This year's festival arrives with a greater sense of urgency given the strains placed on democracy and human rights as the global recession sinks its teeth in. Cinema has an immense power to get us to both feel and think. To this end we have sought out compelling stories about those who champion our rights and those who trample on them.

The festival has seen a marked increase in entries this year. Our ability to manage the selection and curation process has only been possible because of the significant financial support received from the National Lottery Fund this year. This support and that of our other funders allows us to offer festival-goers an elegant and poignant choice of outstanding stories from across the globe.

The 2009 edition brings you hard-hitting documentaries and dramas that explore a number of social tensions including themes such as privatisation and neoliberalism, nationalism, borders, environmental degradation and media activism.

These films are balanced by a selection of lyrical documentaries and dramas that deal with redemption, our racialised past and the power of memory and song. Along with our strong line-up of feature films, a remarkable selection of shorts from up-and-coming South African filmmakers is on offer.

We are also proud to co-present, in partnership with the Goethe-Institut, a collection of films dealing with the fall of the Berlin wall, to mark the 20th anniversary of the event.

We are particularly enthused by our two Iranian films, which expose the underlying tensions in a society undergoing tumultuous events characterised by the interface of religion, modernity and democracy. The compelling stories of activists from Burma, Ecuador, Palestine, Nepal, Mexico, Argentina, Kenya, Rwanda and South Africa shine with hope and light in a much-needed time.

Enjoy the festival and bear in mind that we make the selection available for outreach screenings on request. If you would like to arrange a screening through your organisation or network, please contact us.

Rehad Desai, Zivia Desai Keiper, Karam Singh, Cliff Roach, Arya Lalloo, Joan Legalamitlwa, Anita Khanna, Rehana Roach, Darryl Els, Mohau Memeza.

Festival highlights The Tri Continental Film Festival 2009 brings you:

• A record-breaking 50 screenings and discussions with local and international visiting filmmakers;
• A fine collection of South African and international short films;
• The outstanding and critically acclaimed South African dramatic feature films My Secret Sky, Shirley Adams and Skin;
• Two new screening venues: Ster Kinekor at Maponya Mall and Cinema Nouveau Bedford Square;
• A collection of films about the German Democratic Republic, hosted in conjunction with the Goethe-Institut, to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall;
• A line-up of powerful local and international documentaries guaranteed to spark debate and provide critical insight into issues ranging from national revolutions to the revolutionary power of music; and
• The second biennial People to People International Documentary Conference.