Christoffer Boe's Offscreen andDiego Lerman's Mientras Tanto are among the films that willscreen in Venice's Director's Fortnight,known as Venice Days.

Offscreen is the third feature fromDanish director Boe, after his acclaimed Reconstruction and Allegro, which screened in the section last year. Produced by Alphaville Pictures, Offscreen focuses on an actor,played by Nicolas Bro, who decides to film everything going on in his own life,including marital crises.

VeniceDays artistic director Fabio Ferzetti pointed outthat the main theme that has emerged from this year's selection is the loss ofpersonal and collective identity, and people yearning for a new beginning,often in a different country.

Filmsfocusing on migration include Reves de poussiere by Laurent Salgues,set in the gold mines of Burkina Faso, as well as Italiandirector Marina Spada's Come L'Ombra, about Russian immigrants inMilan. The Italian film has also been selected by theToronto Film Festival.

Spanish-languagefilms will get a strong showing in the section.

Ferzetti, who has replaced Giorgio Gosetti, said the four Hispanic films in the sidebarunderline both the strength of the current market for Spanish-language filmsand the creativity of upcoming directors.

Argentinedirector Diego Lerman's Mientras Tanto, sold by Pyramide,is a follow-up to his debut, Tan de Repente, which won Locarno's Silver Leopard in 2003. Thenew film follows half a dozen characters in the grips of desperation,uncertainty or love in Buenos Aires.

GianfrancoQuattrini's Chicha Tu Madre is about a Peruvian taxi driver who dreams oflife in Argentina.

Madrid-bornDaniel Sanchez Arevalo's debut, Azul Oscuro Casi Negro,is about a young man whose brother is in prison, whose father is disabled, andwho dreams of a better life. The film is sold by Sogepaq.

FilmDistribution has world-wide rights to Jorge Sanchez Cabezudo'sdebut, La NocheDe Los Girasoles, a film noir set in amountainous region of Spain.

Alsoscreening in Directors' Fortnight is Moroccan black comedy www.what a wonderful world by Faouzi Bensaidi,whose film Mille Moiswon the Premier Regard award in Cannes in 2003. This is about awoman police officer who is afraid of being overly macho, a talented cleaninglady and a murderer who is in love.

Venicewill also pay tribute to reporter-documentarian Christophe de Ponfilly, who diedin May, with a special screening of his first fictional feature, L'Etoile Du Soldat, about a Russiansoldier captured by the Afghans in 1984 and the relationship he develops withhis captors.

Organizerssaid they expect to announce another film in Directors' Fortnight in the comingweeks.

Meanwhile,Ferzetti also unveiled Venice Days' project torecover 100 Italian film classics made between 1945 and 1975, which represent Italy's modern history but arerarely screened due to the prohibitive cost of rights.

Theproject, whose full details will be announced during the festival, is sponsoredby the Biennale, Italy's critics association, Turin's National cinema museumand the National Cinematheque.

Directors'Fortnight line-up:

www, what a wonderful world, dir: Faouzi Bensaïdi (Morocco/France)

Offscreen,dir: Christoffer Boe (Denmark)

Khadak, dir: Peter Brosens and Jessica Woodworth (Belgium/Germany/Holland)

Falkenberg Farewell, dir: Jesper Ganslandt(Sweden/Denmark)

Sept Ans, dir: Jean-Pascal Hattu (France)

Mientras Tanto, dir: Diego Lerman(Argentina/France)

Reves De Poussiere, dir: Laurent Salgues (Burkina Faso/Canada/France)

Azul Oscuro Casi Negro, dir: Daniel Sanchez Arevalo (Spain)

La NocheDe Los Girasoles (Angosto), dir: Jorge Sanchez Cabezudo

(Spain/France/Portugal)

Come L'Ombra, dir: Marina Spada (Italy)

SpecialScreenings:

L'Etoile du Soldat, dir: Christophede Ponfilly (France/Germany/Afghanistan)

Chichu Tu Madre, dir: Gianfranco Quattrini(Peru/Argentina)