On its 22nd year, Cine Europa, the longest and most comprehensive film festival in Manila, will be held at Cinema 1, Greenbelt 3 from September 20 to 24, 2019.

This year, the embassies of Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain Sweden, and the United Kingdom will unreel movies that show enduring tales of love, friendship, faith, triumph, and courage.

Mr. Thomas Wiersing, the Chargé d'affaires of the EU Delegation to the Philippines, highlighted the importance of the festival's role in opening more opportunities of enhancing a bilateral relationship between the EU and the Philippines.

"In the future, it's my aspiration that the relationship with the film industry will beyond a two-way film exchange," said Mr. Wiersing. "I urge filmmakers to see how they can screen more movies commercially both in the EU and the Philippines."

Cine Europa will also widen its reach in the Visayas as it is also slated to hold screenings in Bohol on October 11 and 12. There will also be screenings in Cebu, Leyte, Iloilo, Naga, and Palawan, as well as the Cinematheque Centre in Kalaw, Manila.

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One of the highlights of this year's festival is Cold War from Poland. It won the Best Director award when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2018. It received numerous accolades, including nominations at the Academy Awards and the British Academy Film Awards in 2018. Director Pawel Pawlikowski shows inspiration from the classic glamour of Hollywood romance in this passionate love story set against the background of the Cold War in the 1950s in Poland, Berlin, Yugoslavia, and Paris.

The 22nd Cine Europa features 12 movies selected by the EU embassies and cultural institutes in Manila.

The official lineup is as follows:

Belgium - Achter De Wolken (Behind the Clouds)

Czech Republic - Teorie tygra (The Tiger Theory)

Denmark - Vinterbrødre (Winter Brothers)

France - Tour de France

Germany - Grüße aus Fukushima (Greetings from Fukushima)

Hungary - Búék (Happy New Year)

Italy - Essere Leonardo da Vinci, un'intervisa impossibile (Being Leonardo da Vinci, an impossible interview)

Norway - Kongens nei (The King's Choice)

The Netherlands - De Marathon (The Marathon)

Poland - Cold War

Spain - 10.000 km (Long Distance)

Sweden - Tjuvheder (Drifters)

United Kingdom - Mary Shelley

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Here are the synopses and schedules of the films:

Achter De Wolken (Behind the Clouds), Belgium, 2016

Screenings: September 20, 1:30PM; September 22, 10:00PM

Achter De Wolken centers on two people who meet after more than 40 years. After they have broken up, the two have lived two different paths: one married her best friend, while the other married another woman. Now that they are both single again, the film questions whether it's possible to experience a second chance at the love they left 40 years ago.



Teorie Tygra (The Tiger Theory), Czech Republic, 2016

Screenings: September 21, 11:00AM; September 23, 7:15PM

In Teorie Tygra, Jan is a veterinarian who realizes he has had enough of the life controlled by his wife. He then makes an unconventional plan to break free and fulfill the dream of his dead father-in-law, starting his journey to freedom.



Vinterbrødre (Winter Brothers), Denmark, 2017

Screenings: September 20, 11:00AM; September 22: 4:30PM

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Vinterbrødre is said to be a a lack-of-love story, centering on the feud between two brothers and another family, as well as the younger brother Emil who only wants to feel loved and desired.

Tour De France, France, 2016

Screening: September 23, 4:30PM

This French film follows a 20-year old rapper named Far'Hook, who is forced to leave Paris after getting caught in a dispute with his rival. He is then hired by his producer to be the driver of his father on a tour of the French ports. An unlikely friendship forms between the two men, despite the differences in age and culture,



Grüße Aus Fukushima (Greetings from Fukushima), Germany, 2016

Screenings: September 20, 4:30PM; September 22, 7:15PM

Grüße Aus Fukushima is a German film set during the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, and the nuclear disaster in Fukushima. It follows two women, an old Geisha named Satomi, and the young Marie, who must make friends while going through their own struggles in life.

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Búék (Happy New Year), Hungary, 2018

Screenings: September 21, 7:!5PM; September 24: 1:30PM

In Búék, a group of friends who has been celebrating New Year's Eve together for years. They then start to play a game where they have to share with everyone the calls, text messages, emails, photos, or audio messages they receive. The game then turns serious when secrets and lies get revealed.



Essere Leonardo da Vinci, un'intervista impossibile (Being Leonardo da Vinci, an impossible interview), Italy, 2019

Screenings: September 21, 10:00PM; September 24, 4:30PM

In this Italian film, two journalists are looking for a scoop regarding the 500th anniversary of Leonardo Da Vinci's death. They then find themselves in the artist's final resting place where they met da Vinci, and they get granted with an interview.



De Marathon (The Marathon), Netherlands, 2012

Screenings: September 21, 4:30PM; September 23, 1:30PM

De Marathon revolves around four out-of-shape men, all working at a car shop, who decides to start training for a marathon where they could win money to pay their 40000 Euro debt.

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Kongens nei (The King's Choice), Norway, 2016

Screenings: September 21, 1:30PM; September 24, 7:15PM

The King's Choice, which is based on true events, tells the story set during three days in April 1940, when the king of Norway is presented with a choice with the German armed forces - Surrender or die.



10.000 km (Long Distance), Spain, 2014

Screenings: September 20, 7:15PM; September 23, 10:00PM

10.000 is about Alex and Sergi, a couple whose plans to have a baby is pushed aside when Alex receives an offer for an artistic residency in Los Angeles. Knowing that this could be her last chance to pursuing her passion, they put their plans on hold. The two must then rely on communication to keep their relationship alive, especially since they are 10,000 kilometers away from each other.



Tjuvheder (Drifters), Sweden, 2015

Screenings: September 22, 1:30PM; September 24, 10:00PM

This Swedish film is a socio-political drama about a street pusher named Minna who scams and takes young criminals' money on drug deals. She then meets Katja who she goes with to an illegal residence outside town where she meets a group of people who are also struggling like her.

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Mary Shelley, United Kingdom, 2017

Screenings: September 20, 8:00PM; September 22, 11:00AM

This film centers on the love affair between poet Percy Shelley and Mary Wollstonecraft, which eventually led to the creation of the first science fiction novel, "Frankenstein". While Mary had created an incredible character, the society still puts little value on a woman who writes a literary masterpiece, and she is forced to challenge the society by forging her own identity.

Free admission.