Lovers of international cinema can expect a bold statement from the District’s twentieth annual Filmfest. While showcasing a broad range of subjects, from personal struggles in Iraq to communism in a divided Germany, the crux of this year’s festival is tuned to a beat that hits closer to home.
This year’s Hip-Hop 4 Reel series hopes to draw locals by exploring D.C.’s music culture, though the festival offers much more. Executive director of Filmfest D.C. Tony Gittens is rather optimistic about the unique statement. “The hip hop series has added a new audience to the festival who have come because they’re interested in the culture,” Gittens said. Although such an America-centric theme is one not often explored by international film festivals and has invited much criticism, this year’s less conventional focus hasn’t been detrimental to ticket sales. According to Gittens, audience attendance thus far has matched the success of Filmfest’s past years, which have taken on more traditional region and country-based themes.
The festival series focuses on the journey that hip-hop has taken from the underground of American cities to its explosive popularity across the globe. This year’s theme explores the role of hip-hop as a powerful force for social change and a vehicle for self-expression. The Kenyan film Hip-Hop Colony traces the positive influence of western rap on the local community, while Charlize Theron’s East of Havana gives voice to the expressive powers of hip-hop within an underground movement in Cuba.
Not surprisingly, the festival maximizes the potential of its capital location, where culture and politics are, for better or worse, inexorably intertwined. Letter to the President, narrated by the iconic Snoop Dogg, examines the development of rap alongside contemporary political discourse, from its socially-conscious roots to the modern commercial development of the industry. On a different note, Scene Not Heard exposes hip-hop’s repression of the female voice, rallying against the woman’s status as mere backdrop eye candy in a bikini.
The festival also offers a unique opportunity to witness the arts off-screen. This Saturday, Busboys and Poets will host The Business of Hip-Hop, a panel led by those who run the industry behind the scenes. And if you’re not digging the hip hop beat, there are still a number of promising films left to see that are sure to satisfy a diverse palette. Although taking an alternative route this year, Filmfest D.C. remains steadfast in its objective to provide the best of international cinema for all those seeking intellectually compelling and artistic films.
AMC Loews Wisconsin Avenue, 4000 Wisconsin Ave. N.W.
American University’s Greenberg Theatre, 4200 Wisconsin Ave. N.W.
E Street Cinema, 555 11th St. N.W.
National Gallery of Art’s East Building Auditorium, 4th and Constitution Avenue N.W.
