Festival with the right message

Following the World Cinema showcase, the Human Rights Film Festival tours the country with a host of international films and documentaries examining this year's theme of freedom.

From homeless football players to naked disabled people, each of the films explores how individuals and communities fight to make the world a better place - whether successful or not.

Launching in Wellington on May 7, the festival will screen at Auckland's Rialto Cinemas in Newmarket from May 14 to 22.

New Zealand director Jane Campion is one of eight directors who present their vision of the world today and how poverty affects nearly half the world's population in the film 8.

Tilda Swinton, Irvine Welsh and a group of well-known Scots come together in the film The New Ten Commandments to discuss human rights in Scotland, while Kicking It follows seven homeless men as they train to compete in the Homeless World Cup and learn that they, too, can be winners.

A host of short films will screen alongside the feature film programme, which travels to Christchurch and Dunedin later in the month.

For a full programme and to purchase tickets, see www.rialto.co.nz.