Surrounded by extravagant luxury, Sofía de Garay (Ilse Salas) lives in a dreamlike cloud of opulence in 1980s Mexico City. Her days are filled with lavish soirees, designer dresses, country-club tennis matches, and all the pleasures reserved for the upper crust. In this world, appearances are everything and friendships are only as strong as your financial status. However, when Mexico’s 1982 economic crisis hits her husband’s business hard, the elegant lifestyle Sofia is accustomed to falls to pieces right before her eyes. Soon, her arrogance turns into desperation, as she is forced to confront her new reality. It’s only in…
Author: Bijan Tehrani
Bijan Tehrani
Bijan (Hassan) Tehrani Founder and Editor in Chief of Cinema Without Borders, is a film director, writer, and a film critic, his first article appeared in a weekly film publication in Iran 45 years ago. Bijan founded Cinema Without Borders, an online publication dedicated to promotion of international cinema in the US and around the globe, eighteen years ago and still works as its editor in chief. Bijan is has also been a columnist and film critic for the Iranian monthly film related medias for 45 years and during the past 5 years he has been a permanent columnist and film reviewer for Film Emrooz (Film Today), a popular Iranian monthly print film magazine. Bijan has won several awards in international film festivals and book fairs for his short films and children's books as well as for his services to the international cinema. Bijan is a member of Iranian Film Writers Critics Society and International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI). He is also an 82nd Golden Globe Awards voter.
Celebrating the life of rock star and activist Rita Guerrero, this intimate and music-fueled documentary by Arturo Diaz Santana captures the energy and artistry of a brilliant performer who was taken too soon. As the lead singer of famous band La Santa Sabina, Guerrero became a central figure in Mexico’s 90s rock scene and a fierce advocate for social justice who supported the Zapatista movement. Blending footage from her role as an entertainer that the audience came to love, with personal moments highlighting her off-stage personality, as well as interviews with those who were touched by her magic, the film…
Palm Springs SHORTFEST has announced Ahmed’s Song, directed by Foued Mansour, as the winner of GoE’s 2019 Bridging the Borders Award, presented by Cinema Without Borders and sponsored by Go Energistics . This year’s award ceremony festival was held at Grand Ballroom of Riviera Hotel in Palm Springs. The Editor-in-Chief of CWB, Bijan Tehrani, jury member and Executive Director of Neda Nobari Foundation, Keely Badger and representative of award sponsor and Exacutive Director of Go Energistics, Chris Rhea presented the award for this year’s GoE Bridging the Borders honorable mention and award winner. The winner received a cash award of $2500 courtesy of…
Burbank, CA – June 4th, 2018: Today, Cinema Without Borders announced jury members for GoE Bridging The Borders Award at the 2019 Palm Springs International ShortFest Film Festival and Market. The Bridging The Borders Award at the 2019 Palm ShortFest will be given to the most successful film in bringing the people of our world closer together. GoE Bridging The Borders Award is presented by Cinema Borders and award sponsored and prize provided by GoEnergistics. The winner of Bridging the Borders Award will receive a cash prize of $2500. Palm Springs ShortFest award ceremony will be held on June 23th at Palm…
Featuring a star-making performance by Sótera Cruz, a young actress who plays the title character, this unique coming-of-age narrative explores the racism encountered by indigenous people in Mexico. Guie’dani (Cruz) is a Zapotec teenager who moves to Mexico City with her mother to work as a housekeeper for an upper-middle-class family. There, their language is mocked, and psychological subjugation is inflicted. Yet, Guie’dani rejects the life of servitude and seeks her own identity through a friendship with another rebellious teen. GUIE’DANI’S NAVEL, a brilliant film directed by Xavi Sala is among the films screened in Other Mexico section of 2019…
2019 HOLA Mexico Film Festival will run from May 31st to June 8th in Los Angeles. The 11th edition of HOLA Mexico will open with the Los Angeles premiere of THE GOOD GIRLS (LAS NIÑAS BIEN). The film, directed by Alejandra Márquez Abella and will close with the Los Angeles premiere of MIRREYES VS GODINEZ (MIRREYES CONTRA GODINEZ), in addition to announcing the programing for its sections Documental, MX Ahora, and Nocturno. MIRREYES VS GODINEZ directed by Chava Cartas is a comedic social critique on Mexico’s polarized society. The film stars Regina Blandón and Daniel Tovar and is produced by Francisco…
After Maria, directed by Nadia Hallgren, is about aftermath of Hurricane Maria’s catastrophic destruction in 2017. Three Puerto Rican women and their families are caught between worlds as their FEMA housing assistance in New York expires. With the threat of homelessness on the horizon, After Maria follows as they fight to keep their families together and weather the emotional effects from displacement. We had the opportunity of interviewing Nadia Hallgren on camera about making of After Maria and its streaming on NETFLIX: https://vimeo.com/337568259 Nadia Hallgren is an award-winning filmmaker and director of photography from The Bronx, New York.With a focus on vérité…
This not a film critique, this is a love letter to a film. I just finished watching Caramel on MUBI and, ladies and gentlemen, I am totally shocked. How on earth could I have misjudged this film? In 2008, I watched five minutes of Caramel and I decided it does not deserve my royal attention. Last night after watching it to the end, I was ashamed of myself for ignoring such a masterpiece. As punishment I sentenced myself to watch three episodes of the Game of Thrones! I asked myself, what happened to Nadine of Caramel? Of course, I liked…
Kamal Tabrizi’s Sly (Marmouz) is an entertaining and clever political satire, an uncommon genre from Iranian cinema. The only other film that stands out as a political comedy in history of the Iranian cinema after the revolution, is a box office hit called Lizard (Marmoolak), also directed by Kamal Tabrizi. I could never bring myself to like the Lizard, it lacked creativity in visual storytelling, but Sly is quite different and much more advanced in use of language of cinema. Sly is about a young man, Ghodrat, that runs a group of Lumpen hardliners that trash public gatherings such as…
Burbank, California – May 8th 2019 – Tonight at the South East European Film Festival LA. held its award ceremony at Writers Guild Theater. The closing night proofed to be a great success for Southeast European Film Festival and its founder and director and a friend of Cinema Without Borders Vera Mijojlic. GoE Bridging The Borders Award offered by Cinema Without Borders and sponsored by GoEnergistics, went to Slovakian director Alexandra Makarova for her brilliant film Crush My Heart. Bijan Tehrani, Editor in Chief and founder of Cinema Without Borders and CineEqual announced the winner of the GoE Bridging The Borders Award and read…