Switzerland Bildrausch festival to screen ‘The Wasteland’

Iranian feature 'The Wasteland' has been scheduled to enter the competition program of the 2020 Bildrausch Film Festival in Switzerland.

Along with Ahmad Bahrami's second directorial experience, dozens of films from other countries have also been selected to be screened in various sections of the 10th edition of the festival, which will take place in the northern Swiss city from June 17 to 19. 

Two screenings have been arranged for ‘The Wasteland’.

A jury composed of Austrian filmmaker Barbara Albert, Swedish cinematographer Lisabi Fridell and British critic and filmmaker Neil Young will judge the films at the Bildrausch festival.

Shot in black-and-white, ‘The Wasteland’ tells the story of a lonely man who works as a supervisor in a bricklaying factory as a go-between. The owner of the factory once brings together all the workers and tells them something that changes their lives.

The flick has been praised by film critics at the 77th Venice International Film Festival in Italy, where it received the FIPRESCI award of the event.

In October 2020, the film made two festival entries at the 65th Valladolid International Film Festival (Seminci) in Spain as well as the 11th Middle East Now (Festival of Cinema and Contemporary Culture on the Middle East) in Italy.

Among the rest of the global festival appearances of ‘The Wasteland’ include the 2020 annual Tokyo International Film Festival in Japan, the 31st Singapore International Film Festival (SGIFF), the 2020 Stockholm International Film Festival in Sweden, the 2020 Subversive Film Festival in Croatia, the 78th Golden Globe Awards, the 18th Chennai Int’l Film Festival (CIFF) in India and the 45th Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF).

‘The Wasteland’ is also the recipient of the best film award at the 2020 Subversive Film Festival in Croatia.

Bildrausch presents films from the crossroads between art house and art. The presented works are defined by their willingness to take narrative risks and their untamed desire for visual expression.

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