By CARA HUNT

cbrennen@tribunemedia.net

DAYS before the opening credits start to roll on the 12th annual Bahamas International Film Festival (BIFF), organisers of the prestigious event have announced that the opening film will be ‘Carol’ and the closing feature will be ‘Janis: Little Girl Blue’’.

Directed by Todd Haynes and based on the novel ‘The Price of Salt’ by Patrica Highsmith, Carol is set in 1950 and tells the story of a young aspiring photographer and her relationship with an older, married woman.

It stars Academy Academy award winner Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Sarah Paulson and Kyle Chandler.

Described by critics as one of the most beautiful love stories in recent times, the film has had tremendous success making the rounds of the film festival circuit, including a best actress award for Rooney Mara and a Queer Palm award for the director at the Cannes Film Festival.

Judges described it as “more than a movie” saying it was “the first time a love story between two women was treated with the respect and significance of any other mainstream cinematic romance”.

In addition to winning the best feature award at the Chicago International Film Festival, ‘Carol’ has received nominations at the British Independent Awards, the Gotham Awards and the Independent Spirit Awards. It will open the festival in Nassau on December 9.

The festival will close with ‘Janis: Little Girl Blue’ on December 12. Directed by Amy Berg and narrated by musician Cat Power, the documentary traces Janis Joplin’s evolution into a star from letters that Joplin wrote over the years to her friends, family, and collaborators.

The curtain goes back on BIFF 2015 on Tuesday, December 1 and will showcase more than 130 films from 40 different countries, including nine international premieres and 28 Caribbean premieres.

For the fourth consecutive year, BIFF goes to Harbour Island on December 1-4, showcasing ten feature and short films and hosting the Screenwriters Residency Programme. BIFF will then screen all short films in a festival-within-a-festival at Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera from December 5-8 and will also present a Master Class for Music and Film there.

The Festival then concludes in Nassau with the main programme lineup of features and documentaries, along with some select shorts, screening from December 9-12.