Burns in the USA

Set Fire to the Stars(en)

An aspiring poet in 1950s New York has his ordered world shaken when he embarks on a week-long retreat to save his hell raising hero, Dylan Thomas.

The Doors(en)

The story of the famous and influential 1960s rock band and its lead singer and composer, Jim Morrison.

Mary Queen of Scots(en)

In 1561, Mary Stuart, widow of the King of France, returns to Scotland, reclaims her rightful throne and menaces the future of Queen Elizabeth I as ruler of England, because she has a legitimate claim to the English throne. Betrayals, rebellions, conspiracies and their own life choices imperil both Queens. They experience the bitter cost of power, until their tragic fate is finally fulfilled.

Shelley's Blaze(fr)

A pictureless film in 3D sound full of political, poetic and incendiary echoes around the death and words of Percy Bysshe Shelley, an infamous young poet driven out of his country after kidnapping his future young wife, Mary Shelley, and who was found dead in 1822, at the age of 29, on the shore of Viareggio in Italy. This sound movie uses text, music and sophisticated sound design projected via 27 speakers to conjure powerful images in the listener's mind.

Cacaso(pt)

Cacaso, a Brazilian poet, lived in Rio de Janeiro. Born Antonio Carlos de Brito (1944-1987) he was one of the leaders of the marginal poetry movement. Cacaso filled notebooks not only with poems but reflections, drawings and collages. He also became a lyricist and partner of celebrated songwriters such as Tom Jobim, Edu Lobo, Toninho Horta, João Donato and Sivuca.

A Season in Hell(it)

The tumultuous life of Arthur Rimbaud, the cursed poet, who completed his masterwork at the age of twenty, became an arms dealer and died at thirty-seven; and his passionate relationship with Paul Verlaine, full of wanderings, storms and falling out.

The Bad Poet(it)

1936. Giovanni Comini, the youngest Federal in Fascist Italy, is summoned to Rome for a delicate mission: to surveil aging national poet Gabriele D'Annunzio, whose increasingly restless behavior Mussolini fears could damage his alliance with Nazi Germany. However, after spending time with D'Annunzio, Comini finds himself torn between loyalty to the Party and his fascination with the poet, who will put his burgeoning career at risk.

No Regret(en)

Five gay Black men who are HIV-positive discuss how they are battling the double stigmas surrounding their infection and homosexuality.

Cyrano de Bergerac(fr)

Famed swordsman and poet Cyrano de Bergerac is in love with his cousin Roxane. He has never expressed his love for her as he his large nose undermines his self-confidence. Then he finds a way to express his love to her, indirectly.

Rob Roy(en)

In the highlands of Scotland in the 1700s, Rob Roy tries to lead his small town to a better future, by borrowing money from the local nobility to buy cattle to herd to market. When the money is stolen, Rob is forced into a Robin Hood lifestyle to defend his family and honour.

A Fanatic Heart: Geldof On Yeats(en)

A biography of the poet W. B. Yeats and his contribution to the Irish independence movement as a Protestant nationalist.

Manic Magic: a Poem in Four Parts(en)

A poem about mania written by Omar Zefier. His second film.

Fernanda Pivano: A Farewell to Beat(it)

Hello My Dear(tr)

The documentary is titled after Arkadaş Z. Özger’s poem “Hello My Dear” which had caused much controversy in the period it was first published. Considered to be in defiance of heteronormativity, the said poem includes references to the poet’s personality, his family, his relationship to the society, and his “unexpected” death, which came three years after its publication. Today, 50 years after it was written, the documentary follows these same lines in the poem utilising cinematic elements. The documentary also rediscovers the poetics; reaches out to the family, the comrades, the friendships, departing from the official historical accounts, cognizant of his experience of otherness, in pursuit of the “lost” portrait of Arkadaş Z. Özger.

Billy Connolly: Portrait of a Lifetime(en)

Celebrating Billy Connolly's 75th birthday and 50 years in the business, three Scottish artists - John Byrne, Jack Vettriano and Rachel MacLean - each create a new portrait of the Big Yin. As he sits with each artist, Billy talks about his remarkable life and career which has taken him from musician and pioneering stand-up to Hollywood star and national treasure.

Isla Negra: Neruda y el mar(es)

Pir Sultan Abdal(tr)

The film tells the story of Pir Sultan Abdal, a famous folk poet in Turkey, who criticized some Ottoman governors, Hizir Pasha in particular and as a result was hung by him.

Chariots of Fire(en)

In the class-obsessed and religiously divided UK of the early 1920s, two determined young runners train for the 1924 Paris Olympics. Eric Liddell, a devout Christian born to Scottish missionaries in China, sees running as part of his worship of God's glory and refuses to train or compete on the Sabbath. Harold Abrahams overcomes anti-Semitism and class bias, but neglects his beloved sweetheart in his single-minded quest.

Jean Genet: Saint, martyr et poète(fr)

Poetic stroll in the work of Jean Genet.

Merhaba Güzel Vatanım(tr)

Biopic of the Turkish poet Nâzim Hikmet and Ahmet Ümit, who followed in his footsteps. Based on the real-life stories of the two writers, the film explores the impact of Nâzım Hikmet's journey to Moscow on Ahmet Ümit's turbulent life and his move to Moscow in the 1980s. The film, which also features important segments of Turkish history, highlights the most dramatic aspects of the writers' challenging journeys while emphasizing the redemptive power of art and literature. Embracing the slogan "Life is short, art is long," the film explores how two young people were transformed into writers by the influence of their era.