2011 BBC Four World Cinema Awards

From the BFI South Bank in London, this is the BBC Four world cinema

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awards. Hole on to your arm chair, Last year 36% of all films release

were in a foreign language. Hollywood grabs most of the box

office but that doesn't mean to say there are fascinating exceptions.

Debang outgrossed Winnie the Pooh for example. You are not as

impressed as I was. It is obvious we have a considerable appetite for

world cinema. Here are a few movies from last year we loved. One of

The Samurai movie returned with a bang courtesy of 13 Assassins. They

must take out an evil warlord. Impressive mayhem and explosives

At last, the naughty Gallic song Smith got his own biopic and an

amazing lookalike. Unusually the director uses a cynical at ever ego

to represent the singer's darker side. He off settings this with

wonderfully cheeky moments that the sing ewould surely approve of. --

off sets this. Not least casting veteran director as a dumbfounded

record boss who hears the song for Music of a different vin tadge was

the subject of an animated film. It follows the fortunes of jazz

pianist chiebg co-and singer rye ta. It is engaining and sexy. -- Chico

and Rita. This was one of the first documentarys to be shot in 3-D.

This is the less sumptuous 2D In this film a 1970 style Catherine

Deneuve is the trophy wife of the title. When her husband becomed ill

she has to take over his umbrella Of course she revitalises the

company. She also rekindles her relationship with an old flame. A

lefty mayor. Cam pest Film of the APPLAUSE She is still many great

shape and I like the fact there is more of Gerrard than ever before.

We have award here. They are something else. They are a bloody

nightmare to get through customs. Trust me, that is three kilograms

of bronze. Try lugging back on Ryanair and you will pay the excess.

First, the nominations for the BBC Four World Cinema Award. 200 UK

film critics were invited to select their favourite foreign language

movie of the year. The nominated films are exceptional. Of Gods And

Men. Directed by Xavier Beauvois. It is a powerful drama based on the

true story of a group of monks. Under threat by terrorists they

must decide whether to leave or Pedro Almovodar's thriller The Skin

I Live In finds Antonio Banderas playing an obsessive plastic

surgeon who creates a synthetic skin for his patient. From deep in

the forest of Thailand the enigma tick Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall

His Past Lives is direct for Apichatpong Weerasethakul creation.

In A Separation the director tells the story of a married couple whose

parting will affect their lives and And finally the Le Quattro Volte is

a beautifully observed almost wordless vision of life in a small

village. The director pans his camera and life intrudes in

APPLAUSE So, those are our five nominated films and these are the

four jurors who are the task of trying to select an outright winner.

Chairing the jury is David -- Sir David Hare. Theatre and film

director whose screenplays for the Reader and Hours were OK car

nominated. I disliked what he was saying. Gurinder Chada directed the

celebrated features Bend it like Beckham and Bride and Prejudice.

This is an example of why cinema is important. John is a dock gruement

triproducer. -- documentary producer. There is nothing of any

interest in this film whatsoever. And finally, Kazuo Ishiguro is a

Booker Prize winning author whose novels the Remains Of The Day was

adapted for film. I can't fall it. Jurors. Now our first nomination.

The Skin I Live In reunited Pedro Almovodar and his former leading

man Antonio Banderas. The band ras plays a surgeon who has an operator

and a prisoner. Who is this person, the beneficiary of the experiments.

It find the director toying with I was really interested in the

situation that in the movie that someone, that takes another person,

to create a new skin, and to be a I felt it was a science fiction,

but with a time, the science it happens so quick, that everyone is

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. She is the one with the real power. This is, that was my

I feel it is kind of going a bit back to Pedro Almovodar's earlier

films, almost histerial championing of sexual marginally. It lacks the

maturity of his cent films. It is I kept questioning, why did he make

this film? Then I found out it was based on a novel, so it was not his

original work. It seemed he was taking someone else's ideas, and

then trying to place his own visions of sexuality and desire

into this other person's world. I found that a bit disappointing,

because he has given us so many great works in the past, that I

think this was beneath him, actually. There's almost nothing of

any interest in this film whatsoever. Yes, it is well

executed and well-acted, but it is just annoying and boring and daft.

Piffle. I'm watching every film Pedro Almodovar Migs, I'm never

going to miss one. He's like Hitchcock, when he makes a bad one,

there are still things which are incredibly pleasurable about them.

You just think this film is going to be so pleasurable, it is going

to be beautifully shot, it is going to have wonderful actors, and then,

it isn't. It is actually very famous and kind of over-

complicating in some way, which, because he's a great director,

you're always trying to understand. But it does not mean that I will

not go to the next one with the same spring in my step, because I

will. I do wish the jurors would stop holding back and let us know

what they really think. The Swedish have had to put up with a lot from

us over the years, endless jokes about Bjorn Borg's headband and

Abba to name but a few. But along with other Scandinavians, they have

decided they're going to take over the film world. Prove, films like

Dancer In The Dark, along with TV programmes like Wallander. What an

earth is going on over there? Sweden, home to sweeping landscapes,

flat-pack furniture and fishing villages. And blockbuster movie

franchises. This is a full-on action thriller, which became one

of the most viewed Swedish films ever. It is a full-on action

thriller. It was so successful, not one but two sequels have now been

made. This is the second. This is a seem about the mob, and at this

moment, we are in a basin, and we see how they sell their stuff. --

in a basement. It seems this maybe the next Nordic Blockbuster to

translate overseas. It is exciting, because suddenly we're getting a

new opportunity to tell a story. But how have Sweden and Denmark

grown so quickly to become such productive centres for movie-

making? Key to this new wave of growth has been the controversial

Danish film-maker Lars von Trier, who advocated getting back to

visceral film making. It had a great impact on all actors and

directors. It was very liberating. It was all following the Dogma wave.

It all gave rise to a new studio complex, which was nicknamed...

This year we are involved in more than 35 feature films. This is an

Oscar-winning film. This one is by Susanne Bier. It has now become the

engine room of the Scandinavian film industry, because of its

location. And last but not least, Lars von Trier's Melancholia. Last

Montreux shot his latest film, Melancholia, here in Trollywood,

despite having the pick of international studios. Why? The

answer is simple - fear. The thing about Lars von Trier is that he has

a fear of being anywhere except on solid ground. He does not fly, he

does not go by boat. But he really wanted to make films about America.

So he decided to do it another way. He decided to come here to

Trollywood and make us imagine that we were in the American South. The

main reason is because he does not fly. But that is not the whole

story. Other film makers began mining the rich vein of crime

novels we now know as Nordic noir. An early success was the brilliant

Norwegian thriller Insomnia. What They Say About Swedish people - sex,

smorgasbord and suicide. That is what we are raised with, that his

our background, and I don't think we will change. But it was on the

small screen that the movement would find its perfect, pitch black

expression, in The Killing. We are used to the darkness, maybe because

of our climate, I don't know, it is pretty dark in Denmark, especially

in winter time. Scandinavian producers seem particularly adept

at giving genre staples a new twist, evidenced by the enormous box-

office success of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. I think everybody

was very confident that it would work extremely well domestically in

Sweden, perhaps also in Denmark and Norway. But that said, I do not

believe that anyone involved in those projects from the beginning

thought that the international The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

opened the floodgates to a whole lot of new Nordic films, from the

sublime to the ridiculous. And if proof were needed of the extent of

Nordic ambitions, look no further than this forthcoming lavish

costume tour. -- costume drama. It is written by, who else, Lars von

Trier. So, watch out, the Scandinavians are coming. By the

way, Trollhunter is kind of magnificent. Next, an Iranian film.

It tells the story of a wife's decision to leave her spouse. Her

husband must now employ someone to look after his father, who has

Alzheimer's. Unknown to him, his wife is pregnant. Out of this tense

scenario, what emerges is a thriller, but with the freshness

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Needless to say, I loved this film. I think it is fantastic. It is

everything I wish cinema to be. This is what I would called old-

fashioned humanist film-making at its very best in my opinion. It is

just sort of graceful and stunningly acted. You also get a

sense of the confidence of the director, that he knows exactly

what he wants, he knows exactly what his story is, and also, the

acting is stunning in it. What is also fantastic is that with Tehran,

you have the image of the Ayatollah and everything, we are not normally

used to seeing these kind of homes, these families, these streets,

women driving, whatever. We are not used to seeing everyday life in

downtown Tehran. A tour that was what was exquisite. I think the

script is almost invisible, it evolved organically from one kind

of crisis to the next. It is only afterwards that you make a list and

you think, this film was about Alzheimer's, it is about divorce,

it is about parent-child conflict, it is about class conflict, it is

about the citizen's relationship to the justice system, violence,

unemployment, all of these things. It sounds like a kitchen-sink drama

from hell, but it is not, it is a very upbeat film, in a peculiar

kind of way. It is a great story, the narrative is incredibly

engaging and evolving. It is actually what all films need to be.

That was Paul Heffernan's remarkable film, Thorsten Stuckmann.

Joe Mattock is a vision of cycles of life in a small village in Iain

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Hume. It could almost be mistaken Thought that was a wonderful film.

Very original. I thought the images were fantastic, they are not just

pretty, I think they do place human beings and animals into sort of

landscape context. This film is a clear example of why cinema is

still important, because I think you need to watch this film on the

big screen. There is so many big wide shots where the camera moves

and then it moves back and moves again, stuff that you have to be

very brave to those kind of shots. I agree. It's a very bold piece of

film-maker, film maiinging. This movie voub mind blowing. It is

poetic and slow and dreamy. I am in the minority. I disliked what he

was saying. You know, what is most interesting about human beings is

they're human beings and unlike animals or mineral or vegetable, so

the reduction of human beings to people, that the fact they don't

say anything, that you can hear, sort of does mean they are just veg

tabls, and so -- vegetable, I just disliked what it was telling me.

That is not to say it isn't beautifully shot and very well made,

which it is. It is brave of a film- maker to make it that way. I wonder

what the script looked like. Some description, a few goats and a

coughing man, that was about it. APPLAUSE. Le Quattro Volte.

Bringing people together. Now, it is my pleasure to welcome without

doubt one of Britain's finest actors to tell us about the first

award. Ladies and gentlemen, will It is quite enough! Quite enough.

Thank you very much though. The BBC Four world cinema achievement

awards, a prize which celebrates the work of an exceptional film-

maker. This year's recipient is one of France's finest stage and film

actor, with an international reputation to match. I first met

her when working on Heaven's Gate. Which some would say was a fiasco,

some would say was a work of genius, in France they said it was a

masterpiece. When I was working with her I realised here was a very

perceptive woman, of course, I would say that because this is

someone with whom I shared exactly the same ideas about acting.

Unsurprisingly, many great directors such as Goddard have

chosen to work with her. She has rightly earned a reputation as a

fearless performer, yet seems reluctant to make great claims for

her art. Time then, to remind ourselves that the screen says

I don't identify with my characters to the, in the sense that I believe

that I am the character. I am not interested in really, in portraying

character, I am more interested in portraying a real person. That is

my quest. Wallpaper? Yeah, well... Civil lices the wilderness. If you

know what I mean. It's beautiful. One can feel whether you have

tricks, or whether you have truth. And sometimes the truth is not

always nice to watch, but I am not interested in only being nice, you

In the caste of Madame bovry we portrayed a stronger character than

people think she is, you know, but that is the strength of great, to

be able to change along different I like the way the director work,

because he is a very hard worker, he is very, he is obsessed with

precision, he is obsessed with detail, but I I like this kind of

It is one of these few encounters in an actress's life, that is

I like to do comedies as well. I think that is the great beauty and

strength of movie, you know, h they are not all even, but all different,

APPLAUSE Ladies and gentlemen, the BBC four World Cinema Achievement

Award goes to the great Isabelle APPLAUSE Thank you, thank you very

much. I am so deeply touched for this award. Well, I am happy to be

here tonight in front of you. Also, I want to do a piece of confidence

to you, yes, many movies, I still think, think that in my body of

work, one film is missing, apart from many others that are to be, I

hope so. It is only half way through. But any way one film is

really missing, and that is a British film. Yes. APPLAUSE Yeah. I

was lucky enough to be a Queen here, on stage, on the English stage a

few year ago, not far away from here, on the South Bank, because I

was Mary Queen of Scot, yes, for the English audience. And where

else? Well, that was a lot, but yes. I still miss being on a British

movie. Thank you very much. Thank you so much. I am really touched

for being here, and thank you. I take it in my heart. Thank you.

And she doesn't get a part in the next inbetweeners movie I will be

very cross indeed! We do make other films. Closely base on real events

Of Gods And Men tells the story of a group of monks living in the

mountains of Algeria, when faced by a group of terrorists they must

decide whether to leave orry main among the community they serve and

risk death. It is time for them to examine their fate and -- faith and

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I thought this film was fantastic, I thought it was beautifully made,

political, courageous, a very spiritual, and ultimately,

extremely human. It is the way the film brilliantly extended rates

that moment at which you contemplate death. There is almost

their in which these monks are waiting to die, it is the way that

moment is prolonged, and had see the detail of the moment among the

group about how they feel about the prospect of dying. I think it is

absolutely brilliant the way that is handled. For me, ultimately, I

thought it was out of its debt, in the political and historical

minefield it finds itself in. In order to make a film that relates

to the French audience, in particular, I think they have had

to simplify a lot of things. That, for me, is the flaw in the film.

agree with a lot of what you say. I felt like it was a bit slower than

it needed to be. I felt like the meal site was a bit melodramatic.

thought that was fantastic. I thought that one scene was

fantastic, that's why I described the film as courageous. That scene

slightly jarred with me, but it is clearly a very, very good film, no

question. Our last nomination is the any polemic -- enigmatically

titled Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives. It is a ghost story,

but of a very strange kind, directed by Apichatpong

Weerasethakul. The protagonist is dying of kidney disease and returns

to a forest. Here, he is cared for by the ghost of his dead wife.

Unashamedly avant garde, the film considers the nature of

It is a belief that I grow up with, in Thailand, that we always think

that there's invisible beings around us. But mostly, it is about

the audience being surrounded by history. It is a lot of my memories

about my father, too, because he actually died of kidney disease. So

there is a tribute to my father, and to movies I grew up with. So it

became like a movie which was made from a child's point of view, I

People are fascinated by this image. When we made the film, I wanted to

make it look in between real and a man in a costume. I wanted to

man in a costume. I wanted to invoke a feeling of uneasiness in

the audience, whether we should laugh at this, or whether we should

be scared. The jungle for me his home. When we were living in caves,

in historic times, the jungle used to be a place that we were

comfortable with. But now, when we go to the jungle, we feel it is an

alien place. So, to go back to your roots is really important, it is

like going back home. I don't want to explain too much about the movie,

but obviously now it is too late. but obviously now it is too late.

read a review somewhere which said that the only redeeming feature of

this film was the electric fly swat. I do not agree with that. It is a

very dreamy, poetic film, that I was able to get drawn in by, it was

just not engaging enough for me to really be able to go with it, so

that by the end, I was basically glad that it was finished. There is

a narrative thread running through it about a guy who is dying from

kidney disease and his wish for loved ones to be near him, and they

turn up as ghosts and apes and things like this. I thought that

thread running through it was quite effective. But very oddly, the film

keeps getting interrupted by what to me just looks like a complete

non-sequiturs. There is a bit of a folk-tale and so on. I can only

think that this is rather like a Tracey Emin-type work of art, where

the criteria of what goes in is based on something very private and

personal. I don't think it is a film in the classic Western

tradition of story, intro, middle, end. It is definitely playing with

our minds. And that's interesting, because it is taking a Buddhist

view of the world. I'm really trying to believe that it was a

failure of my culture to understand. I tried to believe that, I thought,

this is like seeing England through the eyes of Mr Bean. This is a

version of Buddhism which is being exported through this film, and I

just believed it to the degree I believe Mr Bean. It is all very

deliberate, he's deliberately trying to play with us.

electric flies what did look to be I'm going to stick my neck out and

suggest that that is probably the first time that a film by

Apichatpong Weerasethakul has been compared to Mr Bean. Before we

discover the winner of the BBC World Cinema Award, let's remind

ourselves of the five nominated films. Of Gods And Men. The Skin I

Live In, by Pedro Almodovar. Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past

Lives, by Apichatpong Weerasethakul. A Separation, directed by Asghar

Farhadi. And finally, Le Quattro Volte, Michelangelo Frammartino's

work. So, those are the five contenders, and it is now my

pleasure to introduce the chair of the jury, to announce the winner.

Ladies and gentlemen, Mr David Hare. We had a strong shortlist this year,

but there is always something special about a film which is so

unforced and accomplished, that you're not even aware of how it is

put together, it just is. All Of Us on the jury felt that way about one

film in particular. I'm very happy to announce that the winner of the

BBC Four World Cinema Award is A Now, unfortunately, Asghar Farhadi

has had problems travelling from Paris this evening, and cannot be

with us. But I'm pleased to say that the executive producer of A

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Separation will collect the award SHE SPEAKS IN FARSI Dear friends, I

would like to express my greetings to all of you.

Unfortunately, Asghar Farhadi was not able to come and attend, and I

incidentally was in London, and he asked me to come and collect the

prize on his behalf and to thank I'm happy that a film was made

which was able to attract a large audience in Iran, and it was also

welcomed internationally, and I'm happy that the name of Iran can be

raised with the presentation of I am grateful to all the fans, and

also the ones who have sponsored and helped this programme. Thank

A round of applause for our worthy winner, Asghar Farhadi's A

Separation. Congratulations. So, as we leave our winner to celebrate,

all that remains for me to do is to wish you a good night, and police

search out some of these films if you have not seen them. Although

two I did not like at all, two I would argue are probably

masterpieces. You decide. Thanks In my opinion, and I'm sure in the

opinion of a lot of people, Isabelle Huppert has got to be one

of the great actresses. She still represents the greatest tradition

of European acting. And so, I have loved her for 30 years. The minute

we announced that A Separation was the winner, then, as a jury, we

felt confirmed, because you could feel in the house the incredible

warmth towards the film. If 10 people go out and watched A

Separation, and those people tell another ten and another ten, that

is how we keep cinema alive and films which cannot afford to be

distributed and marketed in the same way as Hollywood films.