It has recently come to my attention that Stiges Festival Director Angel Sala has been charged with the exhibition of child pornography and facing the possibility of serving time in jail and fines for screening A Serbian Film at Stiges last year. The film has played in several festivals, among which the SXSW Midnights programme, Fantasia and screened as part of Rue Morgue's CineMacabre movie night.
There is a petition that has been circulating. Most notably by horror maestro Eli Roth. The first part is in Spanish but if you scroll down you will find the English text. Here is the link:
No a la censura - En defensa del Festival de Stiges y su director
I saw the film at the world premiere at the Alamo Draft House last March at SXSW and subsequently several months later in Toronto. While the film is brutally intense and holds no punches I believe it is quite a far reaching to say the film involves child pornography. This in no should also be construed as a defense for the film and it's subject matter. A friend of mine Jay Clarke saw the film and here is his
review: The implications of Angel Sala being charged for showing a film in a film festival, it what it could mean for future screenings of controversial films is far reaching and could become a major set back for freedoms of speech and expression.
Here are my videos from Tim League's Q&A with the film makers last March at SXSW:
