Running Arts at the Brattle Theatre, in association with the Beacon Cinema Group, announce the complete line-up for the seventh annual Boston International Festival of Women’s Cinema to take place Thursday, April 15 through Monday, April 19, 1999. This year, the award-winning festival will open with a sneak preview of Sugar Town, the newest feature film from director Allison Anders, slated for release this coming fall by October Films. Previous films by Anders include Gas Food Lodging, Grace of My Heart, and Mi Vida Loca (which had its Boston-area premiere in the 1994 women’s festival). Anders and Sugar Town producer Nancy Griffin will be in attendance to introduce the film. The closing night selection is Bedrooms and Hallways, the second feature by director Rose Troche (whose film debut Go Fish opened to critical acclaim in 1994). Troche will also be in attendance to introduce her film.

Sugar Town stars Rosanna Arquette, Ally Sheedy, Lucinda Jenney, John Taylor (of Duran Duran), John Doe (Of X), and Michael Des Barres. Anders co-wrote and co-directed the film with Kurt Voss, their second collaboration since making Border Radio while students at UCLA several years ago. Sugar Town is a playful and biting slice-of-life portrait of the Los Angeles music scene today, fittingly described by Geoffrey Gilmore of the Sundance Film Festival (where it had its world premiere), “Not since Nashville has the hustling, double-dealing, treachery, and ruthlessness of wanna-bes, has-beens, and never weres been so aptly and accurately displayed.” Bedrooms and Hallways stars a young and upcoming cast of British actors including Kevin McKidd (Trainspotting), Jennifer Ehle, and Hugo Weaving. Set in London, this delightful comedy centers on the friendship of two gay men and their respective sexual and romantic escapades.

This year’s festival features two U.S. festival premieres, Indian director Deepa Mehta’s Earth and Belgian director Patrice Toye’s Rosie: The Devil In My Head. Set in India in 1947, Earth is the second production in Mehta’s series of three films on the elements. The story centers on a young girl and the group of friends and family members who care for her amidst a country besieged by political upheaval. In 1997, Mehta’s first film in the series, Fire, also premiered in the women’s festival followed by international critical acclaim. Most recently, Fire opened in India, where it incited riots because of its overtly female perspective. The other U.S. festival premiere, Rosie: The Devil In My Head, is a poignant story of a 13 year-old girl and her relationship with her mother. The film will be released theatrically later this year by New Yorker Films.

Two films from Iran, The Apple and Divorce Iranian Style, are spotlighted in this year’s festival. The Apple was directed by Samira Makhmalbaf (the 18 year-old daughter of acclaimed Iranian director Mohsen “Gabbeh” Makhmalbaf) and is a powerful docu-drama which explores the real-life story of two eleven year-old twin girls who learn to embrace the world after a lifetime of never leaving their Tehran apartment. The film opens theatrically this spring. Divorce Iranian Style is a cinema verite-style documentary about three women seeking divorce in Iran, and a rare glimpse into the Iranian legal system. The film was directed by Ziba Mir-Hosseini and Kim Longinotto (who also directed Shinjuku Boys, Dream Girls, and Hidden Faces, all selections from previous women’s festivals).

Other films selected for the 1999 Boston International Festival of Women’s Cinema include several sneak preview screening of international features. Lisanne Skyler’s Getting to Know You (U.S.), starring Heather Matarazzo (Welcome To The Dollhouse), Michael Weston, Bebe Neuwirth (Chicago) is based on short stories from Joyce Carol Oates. Anne Fontaine’s Dry Cleaning (France, starring Miou- Miou) is the provocative story of a married couple who embark on a daring journey when a young transvestite enters their life together. Maria Ripoll’s Twice Upon a Yesterday (England/Spain) is a thoroughly delightful romantic fable about what happens when you get a second chance, a la Groundhog Day. Actress Joan Chen’s (The Last Emperor, Twin Peaks) directorial debut Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl (China) is a stunning epic set in China in 1975 about the ramifications of the Great Cultural Revolution as it impacts Chinese youth and won 7 Golden Horse Awards (Chinese Oscars). Cauleen Smith’s Drylongso (U.S.) is a distinctive directorial debut about a young female photographer who inadvertently photographs and befriends a woman posing as a man while documenting African-American men. Also included are two films from Germany. Katja von Garnier’s highly energetic Bandits is the story of a group of women who escape from prison and rise to fame as a rock-and-roll band while on the lam. Loose Ends, director Sandra Nettelbeck’s steamy story of the love lives of three twenty-somethings girlfriends, was a hit at the San Francisco Lesbian and Gay Film Festival.

This year’s documentaries include: Maggie Hadleigh-West’s The War Zone (U.S.), a controversial investigation of sex and power and what happens when a woman’s right to walk undisturbed on the streets is threatened; The Righteous Babes (England, directed by Pratibha Parmar), an invigorating exploration of the intersection of feminism and today’s most popular female recording artists; Juliette of the Herbs (U.S., directed by Tish Steeten), a portrait of the remarkable life and work of Juliette de Bairacli Levi -- world renowned herbalist and holistic veterinary healer; Barbara Hammer’s The Female Closet (U.S.), a rich visual survey of three women artists from different segments of the 20th century - all addressing issues of gender and sexuality; and the Academy Award nominated Regret to Inform, Barbara Sonneborn’s exceptional personal portrait on the lasting devastation of the Vietnam War as seen through the eyes of both American and Vietnamese women who lost their husbands.

The seventh annual Boston International Festival of Women’s Cinema is made possible through the generous supports of its’ sponsors: The Sundance Channel on MediaOne, Jane Magazine, Perriet- Jouet Champagne, Up Stairs at the Pudding Restaurant, the Charles Hotel, and The Boston Phoenix. For more information about opening night festivities, visiting filmmakers, premieres and sneak previews, and ticket sales please call 617-876-6838. Complete festival programs and advance tickets to all screenings will be available at the Brattle Theatre beginning April 2. The Brattle Theater is fully wheelchair accessible and is located in the heart of Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

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