytical twist, though perhaps today they do what they do with a bit more caution.

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In Film, Film Festivals, Interviews Tags Mary Mapes, Truth and Duty, 60 minutes, Dan Rather, Mike Wallace, James Vanderbilt, Dubai International Film Festival, Robert Redford, CBS, Rathergate, Cate Blanchett
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Josef Hader as Stefan Zweig

Josef Hader as Stefan Zweig

Peace Is for the Brave: Maria Schrader’s Stunning Austrian Entry to the Oscars ‘Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe’

E. Nina Rothe April 8, 2020

Long before signing on to direct ‘Unorthodox’ on Netflix, Maria Schrader made another beautiful film about a Jewish figure, Stefan Zweig. I interviewed her in 2016 as she was nominated to represent Austria as the country’s Academy Award’s entry. I wanted to revisit that interview and my love for her work. The interview and my own thoughts about the film are as current today as they could ever be. Just read on.

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In Film, Interviews, review Tags Maria Schrader, Stefan Zweig Farewell to Europe, Jewish stories, Unorthodox, Academy Awards, Austria, Josef Hader, Wolfgang Thaler
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Sadaf Asgari as Maryam in a still from ‘Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness’

Sadaf Asgari as Maryam in a still from ‘Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness’

Massoud Bakhshi on his Sundance award-winning 'Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness'

E. Nina Rothe February 4, 2020

There are so many threads, themes and ideas bursting through Massoud Bakhshi’s stunning ‘Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness’ that it would take a book and not a short article to discuss them all. But within the limits of this piece, I’d like to start off by saying that the film absolutely deserved to win the World Cinema Dramatic Competition Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Sundance, where it premiered.

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In Film, Interviews Tags Yalda, Yalda a Night for Forgiveness, Sundance Film Festival, Iranian cinema, Massoud Bakhshi, Behnaz Jafari, Sadaf Asgari, Sigheh, Alba Rohrwacher, Haifaa Al Mansour, Wagner Moura, Milad Tower, A Respectable Family, Tehran, World Cinema Dramatic Competition Grand Jury Prize
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Iraq today

Why aren't we talking about Iraq? And revisiting Beth Murphy's prophetic 'The List'

E. Nina Rothe January 15, 2020

Back in 2012, I watched and wrote about ‘The List’ a haunting documentary by American filmmaker Beth Murphy. It premiered at Tribeca and immediately became a symbol of the country I called home at the time. President Bush Senior had fought Iraq on the fields of Kuwait, while Bush Junior invaded the country vouching to get back at Saddam Hussein for, and I quote the then President, “this is the guy who tried to kill my father.”

Ever since then, it’s been an unmentionable subject, Iraq. In US news,

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In Film, Interviews Tags Iraq, The List, Beth Murphy, Syria, Academy Awards, Mohamed Al-Daradji, SkyTG24 Mondo, Renato Coen, The Journey, For Sama, The Cave, USA, President George W Bush, UN, Francesca Mannocchi, Baghdad, Tahrir Square, Tribeca Film Festival
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Hook Up 2.0 by Dana Nachman

There's an App for that! Dana Nachman on sex in the #MeToo age in 'Hook Up 2.0' at the Tribeca Film Festival

E. Nina Rothe April 22, 2019

A typical present day college party. A girl. A guy. They hook up and go the man’s pink hued apartment, yes pink you read that right, to be alone together. But this is the age of #MeToo and nothing is quite the way it used to be. I mean, and just the pink lights of the man’s apartment alone should have given that away!

‘Hook Up 2.0’ screens in the “Shorts: Funhouse” program at the Tribeca Film Festival. Check out all screening times and dates here.

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In Film, Film Festivals, Interviews Tags Hook Up 2.0, Dana Nachman, Tribeca Film Festival, NYC, MeToo, Sex, The Final Show, Lunafest, Silicon Valley, feminist satire, Veronica Dunne, Billy Meade, Dominique Martinez
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Todos somos marineros

'Todos Somos Marineros' at IFFR: Addressing our global displacement with Peruvian filmmaker Miguel Angel Moulet

E. Nina Rothe February 1, 2019

It’s a fact that there has never been such a movement of global general uprooting, in the history of our planet. Most of us feel deep inside ourselves a sense of dissatisfaction and the easiest way to deal with it seems to be to pick up and leave -- for work, love or life experience. But that can also turn into the most difficult decision of our life, because sometimes you cannot go home again.

As an old friend used to remind me, in moments when even traveling to the other end of the planet hadn’t really fulfilled its purpose, “Nina, the problem is that when you travel, no matter where you go, you’ll always take yourself along.” It’s so true, our inner struggles transfer well, hidden within the deep recesses of our beings. And even the furthest journey sees us as our sometimes unfortunate travel companion.

Miguel Angel Moulet’s haunting, sultry and perfectly shot film ‘Todos Somos Marineros’ (‘We Are All Sailors’) tackles that idea, but also mixes in several other themes, including the rhythm of language and how we change depending on the words we speak, as well as the filmmaker’s own unresolved childhood family mysteries.

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In Film Festivals, Film, Interviews Tags Todos somos marineros, IFFR, International Film Festival Rotterdam, Peru, Daniel and Diego Vega, Panza de Burro, diaspora, Miguel Angel Moulet, Katitza Kisic, Rotterdam
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Emilia Derou Bernal and Julien Debard in a still from Anaïs Volpe’s ‘Indemnes’

Emilia Derou Bernal and Julien Debard in a still from Anaïs Volpe’s ‘Indemnes’

Anaïs Volpé's 'Indemnes' reinvents the palette of tragedy at the International Film Festival Rotterdam

E. Nina Rothe January 24, 2019

How do you personally survive tragedy, when it hits close to home?

It’s a question that has played in my mind over and over in the last few months. Each of us has a distinct and very human way of dealing with personal tragedy, and none of it is wrong or right, I’ve figured out. It just is.

Filmmaker Anaïs Volpé says that her way of coping with terrorist attacks, which have hit very close to home, literally for the Parisian, is to turn blood into glitter and imagine that the victims have gone to a better place. We hear that time and time again, “they have gone to a better place now,” but in Volpé’s exquisite ‘Indemnes’ (which translates to “Unharmed”) that better place is filled with color, beauty, peace and harmony. It’s a beautiful view into the afterlife, complete with stylish golden jackets, from an artist who has had her own creative style from the get-go.

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In Film, Film Festivals, Interviews Tags Indemnes, International Film Festival Rotterdam, IFFR, Bero Beyer, Anais Volpe, Emilia Derou Bernal, Unharmed, tragedy, cinema, terrorist attacks, Paris, social media, HEIS: Chroniques, Leo Soesanto
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