A “PRECIOUS” debut at the Libertas Film FestivalBy Blackfilm.com correspondent Jenny Karakaya
August 3, 2010
Most recently, while all you fanboys and movie-junkies were wearing your costumes and enjoying yourselves at San Diego’s annual Comic Con, the rest of us film and travel enthusiasts were busy jet-setting to the Croatian Riviera, for the Libertas Film Festival. I had the great privilege and pleasure of finding myself among the chosen few invited to frolic in this heavenly Mediterranean destination, hobnob with talented filmmakers and actors, and to screen a variety of acclaimed, independent and unique foreign films.
Celebrating its sixth consecutive year in the breathtakingly historic and culturally rich city of Dubrovnik, the Libertas FF represents freedom, creativity and harmony that the once sovereign state was built on. Surrounded by beautiful islands and perfectly situated on the Adriatic Sea coast, the fairy-tale city is defined by its marvelous architecture, mesmerizing landscape, endless monuments and bountiful resources, which attracts hoards of tourists and commercial trade.
Exceeding all expectations, the festival committee went above and beyond to treat everyone like royalty, making this experience one of my best. Starting with our 4-star accommodations at the hotel Valamar, to extravagant lunches, scrumptious seafood dinners, VIP cocktail soirees and dance parties, which were all accentuated with captivating views of the sea and magnificent ancient architecture.
The festival kicked off with a welcoming ceremony, followed by the debut of the academy award-winning film ‘PRECIOUS,’ set outside the Rector’s Palace in the old city. Festival committee members, the mayor of Dubrovnik, executive producer Lisa Cortes and the starring actress of Precious, Gabourey Sidibe, introduced the festival and the film. The five-day festival consisted of innovative shorts and indie films, such as ROOM AND A HALF, TRIAGE, NORMAN, RED, WHITE AND BLUE, and an encore of AFTER THE WEDDING to name a few. We also had the pleasure of meeting and chilling with this year’s Tribute award winning actor, Mads Mikkelsen and the charming, academy award-winning director, Jiri Menzel, selected as this year’s Master award recipient.
One of this year’s festival highlights included a charity tennis match in the old city centre between two former champs, John McEnroe and Goran Ivanisevic, followed by a special VIP party at the posh hotel, Villa Argentina. The match was a perfect finale to an eventful film festival and an ideal segue to Dubrovnik’s annual Summer Festival, which showcases theatrical and dance productions, concerts, and opera, on open-air stages throughout the fascinating city.
The most memorable and everlasting experience in my opinion however, was a chartered boat cruise, which commenced with a majestic brunch at the luxurious Radisson Blu Resort, followed by a dip at the lovely island of Kolocep. Fortunately, we had the opportunity to hang and chat it up with several artists, during our “booze” cruise and throughout the duration of this intimate festival. I especially had the pleasure of catching up with two super-talented, sweet and personable ladies during this time: the compassionate executive producer of PRECIOUS, Lisa Cortes and the film’s delightful star, Gabby Sidibe. There’s no doubt that these ladies are making a difference and going places with their respective careers. Check out what they had to say about their festival experience, life after PRECIOUS, the film’s reception in Dubrovnik and what’s next.
Gabourey Sidibe
What are you doing here in Dubrovnik?
Gabourey Sidibe: I’m here for the Libertas film festival set in the beautiful country of Croatia. One of the films they were highlighting was PRECIOUS, so they asked me to come and be a part of it.
How has your life changed since the release of PRECIOUS?
GS: It’s much more busy. I travel a lot more now, to promote the film and myself as an actress. I’ve been able to do a lot of really, really cool things as a result of it.
Talk about landing a new role on an upcoming show on Showtime.
GS: I was at an audition and luckily enough, they liked me. It’s a Showtime series called the THE BIG C and it’s really interesting. I read over the first script before auditioning and thought it was really interesting, and something that I wanted really wanted to get into. It’s actually a comedy. So it’s something different that I want to try my hand at.
What’s it like working with Laura Linney?
GS: First of all, she’s extremely sweet and such a professional, and amazing to watch. I like to just tend to be around. I love my scenes with her, but I just like to watch her get into her character. It’s really interesting. I think she’s so smart and really talented.
Did she have any advice for you as an up-and-coming actress?
GS: Well, there were times when we’re shooting a scene and the words were hard to get out of my mouth for some reason. I was really bad, because I can’t say the words Strawberry Splash, because there are too many S’s involved incidentally. She was like, “Don’t worry. There was this one time we were shooting in the Congo and it was 3 in the morning, and I couldn’t get one simple word out of my mouth and we had to shoot it over and over again…“ So she just makes me feel better and normal.
Do you have anything else in the works?
GS: Nope, not at the moment.
Were you nervous hosting SNL?
GS: Umm, I think I was nervous to take on SNL, but certainly while I was doing it, because it was so quickly and there was so much to do, I completely stopped thinking and stopped being nervous. I just became focused like a laser. It’s weird. It’s like being shot out of a cannon, which is what they told me all week and it was completely true. I was just focused.
So overall it was a good experience for you?
GS: Yeah, it was the best. It was so much fun.
Would you do it again?
GS: Yeah, absolutely. I would’ve done it the next Monday. It was so amazing. It’s such an incredible week and it’s really, really fun. I was really sad by Saturday that I wasn’t going back to SNL studios on Monday. I would do it all over again!
How do you feel about your mom still performing in subways?
GS: Well, it’s what she’s always done. She’s done it since I was in the 4th grade. Now that she’s on America’s Got Talent, and even if she weren’t, it’s her job. It’s what she does.
What was the best part of being a guest at the Libertas film festival?
GS: Hanging out by the pool. I got to kind of captain a Pirate Ship, which was awesome! I got to steer it and pull it into a harbor and make it stop, which was a lot of fun. It was awesome!
Are there any more upcoming festivals for you?
GS: I think this is the last festival of the year, for now. I don’t know. I don’t know where I’ll be invited to next week.
Lisa Cortes:
What brings you to the Dubrovnik Film Festival?
Lisa Cortes: Precious is the opening night premiere at the Libertas film festival and I’m also here to meet fellow film makers from around the world to see what they’re up to.
How was Precious received here in Dubrovnik after it’s initial screening?
LC: It’s interesting…we had an outdoor screening within the ancient city of Dubrovnik. So just the setting was monumental. It was really gorgeous. You think of how much ancient history has walked through this area that we were screening at. What I really appreciate was that people really enjoyed the film and got into it and felt that universal concept. Everyone from the mayor, to the government, to the film makers to our waitress at the Radisson have come up to Gabby and said that they’ve enjoyed it. I spoke to a lady from Russia and her focus was on the mother-daughter relationship and the similarities. It was great and we felt like cultural ambassadors, and people walked away with the human content of the story.
Which other festivals has this film taken you this year?
LC: Oh yeah, a lot of traveling, but this was the most distinctive one. Not only because of the setting but also the reception, you know. A lot of the film makers that I’ve talked with from eastern Europe regarding Precious, which is far from their every day… what I loved is how they saw something really relatable in the theory, narrative and variety of relationships that were explored.
What did you enjoy most about Libertas FF?
GC: The wonderful introduction to Dubrovnik, the passionate film makers who arranged the event, and the international reception that the film continues to have. It’s been in London, in Spain, in France, Germany… The film hadn’t come out in this territory yet and I think it made some really great groundwork of interest and understanding of the story.
What’s next for you?
LC: I‘m working with Kalup Linzy and James Franco on a film called OVA KATESSA . I’m also producing a project with the Red Hot organization, which deals with aids awareness and prevention, and it also incorporates the music element.
When do you anticipate these projects to come to fruition?
LC: Over the next year, I’m working on Lynn Nottage’s Mud, River and Stone with director Tony Gerber.
