If you don’t go to the large film festivals around the world you really don’t get to see the wealth of films playing the circuit. Sure there are films that break out that get released, but there are many gems that will never get full release in the US.

Now you have a chance. The festival will present 25 contemporary European films from Austria, the Wallonia-Brussels and Flanders regions of Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

Here’s a quote from Irena Kovarova the curator of the festival.

DISAPPEARING ACT as a festival of contemporary European cinema grew out of a smaller showcase, which instantly became very popular. I believe the reasons are at least two: the program is curated to include a substantial number films from the recent past without concern for whether or not they were brand new or if they had played in New York before — that gives me as the curator the flexibility to really concentrate on the quality of the films first and foremost. The second reason lies in the involvement of all the presenting partners of the festival, who not only invest money and effort to secure the films, but also use their own marketing and outreach channels to reach their own constituencies in New York.

This is where we are really strong because we are combining the assets and powers of 25 distinct European institutions. The audiences appreciate the films which have always included well-known, respected and critically-acclaimed works — like this year’s MICHAEL, and POLICE, ADJECTIVE — alongside works that are critically acclaimed and beautiful, but not so well-known like the Italian film THE MOUTH OF THE WOLF for instance. We also feature films that have not made much of a mark in the States yet like the the opening night film, THE SYSTEM. What unites them all is the fact that they really deserve to be seen by many more eyes.

What is particularly wonderful for me though is the close collaboration with so many strong women — twenty out of the twenty-five on my distribution list of point people at each partner organization are women! They are very resourceful, enlightened and forward thinking. Along with the great films, this is something Europe can really be proud of.

These are the women directed films in the festival:

Brownian Movement, The Netherlands-Belgium-Germany, 2010, directed by Nanouk Leopold — NY Premiere

Cinema Komunisto, Serbia, 2010, directed by Mila Turaljic

The Fatherless (Die Vaterlosen), Austria, 2011, directed by Marie Kreutzer — NY Premiere

The Little Room (La petite chambre), Switzerland-Luxembourg, 2010, directed by Stephanie Chuat and Veronique Reymond — NY Premiere

Info on the program here