Festival kicking it for human rights

May 28, to June 5, Rialto Dunedin

Festival kicking it for human rights

Football tackles the complexities of homelessness when the Human Rights Film Festival opens in May.

Headline film ‘Kicking It’ tracks seven players from various parts of the world as they train to compete in The Homeless World Cup.  Misconceptions about the homeless are challenged as the players, living at the edge of society; discover they can also be winners.

Human Rights Film Festival director Boris van Beusekom says the film acknowledges the right of every human to recognise their potential. This also reflects this year’s festival theme ‘freedom’, which aims to celebrate human rights for the liberties they promote, not restrict. 

“It’s about showing people what our human rights do enable us to do, as opposed to what we can’t do,” says Boris.

Football’s broad appeal is expected to see Kicking It introduce a greater number of New Zealanders to the film festival, now in its fifth year.

The line-up also includes 15 compelling documentaries, features and short films that inquire into a range of human rights issues in communities around the world. (Film synopses provided below).

Two New Zealand documentaries will feature prominently in the screenings. ‘Living with Coffee’ directed by Diane Abad examines fair-trade coffee in New Zealand and Colombia. ‘Putting Homelessness into Focus’, directed by Charlie Bleakley, brings together the views of those who have worked with the homeless and many who have experienced it, to examine the impact of this hidden problem within New Zealand communities.

The annual festival is an initiative of the Human Rights Network Trust and sets out to raise understanding and awareness on human rights issues and elevate New Zealand’s profile as a human rights society.

Boris Van Beusekom says film is an ideal vehicle to do this, providing a human face to what can otherwise be considered the abstract concept of human rights.

“The films tell real stories of how people are making a difference and provide an opportunity for the audience to learn and participate in their communities with a more informed perspective on human rights.”

As the festival’s audience and reputation continues to grow, it is able to attract films that would have once overlooked New Zealand because of its size. 

Discussion forums, held after each screening, are a key point of difference for the festival and provide an opportunity to generate discussion and further awareness around human rights issues. Guest speakers will include local experts who have background knowledge, or work in, the field of the issues highlighted in the films.

Festival website: www.humanrightsfilmfest.net.nz

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