Curious Films presents its Cannes-winning short ‘Blue’ and three features at the 2011 NZ International Film Festival

Radical Black Power activists, an 85 year-old sushi master, a cult Japanese love story, a 10 year-old gangster, and an unemployed children’s TV mascot are all coming to this year’s New Zealand International 2011 Film Festival.

The Festival kicks off this Thursday 14th July, and the line-up includes four films distributed exclusively in New Zealand by Curious.

On Tuesday 19th July (8:45pm) at The Civic Theatre, Curious presents the NZ premiere of ‘Norwegian Wood’, an adaptation of Murakami Haruki’s popular novel, directed by Tran Anh Hung. Set in the late ’60s in Tokyo, Watanabe (Kenichi Matsuyama) falls in love with fragile Naoko (Rinko Kikuchi) and becomes entwined in an emotionally involving love triangle. It screens again on Monday 25th July, 3:15pm.

On Sunday 17th July (1:15pm), Curious premieres ‘Jiro Dreams of Sushi’ at SKYCITY Cinemas in the first of four Festival screenings. The documentary depicts the life of 85 year-old Jiro Ono, legendary sushi master, whose tiny sushi bar in Tokyo’s Ginza subway station is considered the best place for sushi in Japan.

On Saturday 30th July (11:15am), Curious presents ‘The Black Power Mix Tapes 1967-75’, a film examining the evolution of the Black Power Movement in the United States. Combining music, startling 16mm footage (which lay undiscovered for 30 years), and contemporary audio interviews from leading African-American artists, activists, musicians and scholars, the documentary screens at Soundings Theatre on 30th & 31st July, and 2nd August.