The Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival today announced its 2023 programme, for what will be the 12th Edition of the independent, international event – the longest-running physical film festival in the region.
The entire 2023 programme will feature a total of 140 projects across all categories. This year boasts the largest Feature Film selection programmed to date at EMIFF, including eight films in the International Feature Film Competition. Additional categories for long-form projects include the Debut Feature Film Competition, the Made in Baleares (MIB) Feature Film Competition, Spotlight Screenings, and the Drive In Cinema strand. Six international documentaries round-out the full Features line-up this year.
Festival highlights will include three prominent Spanish premieres – Nicole Paone’s THE KILL ROOM, starring Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson; YOU SING LOUD, I SING LOUDER, by Emma Westenberg, starring Clara McGregor and Ewan McGregor as father and daughter; and Sophie Barthes’ THE POD GENERATION, with Emilia Clarke and Chiwetel Ejiofor.
Amongst the varied international selection that makes up EMIFF’s 2023 line-up, EMIFF will also screen German auteur Wim Wenders’ PERFECT DAYS (Balearic Premiere) and Danish filmmaker Nikolaj Arcel’s THE PROMISED LAND, starring Mads Mikkelsen (Balearic Premiere). Additionally, there will be a special spotlight screening of David Fincher’s THE KILLER, in collaboration with Netflix.
Also announced today, acclaimed actor and producer Daniel Brühl will receive the Evolution ICON Award at EMIFF’s Opening Night Ceremony on October 18th in Palma. The award celebrates Daniel’s storied acting career in international cinema to date, and the festival will close with a screening of his most recent film, Lone Scherfig’s THE MOVIE TELLER.
Additionally, writer/director Susanne Bier has been unveiled as the recipient of the Evolution ICON Award for direction, which she will receive during the festival’s Closing Night Gala on Oct 24th. As previously announced, acclaimed Catalan auteur Isabel Coixet, will receive this year’s Evolution VISION Award, on Opening Night. Her most recent film, UN AMOR will kick-off the festival on October 18th.
Following its inaugural year in 2022, 2023 welcomes back the hugely successful Cinematography Focus at EMIFF, supported by media partners British Cinematographer and Camera & Light Magazine, whereby Directors of Photography from across the world will be invited to participate in panels and networking events at the festival. Acclaimed DoP Erik Messerschmidt, ASC (MANK, FERRARI, THE KILLER) will receive the festival’s 2nd annual Evolution Cinematography ICON Award as the centerpiece to these events.
For 2023, the festival has notably amplified its short film line up, presenting 74 titles in total, of which 41 short films will compete for the Best International Short Film prize. The Made in Baleares short film category will premiere 13 projects by local filmmakers – MIB is proudly celebrating its 10th anniversary at EMIFF this year. The short film section is rounded-out with a special selection of 9 Experimental and Animation short films, plus a global mix of 15 music videos, making a total number of 98 projects in the line-up that are under 30 minutes in length. A new collaboration for 2023, EMIFF has joined forces with the US streaming platform BitPix, to host a special selection of short films on their platform, throughout the festival period.
EMIFF is a long-standing supporter of the next generation of regional, national and international filmmaking talent, and has therefore further developed its Student Films category, changing the name for the new edition to “New Talents” and presenting 21 extraordinary student works, as a continued commitment to championing new voices in film.
At this year’s Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival, screenings will take place across 7 venues in Palma, including the Teatro Principal (Opening Night) and the Palau de Congressos de Palma (Closing Night). EMIFF once again runs for a total of seven days and six nights, showcasing a culturally diverse, inclusive, and provocative mix of international and home-grown feature films, documentaries and short-form content. The Opening Night ceremony this year, on October 18th, is expected to be attended by over 300 filmmakers – a record number for the festival – alongside industry guests and residents of the island.
Now in its 12th year, Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival is recognized as one of the fastest-growing film festivals in Europe and the longest-running physical film festival in Palma de Mallorca. Founded by filmmaker, actress and Mallorca-raised Sandra Lipski, EMIFF has been proudly supported by the Fundació Mallorca Turisme and the Consell the Mallorca since its inception in 2012.
Previous guests of the festival and awards honorees at EMIFF over the last decade, have included acclaimed international filmmakers Ruben Östlund, Asif Kapadia, Fernando Trueba, Lone Scherfig, Marjane Satrapi, Tobias Lindholm and Wim Wenders; as well as actors Mads Mikkelsen, Danny Devito, Ana de Armas, Angela Molina, Laia Costa, Nastassja Kinski and Melissa Leo.
