Prominent Women at Borderlines Film Festival 2024

By Hours
Greta Lee in Past Lives (Courtesy of Rotten Tomatoes).

Borderlines Film Festival, the UK’s largest rural film festival, is returning this March for its 22nd run. This year’s festival will include 298 screenings and 68 films, both native to Britain and international, from March 1–17. Twenty-nine of those films have not yet been released in the UK. Three BAFTA-winning films, “The Zone of Interest,” “American Fiction” and “Anatomy of a Fall” will be among those shown. Many of the films can be categorized into one or more of the 10 themes for this year, which are: Seeking Refuge, Holocaust, Afterlife, Africa, France, New British Talent, Mexican Film Noir, LGBTQ+, Rural and Cinema Subverts. With March being Women’s History Month, here are some female-directed films to keep an eye out for at the festival:

Olivia Coleman and Edith Swan in “Wicked Little Letters” (Courtesy of IMDB).

“Wicked Little Letters”, directed by Thea Sharrock, stars Olivia Coleman as the conservative character Edith Swan, Jessie Buckley plays the wild Rose Gooding, and Vanjana Vasan portrays the police officer, Gladys Moss. The film, set in the 1920s, follows a town called Littlehampton as they begin to receive profane letters in their mail, and the Irish immigrant Rose is charged with the crime. The women suspect something is wrong with this accusation, and start to investigate for themselves. The English director, Thea Sharrock, is known for directing “Me Before You,” “The Hollow Crown: Henry V” and “The One and Only Ivan.”

Hiam Abbass on the film poster for “Bye Bye Tiberias” (Courtesy of Variety).

“Bye Bye Tiberias,” directed by Lina Soualem, stars Hiam Abbass. In this documentary, we follow Abbass as she returns home to her Arab Israeli/Palestinian childhood village of Deir Hanna with her daughter after years of pursuing an acting career in France. Abbass is known for many projects, including her roles in “Succession,” “I Still Hide to Smoke,” “The Visitor,” “Munich” and “Blade Runner 2049.” Soualem is also known for many projects, some of which include directing “Their Algeria,” and her acting roles in “You Deserve a Lover,” “I Still Hide to Smoke” and “Inheritance.”

Greta Lee and Teo Yoo in “Past Lives” (Courtesy of IMDB).

“Past Lives” is Celine Song’s directorial debut about two childhood friends who are separated when one character, Nora, moves with her family away from South Korea. They reunite in adulthood for one week as they ponder ideas of destiny, love and life choices. The movie stars Greta Lee, who plays Nora, and Teo Yoo, who plays Hae Sung. Greta Lee is also known for projects including “Gemini,” “Russian Doll” and “The Morning Show.”

These films, and other excellent female-directed films, will be screening as part of the Borderlines Film Festival.

About :

Natia Kirvalidze is a Georgian student in the Writing, Literature, and Publishing program at Emerson College. She currently serves as a copy editor for Page Turner Magazine and is the managing editor for The Independent Magazine. She loves long walks, playing chess, and making lists.