The Unknown Saint [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Morocco’s Alaa Eddine Aljem, which was first unveiled in the Cannes Critics’ Week, will tonight open the 30^th edition of FIDMarseille, which is set to unspool until 15 July, presenting an extremely diverse programme that, as always, displays a keen interest in artistic exploration. The menu boasts more than 125 films hailing from 35 countries, including 33 world and three international premieres across its four competitive sections. And this year, the Marseille International Film Festival will hand out an Honorary Grand Prix and will pay tribute to French filmmaker Bertrand Bonello as well as US photographer-director Sharon Lockhart, who will also be giving master classes.

Standing out among the 16 titles (13 of which will be having their world premieres) taking part in the international competition (set to be weighed up by a jury chaired by Sharon Lockhart herself) are The Whalebone Box [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Brit Andrew Kötting, Cemetery [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Spaniard Carlos Casas (a co-production involving France, the UK, Poland and Uzbekistan), Rights-of-Man [+lee también:
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entrevista: Juan Rodrigáñez
ficha de la película] by his fellow countryman Juan Rodrigañez, Visiting Card [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by France’s Michel Zumpf and Timeless Havana [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Jeissy Trompiz (produced by Cuba, Venezuela and Italy).

This international competition is rounded off by five additional features (one from Lebanon, one from Chile, one from Brazil, one from Mexico and one from Japan), six medium-length movies (including one from Portugal helmed by Leonor Noivo, an Italian one by Gaia Formenti and Marco Piccarreda, the British title Ghost Strata by Ben Rivers, and an Algerian-French joint effort by Narimane Mari) and one French-Moroccan short film.

As for the French competition (the jury for which will be chaired by actress Agathe Bonitzer), 12 world premieres are on the cards, including Danses macabres, Skeletons, and Other Fantasies [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Pierre Léon and Rita Azevedo Gomes, A Beautiful Summer [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Pierre Creton and Noli me tangere [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Christophe Bisson. Also of note among the features are Sad Song [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Louise Narboni, Attack the Sun [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Gwendal Sartre and Fabien Zocco, Mittelmer [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Jean-Marc Chapoulie and Slits [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Carlos Segundo.

Two other competitive sections have been organised at FIDMarseille, one for debut films (including such movies as Pagine di storia naturale by Italy’s Margherita Malerba and Status and Terrain [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Germany’s Ute Adamczewski), and the other under the auspices of the National Association of Research Cinemas, encompassing such standout titles as Ghost Tropic [+lee también:
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entrevista: Bas Devos
ficha de la película] by Belgium’s Bas Devos (unveiled in the most recent Cannes Directors’ Fortnight), Delphine [+lee también:
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entrevista: Callisto Mc Nulty
ficha de la película] and Carole [+lee también:
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entrevista: Callisto Mc Nulty
ficha de la película] by Callisto Mc Nulty and Chaos [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Sara Fattahi (Golden Leopard in the Filmmakers of the Present competition at Locarno last year).

Also of note in the exceedingly rich programme are a work-in-progress screening of Zorn by Mathieu Amalric (a portrait summing up his encounters with US composer and musician John Zorn since 2009), a Focus dedicated to Taiwanese filmmaker Tsai Ming-liang, and a selection of seven movies in the context of Doc Alliance, a partnership that brings together seven European festivals (FIDMarseille, Denmark’s CPH:DOX, Portugal’s Doclisboa, Germany’s DOK Leipzig, the Czech Republic’s Ji.hlava, Poland’s Docs Against Gravity and Switzerland’s Visions du Réel).

Lastly, industry professionals will be present in their droves on 11 and 12 July, at the 11^th edition of the FIDLab co-production support platform (see the news), the standout titles among the 14 projects selected being Heart of Light by Cynthia Beatt, which will boast Tilda Swinton among the cast, and Human Flowers of Flesh [+lee también:
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entrevista: Helena Wittmann
ficha de la película] by Germany’s Helena Wittmann (whose feature debut, Drift [+lee también:
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entrevista: Helena Wittmann y Theresa …
ficha de la película], proved popular in the Venice International Film Critics’ Week in 2017).