Moscow 2006

In its past, still under Soviet rule, the Moscow International Film Festival always showed a special interest in the cinematographies of Third World countries. In its last decade and under its president Nikita Mikhalkov, it has changed its face and became a real international event, open for all kinds of world cinema. Films by Robert Towne, Bertrand Blier, Raoul Ruiz, István Szábo were, among others, invited to participate in competition.
Paradoxically, the critics forming the FIPRESCI jury awarded their prize to a film coming from a Third World country, the Philippines, The Bet Collector by Jeffrey Jeturian. It's the portrayal of an aging bet collector. She clings to the job she has known for more than twenty years, is taken by the police, returns the next morning to the street and continues her clandestine activity. This portrayal is embedded in a view on everyday life, on the Philippines — country, nevertheless, with a considerable cinema tradition.

Details of the prize
Moscow Festival (June 23 — July 2, 2006) www.miff.ru

Reports:

Moscow Cinema Hallucinations. One of the oldest film festivals appears to be caught in the shadow of Cannes and Venice when looking at the selection for this year's program. However, there are signs that the Russian national cinema is producing more films that are independent and not trying to copy western production values.
Read Daira Abolina's report

Betting on a Winner. A closer look at the winner of the FIPRESCI Prize in Moscow that stood out from the rest of the competition. A rough-edged simplicity takes precedent in an engaging narrative and a formal style not far removed from the Dardennes Brothers films.
Read Sheila Johnston's review

To get to a Reality, first you have to reach Simplicity. Taking the example of Djamshed Usmonov's new film, national cinema tendencies are put under intense scrutiny when the narrative expression falls flat somewhere between brutal reality and a whimsical approach.
Read Charles S. Roy's review

What is our life but gambling? An analysis of Running on Empty (Der Lebensversicherer), an unsettling but engaging road movie from a Turkish-German first-time director. Exploring the existentialist route in film once again finds the protagonist lost and alienated, but makes compelling viewing for the audience.
Read Larisa Malyukova's review

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