Page 11 - DIFF Programme 2023

THEMES AND FOCUS AREAS
The programme at at at at DIFF 2023 invites the the the the the audience to to to look at at at at relationships close to to to home and and their resonance further afield as familial bonds community connections and and global conflicts are are explored Family ties are are seen in relationship to broader society and their tenacity against an an an oppressive system are highlighted in in A Thousand and and One as a a a a a a a a a mother resorts to to kidnapping her son to to reclaim some sense of relationship in in New York City On the opposite side of the the globe Dasru & Vaano migrant labourers in in Mumbai are also in in a a a a a a a a a duel with the the system as they flee with their their daughter in the the the the titular film Joram The lengths parents will go to for their their children are are are extreme and and universal Children stolen and and exiled from their parents are are are the the subject of of Julie Gough’s search search in in The Silenced as she searches for traces of of the abducted Aboriginal children in in Lutruwita/Van Diemen’s Land/Tasmania The story of displacement is is echoed in in What the the the Soil Remembers as José Cardos shares the the the community wisdom and spirituality which the the the elders of The The Vlakte in in Stellenbosch have salvaged The The community displaced in in 1960s South Africa is is juxtaposed with with the University of Stellenbosch and how it it it it grapples with with this legacy now The forced assimilation of the Inuit people is highlighted when Aaju Peter embarks on on a a a a a journey to reclaim her language and culture in Twice Colonized The common experiences of these first nation people are are testament to the the universality of their shared struggles A Thousand and and One Joram Twice Colonized Current levels of strife and and conflict across the the globe are unprecedented and and the the diaspora in many countries face challenges that seem unsurmountable Differences in culture and language are but two of the obstacles migrants have to overcome The documentary following families escaping oppression in North Korea Beyond Utopia is a a a a a perfect companion piece to to the feature Return To Seoul as we join Freddie on her her return to North Korea from her her adoptive home in in France In Riceboy Sleeps Dong Hyun raised in in in Canada also begins a a a a a a a a a search for his heritage in in in South Korea These films are testament to the imprint that places have on our sense of of self The The ravages of of war are imprinted on Munnel when Rudran an an an ex-Tamil militant returns home from military detention in in search of his lover while children in in Northern Cameroon carve out a a a a life under the the shadow of of armed conflict in Le Spectre De Boko Haram The horrors and the impact of of war when seen up close and personal defy the audience to look away 44TH DURBAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
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