Niles Atallah | France 2017, 90 minutes | 7pm, Monday 17 July
[A] pleasingly poetic reflection on film as an emotionally rich artifact, subject to the passage of time just as memory itself is honeycombed with lacunae. – Jay Weissberg, Variety
In the 19th century, a French adventurer, Orélie-Antoine de Tounens, thought it would be nice to be king. Finding a discreet spot in southern Chile, somewhat towards the end of the world, Orélie-Antoine founded his kingdom with the assistance of the local Mapuche natives. The Chilean army violently disapproved.
A visionary psychedelic film from artist Niles Atallah, Rey probes Chilean history, memory and colonialism through its stylised blend of deliberately decayed footage, stop-motion, masks, puppets and other kaleidoscopic imagery. Based on accounts of a true story, and drawing on location and archival footage of Patagonia, this is an astonishing work and one of the key films of 2017.
Rey is preceded by The Sailer (Giaretta, 2017, 9 minutes).
D Niles Atallah S Niles Atallah P Lucie Kalmar C Benjamín Echazarreta E Benjamin Mirguet
Language: Spanish and Mapudungun with English Subtitles
Distribution: Mômerade DCP
Unrated 15+
Winner of Special Jury Award for Artistic Achievement at the 2017 International Film Festival Rotterdam.