Z365" or "Festival all year round" is the new strategic point of the Festival in which converge investigation, accompaniment and development of new talents (Ikusmira Berriak, Nest); training and cinematic knowledge transfer (Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola, Zinemaldia + Plus, Filmmakers' dialogue); and investigation, disclosure and cinematic thought (Z70 project, Thought and Discussion and Research and publications).
The British actress, ex-model and polyglot Saffron Burrows is this year’s New Directors Jury Chairwoman. She confesses that in her youth she was heavily influenced by her parents’ political activism.“At school it was unusual to see girls going to demonstrations at weekends.” She grew up surrounded by an international community made up of friends of her family and her education encouraged her to be socially engaged and take an interest in other countries.
All these elements led her to choose projects likeIn the name of the father (1993). She admits that she still aims for this kind of social engagement, not only as far as the directors she works with are concerned, but also in here daily life.“The filmmakers that really thrill me, and the same is true for artists and musicians, are in some way committed to disseminating certain stories to try and change the world.”
She acknowledges that she has been incredibly lucky to have worked with such a wide variety of directors as Mike Figgis, Hal Hartley and Wolfgang Peterson: “I love to plunge into the worlds of people with powerful ideas. I’ve had some very surprising experiences.”
The last film she saw before she came to the Festival was Entre les murs by Laurent Cantet. “I’ve also recently seen Julia (1977) once again, which is one of the films that made me want to become an actress.”