Special crop of int’l films premieres in Manila

BRAZIL is represented by Rosario Boyer’s “The Sharks of Copacabana”

Masterpieces from Brazil, Ecuador, Iran, Spain, Turkey and the Philippines are competing at the first-ever 2014 World Premieres Film Festival (WPFF), which opens today, Sunday.

Spain fielded three movies: “Crustaceo” by Vicente Perez Herrero, “New York Shadows” by Juan Pinzas and “Autopsy of Love” by Arturo Prins. Brazil is represented by Rosario Boyer’s “The Sharks of Copacabana” while Ecuador, by Alfredo León León’s “Mono Con Gallinas.”

Also participating are F. Serkan Acar and Yilmaz Okumus’ “Our Hodja” from Turkey and Reza Azamian’s “Romantic Nostalgia” from Iran. Multi-awarded Filipino filmmaker Lav Diaz represents the country with his drama “Mula sa Kung Ano ang Noon (From What is Before).”

AWARDED Filipino filmmaker Lav Diaz competes with “Mula sa Kung Ano ang Noon.”

Films entered in the Main Competition section should not have been screened anywhere else prior to the festival. At stake are trophies for Grand Festival Prize, Grand Jury Prize and Special Jury Prize, as well as awards for Best Performance by an Actor and Actress, Best Artistic Contribution, Technical Grand Prize and Best Ensemble Performance.

Also in the lineup are films in the Parallel section (noncompetition), with over 30 films categorized under “Cine Verde” (nine films), “Out of Competition” (two films), “Asean Skies” (eight films), “Euroview” (six films) and “Ibero America” (six films) and “South Africa Special Features” (two films).

The festival opens tonight, with the eight competing filmmakers, as well as ambassadors and other dignitaries, attending the red-carpet ceremony at One Esplanade in Pasay City. The awards and closing ceremony will be held at the nearby SM Mall of Asia on July 2 at 7 p.m.

“This is the chance for Filipinos all over to catch the special crop of international films premiering in the country, and experience the culture of 27 countries, all through the shared love of cinema,” said Briccio Santos, chair of the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), which organized the event.

“AUTOPSY of Love,” by Arturo Prins, is from Spain

The films will be screened from July 2 to 8 in all SM Cinemas in Metro Manila.

The WPFF coincides with the FDCP-initiated 3rd International Film Conference (IFC), which opened on Friday. The event was attended by international and local film industry leaders and experts who sat down and discussed “new technology, linkages with global film commission networks, modern trends in filmmaking and other topics relevant to members of the film industry,” Santos reported.

This year, the convention carries the theme, “Towards Global Connections: Asean, Ibero-America and Film Funding from Europe.” Santos said the participants engaged in “intercultural filmmaking collaboration and exchanges.”

Susana de la Sierra, director general of the Spanish Film Institute (Instituto de la Cinematografia y de las Artes Audiovisuales or ICAA) was the first speaker. This was followed by a presentation from Syamsul Lussa, adviser to the Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy of Indonesia.

Julien Ezanno of the French corporation Centre National du Cinema et de L’Image Animee (CNC) concluded the conference with a module on international coproduction framework and programs.

“We are confident that this conference will bring new knowledge and opportunities to our filmmakers and film enthusiasts, including those in the groves of academe who are nurturing our young filmmakers to be the next generation of film leaders in the Asean region,” Santos announced.

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ALFREDO León León’s “Mono Con Gallinas,” from Ecuador