Carnegie Mellon’s 2022 International Film Festival explores what’s 'Behind the Mask'
Carnegie Mellon University’s theme for its 2022 International Film Festival can be interpreted literally and figuratively.
“Faces Behind the Mask,” the title of the festival, explores face coverings — the physical ones people have been wearing during the pandemic as well as those that aren’t seen.
“What masks do we wear, and are we aware of their presence?” said Jolanta Lion, founder and director of the festival on opening night, March 24.”How do these masks change day by day, hour by hour, person to person? How can we see through the mask, and get at what’s in the dark?”
The answers to Lion’s questions could possibly be found watching the films. The festival runs through April 9. It is produced by 15 students — undergraduates and graduates — from CMU and the University of Pittsburgh in Oakland, and La Roche University in McCandless.
A native of Poland, Lion founded the Polish Film Festival “Through Polish Eyes.” She is assistant director of the Humanities Center at CMU. She suggested 30 films to screen.
Films will be shown at CMU’s McConomy Auditorium, Gailliot Center at Carlow University in Oakland and the Harris Theater in Downtown Pittsburgh.
“Having Jolanta as our director helps us bring the best lineup of movies because of her connections with other International film festivals,” said Sowang Kundeling, a first-year business administration major at CMU and programming and marketing coordinator for the festival. “She has a good idea of the best films to show.”
The films are from places such as Israel, France, Morocco, Germany, Poland, India, China and the U.S. They discuss relevant topics such as violence, social unrest, corruption, domestic abuse, loss of a loved one and nature.
A list can be found here.
“Casablanca Beats,” from Morocco, described as a drama that uses hip-hop music and dance as central modes of protest and free expression, was shown opening night.
“Through ‘Casablanca Beats,’ I think the kids showed the faces behind their masks through their expression in rap, song, and dance,” said Kundeling.
The movies are premiering for the first time in Pittsburgh. Most are not available through streaming platforms.
The festival was the most challenging to put together because of whether it could be held in person or virtually, with or without facemasks, Lion said.
“It has also been the most rewarding,” Lion said. “I have never seen a group of dedicated students as this group. They are full-time students and they worked on this all of the time.””
Kundeling, who wants to pursue a career in the entertainment business to increase diversity in popular culture, said many of the critically acclaimed movies start at film festivals.
“Through this opportunity, I have worked alongside graduate students and Jolanta to bring the festival to reality,” Kundeling said. “Coming to CMU, I never would’ve imagined that I would be able to pre-screen some of the most game-changing films in the industry.”
The festival is dedicated to the late Paul Goodman, a filmmaker, psychologist and CMU professor. He helped teach the important aspects of diverse individuals through filmmaking, according to organizers. His wife, Denise Rousseau, professor of organizational behavior and public policy at CMU, is also involved.
The festival began with a facemask mandate for CMU. It was lifted on March 28.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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