Fri 29 Sep • Late Night Shorts

Future Shorts (15) 11.15pm

Programme to be announced.

See and feel different cinema. Short Film is where it’s at!

+ a free beer with ticket courtesy fo Stella

Adm £5.50/£4.50 Concessions

Sat 30 Sep • Hackney Venezuela Information Centre presents

THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED (15) 1.15

(Ireland 2003) dirs.Kim Bartley & Donnacha O'Briain 74m. Subtitles. Documentary.

Hugo Chavez, president of Venezuela since 1998, is a colourful, unpredictable folk hero beloved by his nation's working class and a tough-as-nails, quixotic opponent to the power structure that would see him deposed. Two independent filmmakers were inside the presidential palace on 11 April 2002, when he was forcibly removed from office. They were also present 48 hours later when, remarkably, he returned to power amid cheering aides. Their film records what was probably history's shortest-lived coup d'état. It's a unique document about political muscle and an extraordinary portrait of the man credited by The Wall Street Journal with making Venezuela ‘Washington’s biggest Latin American headache after the old standby, Cuba.’

www.vicuk.org

Adm £5.50/£4.50 Concs

BROTHERS OF THE HEAD (18) 8.50

(UK 2006) dirs.Keith Fulton & Louis Pepe 93m.
Harry Treadaway, Luke Treadaway, Bryan Dick, Sean Harris, Tania Emery, Elizabeth Rider.

“THIS IS A SPINAL TAP meets STUCK ON YOU with a heavy dose of '70s Brit-rock grunge, in this loopy mockumentary. This feature debut by Yank duo Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe isn't so far from their engrossing docus on Terry Gilliam's filmic adventures, THE HAMSTER FACTOR and LOST IN LA MANCHA, except here the madness and exploitation is part of the music scene. The screenplay by occasional Gilliam collaborator Tony Grisoni, based on the 1977 illustrated novel by Brian Aldiss, plunges straight into its invented world. A lawyer (Jonathan Pryce) treks across a desolate patch of the eastern England coastline to the home of conjoined twins Tom and Barry Howe (Harry & Luke Treadaway), where father Albert (Roger Watkins) signs a contract. The film backgrounds the quieter Tom and more manic Barry. Fulton and Pepe move freely between interviews in the present and docu footage from the past. The dialogue is so right-on for its era and period detail so real that the mockumentary sucks the viewer into its created world. The performances by the largely no-name cast are spot-on.”
(Derek Elley, Variety)

BROTHERS OF THE HEAD scriptwriter and Hackney resident Tony Grisoni, whose previous credits include FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS and IN THIS WORLD, will be joining us for a Q&A after this screening.

• Sat 14 Oct • Black History Month Matinee

bfm Mobile Film Club presents

THE ROSA PARKS STORY (PG) 1.15

(US 2002) dir.Julie Dash 97m.
Angela Bassett, Peter Francis James, Tonea Stewart, Cicely Tyson.

A powerful feature film tribute to Rosa Parks (1913-2005), the Alabama seamstress whose soft-spoken refusal to give up her bus seat to a white man triggered the Montgomery bus boycott, the first great mass action in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. + Short film

£4/£3 Concessions & Under 15's

• Sun 15 Oct • Black History Month double bill

SHOOTING DOGS (15) 1.45

(UK 2005) dir.Michael Caton-Jones 115m.
John Hurt, Hugh Dancy, Claire-Hope Ashitey, David Gyasi, Dominique Horwitz.

“A powerful, based-on-fact film, SHOOTING DOGS follows John Hurt's priest and Hugh Dancy's idealistic young teacher as they watch bureaucracy, institutional racism and generations of hate lead to mass murder in Rwanda. Refugees seek shelter at the United Nations-guarded school of Father Christopher, but no one's sure how long the UN troops will stay... Hurt excels. The veteran actor makes his man of the cloth both admirable and ambiguous - the heart and soul of an unusually thoughtful film.” (Andy Jacobs, BBCi films)

+ MAN DEM NOR GLADY'O (The People Are Not Happy) (18) 4.00

(UK/Sierra Leone 2006) dir.Ishmahil Blagrove Jr 57m. Some subtitles.

A documentary about how the United Nations and other international supporting bodies dealt with the consequences of war in Sierra Leone but failed to deal with the causes. Although the guns are presently silent, the issues of poverty, corruption and bad governance are still endemic and may yet again be the igniting factors of a future conflict. Filmed in Sierra Leone, the film gives the viewer an insight into the people, their lives, the political divisions and active campaigns leading up to the forthcoming 2007 elections.
+ discussion with the director

£6/£4 Concessions

• Sat 21 Oct • Black History Month double bill

DAVE CHAPPELLE'S BLOCK PARTY (15) 1.30

(US 2005) dir.Michel Gondry 103m. Documentary.

“More concert movie than laugh-fest, this is a spirited chronicle of a day-long hip hop event that comedian Dave Chappelle organised on a Brooklyn street corner in September 2004. Chappelle’s idea is to take hip hop back to its roots, bypassing commerce and giving a voice to artists whose controversial lyrics are seldom heard on commercial radio. Chappelle keeps things lively, joking on camera, punctuating the acts with gags, while Michel Gondry maintains our interest, focusing as much on Chappelle’s energy and wit, and goings-on behind the scenes, as the gig itself. The music wins out, though, not least when the Fugees perform together for the first time in ages.” (Dave Calhoun, Time Out)

+ RIZE (PG) 3.30

(US 2005) dir.David LaChapelle 86m. Documentary.

“‘The footage in this film has not been sped up in any way’, the opening caption runs, these cats are fast as lightning. The film debut of fashion snapper David Lachapelle, RIZE is a documentary on krumping, the South Central LA-based post-hip hop dance craze credited with offering thousands of kids an alternative to gang life. Lachapelle adopts a plain style to showcase an extraordinary phenomenon, and privileges record and testimony over the winner-takes-all challenge narratives endemic to contemporary US documentary features. RIZE teases out fascinating connections between dance and fight, grace and violence, as intertwined forms of self-aggrandising display. The power of krumpness is clear.” (Ben Walters, Time Out)

+ performance by PSYCHOTIC, Hackney’s own award winning youth street dance group

£6/£4 Concs (double bill), £4/£3 Concs (single film)

• Sat 21 Oct • Black History Month late night show

DAVE CHAPELLE'S BLOCK PARTY (15) 11.15pm

(US 2005) dir.Michel Gondry 103m. Documentary.

Spirited chronicle of a day-long hip hop event organised on a Brooklyn street to take hip hop back to its roots and give a voice to artists whose controversial lyrics are seldom heard on commercial radio.

£5

Sun 22 Oct • The Times bfi 50th London Film Festival

37 USES FOR A DEAD SHEEP (*) 1.30

(UK 2006) dir.Ben Hopkins 87m. Documentary. Subtitles.

This multiple award-winning documentary takes a droll and affectionate look at the last hundred years in the history and culture of the Pamir Kirghiz, a semi nomadic tribe originating in Central Asia. Resistant to Communism, facing violence and imprisonment, the tribe were driven from country to country until an appeal for international assistance led them to Eastern Turkey, where they have lived for the last 27 years (a counter offer from the USA would have seen them shipped off to Alaska). Working in collaboration with Ekber Kutlu, a Kirghiz sculptor and intellectual, Ben Hopkins (The Nine Lives of Thomas Katz) mixes new documentary footage with dramatic re-constructions filmed in a variety of cinematic styles and acted out by the Kirghiz. These make for an engaging glimpse into the tribe's past, showing their resilience and humour, and also touching on the younger generation's very different hopes for the future. The film's warm-hearted tone is a delight, exemplified in the running gag which gives the film its title.”
(Sandra Hebron, LFF)

£7

THE LIVES OF THE SAINTS (15) 3.45

(UK 2006) dirs.Rankin & Chris Cottam 101m.
James Cosmo, David Leon, Emma Pierson.

“A magical realist fable set amidst Tottenham's criminal underworld is the pleasingly ambitious result of the combined talents of celebrated London photographer Rankin, co-director Chris Cottam, and scriptwriter Tony Grisoni. Mr Karva runs some dodgy rackets on North London's mean streets, employing the fleet footed Roadrunner as his courier. Karva's stepson Othello has ambitions to take the old man's place, and his dim mate Emilio has aspirations of his own. When Roadrunner stumbles across a weird feral looking kid in the park, something strange happens: for the first time ever he is able to stop moving. This is just the start of a series of transformations, in which the boy wordlessly demonstrates his power to grant people their heart's desire. But not everyone is happy with this threat to the status quo, and events take a tragic turn. Good looking (we'd expect nothing less) and darkly comic, this auspicious debut leaves us with a moral: be careful what you wish for.”
(Sandra Hebron, LFF)

£7

Tickets available in advance from The Times BFI 50th London Film Festival on 7928 3232 or on the door.

• Fri 27 Oct • Late night shorts

Future Shorts (15) 11.15pm

Future Shorts gets political, and tackles current affairs with a groundbreaking programme that’s sure to make you think about the state of our world today. The diplomatic breakdown of our new century is explored and transcended with a balance of sometimes serious, sometimes humorous, always captivating short films and scandalous animations. From terror to freedom, Future Shorts nourishes your brain and your eyes. Watch different – think different – think Future Shorts.

CRICKETS
(Israel 2004) dir.Matan Guggenheim
Ido discovers the only way to stop the crickets he has been hearing in his head since his parents died in a terrorist attack.

WHAT BARRY SAYS
(UK 2006) dir.Simon Robson
A hard-hitting animation exposing the workings and motivations of the most powerful country in the world.

3 MINUTE WONDER: MARRIED TO THE SHED
A passionate cinema-lover sets up regular screenings in his backyard.
Courtesy of Three Minute Wonders

FALLEN ART
(Poland 2005) dir.Tomek Baginski
In an old forgotten military base far from civilization, a group of deranged military officers nurture their insanity.

LA LIGNE VERTE
(France 2005) dir.Laurent Mareschal
The recently built Jerusalem wall pretends to be nature, until nature strikes back.

HARROWDOWN HILL
(US 2006) dir.Chel White
America's ablaze in this haunting music video for Radiohead's lead Thom Yorke's first solo single 'Harrowdown Hill'.

COCK FIGHT
(Israel 2000) dir.Sigalit Lipshitz
A hot summer day in the desert: an Israeli chicken breeder and his Romanian help on their way to the market get stopped at a checkpoint between Israel and Palestine.

PARK FOOT BALL
(UK 2005) dir.Grant Orchard
An afternoon of playing ball in the park turns into an entertaining nightmare.

LA VIE D'UN CHIEN

+ a free beer with ticket courtesy of Stella

Adm £5.50/£4.50 Concessions

• Sat 28 Oct • Black History Month Matinee

bfm Mobile Film Club presents

Hip Hop On Screen (PG) 1.15

Screening of Hip Hop documentaries from the US, Latin America and Africa followed by a discussion with Hip Hop acts and grime artists about the music industry.

£4/£3 Concessions

• Sun 29 Oct

RIO AGM 11am

The Rio Cinema is a Registered Charity run by a voluntary Board of Directors. The AGM offers a review of the last year and gives you the opportunity to question and put forward your views to the Board about the performance of the Rio and its direction for the future. Non-Members are welcome as Observers, and can stand for election to the Board of Management. For more information or if you would like to stand for election to the Board, please contact the Company Secretary, Andy Cawdell on 020 7639 0090 or e-mail to andy.cawdell@dove-tail.co.uk

Sat 4 Nov • Matinee

2nd London East End Filmmaker (LEEF) Short Film Showcase 1.30

A programme of selected short films by established local talent followed by a workshop on 'Routes to feature film funding'. Speakers include: Arvind Ethan David from Slingshot Studios, producer of SUGAR HOUSE LANE and Marc Boothe, director of b3 Media, producer of BULLET BOY. 

To submit your short film for inclusion in the film programme, please send a DVD/VHS with your contact details, synopsis, running time and screening format by Wed 25 Oct 5pm to: Tractor Films, Bold Studio, 13a Boundary Street, London, E2 7JE. Please note films can only be from film makers based in East London. For further info email screenings@tractorfilms.co.uk

This event is produced by Tractor films in association with the East End Film Society and is funded by Hackney NRF, Film London East and CIDA.

A limited number of free tickets are available for film makers by emailing: info@tractorfilms.co.uk by Wed 1 Nov. Tickets will be £3.00 on the door.

• Sat 11 Nov • Short films matinee

Bitesize Autumn programme (15) 1.30

Bitesize Cinema scours the world of short film for award winning, original work from the hottest new movie-making talent. Each quarterly programme features genres and styles to suit all palates.

CUBS
(UK 2006) dir.Tom Harper 9m.
A gang of inner city kids have discovered a fresh sport... the dark new world of urban fox hunting. Staring Ashley Walters (BULLET BOY, LIFE & LYRICS) this acclaimed short introduces stunning new filmmaking talent in director Tom Harper – One of Screen International’s ‘Stars of Tomorrow’.
WINNER RUSHES SOHOSHORTS – BEST SHORT 2006

DEATH OF THE REVOLUTION
(UK 2005) dir.The Blaine Brothers 6m.
When Tony is told off for stealing a pencil, his ten year-old logic seethes at the injustice. What course of action is open to him other than to inspire a juvenile revolt? With truth, justice and his comrade pupils marching by his side, what can possibly stop him? "A lovely, witty thing." (Simon Callow)
OFFICAL SELECTION EDINBURGH FILM FESTIVAL 06

LOVE ME OR LEAVE ME ALONE
(UK 2003) dir.Duane Hopkins 16m.
A young boy, a young girl. Against the backdrop of the countryside they try to understand and express their feelings for each other. A study in the articulations and limitations of first love.
WINNER BEST SHORT – EDINBURGH FILM FEST 03

THE GROTLYN
(UK 2006) dir.Benji Davies 6m.
I know when the Grotlyn's been,
Slipping through your house unseen,
I see the wicked path it went,
With mischief making mal-intent,
This creature with a blackened heart,
Its demon soul now withered dark…
OFFICIAL SELECTION at EDINBURGH, LONDON ANIMATION, AND SOHOSHORTS FILM FESTS 06
www.thegrotlyn.com

VAGABOND SHOES
(UK 2006) dir.Jackie Oudney 18m.  
On a Friday night in London, Alec, an enigmatic homeless man, sits across the street from a black-tie party at a posh hotel.  A chance occurrence gives Alec the opportunity to enter this high society gathering, where the layers of his personality and his past are revealed to an unsuspecting audience.
WINNER - BEST SHORT - KODAK/BAFTA SHOWCASE 06.
WINNER - BEST SHORT - N.Y.C SHORTS FILM FEST.05
WINNER - GRAND JURY PRIZE - LILLE FILM FEST 06

£5.50/£4.50 Concs

• SAT 18 Nov

Short & Sweet (U) 1.15

A selection of magical animated stories from around the world suitable for even the youngest children.

CRACKING CONTRAPTIONS (UK 2002) dirs.Loyd Price & Christopher Sadler 6m. Shopper 13, Cardomatic, Autochef – three adventures from festival favourites Wallace and Gromit.
JUNGLE BEAT: MOONDANCE (Zimbabwe 2004) dir.Brent Dawes 5m. Giraffe is so tall, he actually knocks the moon out of the sky. Can he get the moon back in its right place?
WOOFY (France 2004) dir.Dominique Etchecopar 5m. Woofy is a toy to everyone else, but very real to Antoine when he needs a pal.
JUNGLE BEAT: I WANT TO BREAK FREE (Zimbabwe 2004) dir.Brent Dawes 5m. Tortoise finds out that it's quite handy to have a shell after all
THE PROPELLER BIRD (Germany 2005) dirs.Jan Locher & Thomas Hinke 4m. Three little sparrows trying to sing their song are interrupted by a big grey bird with a bagpack propeller...
RETURNING HOME (Iran 2005) dir.Behzad Farahat 12m. The curious little hedgehog uses the sounds and sights of the forest to lead his family back home.
CARROT (Estonia 2003) dir.Pärtel Tall 7m. The hare and the snowman fight over a carrot but soon learn that sharing can be more fun.
SHADOWS AND REFLECTIONS (UK 2005) dir.Stephen Whittle 4m. A young girl finds a way to catch the moon and bring it back to her bedroom.
WE SHALL OVERCOME (Drømmen) (12A) 3.15 (Denmark 2006) dir.Niels Arden Oplev 106m. Subtitles. Bent Mejding, Anders W. Berthelsen, Jens Jørn Spottag, Anne-Grethe Bjarup Riis, Peter Hesse Overgaard, Sarah Juel Werner, Janus Dissing Rathke. The gripping story of how one person with justice on his side really can make a difference: The school in a small town becomes the setting for a 13-year-old boy to stand up for himself against the brutal regime of the headmaster, his resistance to the town’s collective blind eye inspired by the changes of the 1960s and the words of Martin Luther King. This award-winning film is beautifully written and acted and sensitively directed, with our hero’s discovery of his voice something young audiences will be cheering for every step of the way.

TICKETS
Special Advance ticket price until Fri 10 Nov available from Barbican box office only – £2.50 (Child/Adult)
Tickets available from Rio box office From Sat 11 Nov – £4.50 (Child/Adult)

Further information on: www.londonchildrenfilm.org.uk

• Fri 24 Nov * Late night shorts

Future Shorts (15) 11.15pm

Future Shorts is back this November with another striking collection of short films. Kicking off the programme is Claude Lelouch's 1978 C'ETAIT UN RENDEZ-VOUS, a spectacular high-speed car race through the streets of Paris championed for its no editing, no tricks, no roadblocks method. American underground animator Lev Yilmaz shares with us his hilariously depressed vision of the world in the ongoing series TALES OF MERE EXISTENCE. Meanwhile, eerie German film INSIDE by Philip Hirsch and other amazing and challenging short films make you see and feel different cinema.
 
C'ETAIT UN RENDEZ-VOUS              
(France 1978) dir. Claude Lelouch 9m.
No editing, no tricks, no stunts: Claude Lelouch's electrifying high-speed car race through the streets of Paris has no equal in the history of cinema.
Buy the DVD on www.spiritlevelfilm.com

HITCHCOCK (PHOENIX FOUNDATION)     
(UK 2005) dir. Reuben Sutherland 3m.
Electric cars drive and fly around various locations as a kind of antidote to the polluted petrol guzzling ways of our current 4x4 infested roads, set to a Phoenix Foundation soundtrack.

LUCKY
(Australia 2005) dir. Nash Egerton 4m.   
And you thought sitting in traffic made for a bad day in your car. Nash Edgerton's thriller is an adrenalin rush from start to finish.
                           
WE CHOOSE TIME    
(South Africa 2004) dir. Xmas 2m.    
An understated yet elegant graphic homage to the season of Spring.
              
EL DIA QUE MORI  
(Argentina 2005) dir. Maryam Keshararz 11m.     
A brother, a sister and her best friend makes for a love triangle on a hot summer's day in Argentina.
                       
INSIDE  
(Germany 2005) dir. Philip Hirsch 7m.
Dazzling camera work through water and forest gives a dizzying sense of a young woman's perspective as she flits in and out of consciousness.
                          
SCENARII
(France 2006) dir. Florent Trochel 14m.  
Everybody is the star of their own life story in this poetic ode precisely composed to the fascinating daily occupations of neighbours.
                       
DRUM MACHINE
(UK 2004) dir. Tokyoplastic + The Pancho Plan 2m.
Japanese kodo drummers beat out a hefty tune, using their heads in place of sticks.

TALES OF MERE EXISTENCE
(US 2005) dir. Lev Yilmaz 5m.  
A series of laugh-out-loud quirky animations that expose the things everybody thinks, but not one talks about, based on gleefully embarrassing thoughts and stories from the filmmaker's own life.
Check it out on www.ingredientx.com
          
MEAT         
(Russia 2002) dir. Slava Ross 15m.
Times are hard for single mothers. But there are things young boys don't want to know. A tremendously touching drama about growing up in 20th century Russia.
                   
FUNKY SQUARE DANCE (PHOENIX)
(US 2006) dir. Roman Coppola 9m.          
Roman was approached by Phoenix to do a no-budget music video for their song 'Funky Squaredance'. The resulting stream of consciousness effect blends the audio and the visual perfectly.

+ a free beer with ticket courtesy of Stella

Adm £5.50/£4.50 Concessions

•SAT 25 Nov

HINOKIO (PG) 1.15

(Japan 2005) dir.Takahiko Akiyama 111m. Subtitles.
Masatoshi Nakamura, Kanata Hongô, Mikako Tabe, Maki Horikita, Ryoko Kobayashi, Yuta Murakami, Ryo Kato, Sachie Hara.

The class of 11-year-olds is amazed when a robot comes to school. ‘Hinokio’ is in place of Satoru, who’s recovering from an accident at home. Soon, robot, class bully, teacher’s pet and housebound Satoru are all caught in an adventure between reality and fantasy worlds. Who will win the final game? With dazzling computer-generated special effects to convince you that robots really can live in the real world, this is an adventure story to enjoy and make you think.

NEXT: A Primer on Urban Painting (15) 3.45

(Canada 2005) Dir. Pablo Aravena 102 min. Documentary.

From The Bronx to Banksy, the graffiti movement is global. Discover how a young urban underground art movement of the 70s became an art gallery favourite and still kept its soul. Meet graffiti artists from across Europe, Japan and North America, and trace back the international language of geometric shapes, bold swirls and colours and figurative messages to local roots. This is an art form continuing to evolVe. Is graffiti the abstract expressive art of our time? This fascinating and definitive documentary combines a huge range of images and interviews – with artists, gallery owners and passers by – and leaves the answer up to you.

TICKETS
Special Advance ticket price until Fri 10 Nov available from Barbican box office only – £2.50 (Child/Adult)
Tickets available from Rio box office From Sat 11 Nov – £4.50 (Child/Adult)

Further information on: www.londonchildrenfilm.org.uk

• Sat 2 Dec • Matinee

HARSH TIMES (15) 1.00

(US 2006) dir.David Ayer 115m.
Christian Bale, Freddy Rodriguez, Tammy Trull, Adriana Millan, Eva Longoria.

“The directorial debut of TRAINING DAY screenwriter David Ayer features yet another sensational and transformational performance from Christian Bale. Disturbed ex-US Ranger Jim spends his days either south of the border with his Mexican fiancée, or riding around LA with his childhood friend Mike getting wasted. When Jim’s eventually offered a post with Homeland Security, he must choose between being a Fed and being with his mamisita. Ayer goes for the jugular at all times and the grainy, handheld camerawork adds to the scuzzy authenticity.”
(Mark Salisbury, Time Out)

£5.50/£4.50 Concs