Yasmine Canga-Valles

Editor (Film)

 

LONDON – Once again the BFI London Film Festival opened its doors to more than 225 features from all over the world, including 14 world premieres. After over 50 years, this festival edition attracted more than 16,000 film lovers, among whom were Kate Hudson, Michael Caine, Jane Horrocks, along with 735 Industry delegates and 660 press delegates.

The London Film Festival, according to Barry Norman, is “the only important showcase for international cinema in Britain”. It is getting to the standard of European film festivals such as Berlin, Cannes and Venice with 12 films getting in a proper competition. “It helps to position the festival more internationally,” said the festival’s new director, Clare Stewart.

For its 56th edition, the festival had a triumphal opening with the premiere of the latest Tim Burton, Frankenweenie. For the occasion, he attended the opening accompanied by his partner and actress, Helena Bonham-Carter, who closed the festival with the European premiere of Great Expectations (by acclaimed filmmaker Mike Newell, adapted by David Nicholls and starring Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes and Jeremy Irvine as Pip).

Another major episode of this year’s edition was among the 14 world premieres: Crossfire Hurricane by American director Brett Morgen (The Kid Who Stays in the Picture). The documentary might echo for some of us, Martin Scorsese’s earlier tribute to the Rolling Stones, Shine a light. Yet, Morgen’s tribute, coinciding with the Rock royalties’ 50th anniversary, focuses on their debuts showing how quickly they evolved to become one of the world most iconic music band.

It could also be noticed that this year was a sort of homage to the South American Cinema with 14 films featured and another four from Mexico. These included Cannes’ Festival 2012 acclaimed No, starring Gael Garcia Bernal and directed by Chile’s Pablo Larrain; Violeta Went to Heaven, a moving portrait of Chilean singer Violeta Parra; and The German Friend, from director Jeanine Meerapfel, showing the complex love story between a Nazi descendant and a Jewish girl in an environment marked by exile and dictatorship between Argentina and Germany.

This year’s winners were elected by Sir David Hare, playwright, film and theatre director, with fellow jurors Hong Kong film producer Nansun Shi, Argentine director Pablo Trapero, President of Jagged films and director of Crossfire Hurricane Victoria Pearman, and British actress Romola Garai.

And now that the London Film Festival is closed, we are getting ready for all the other film festivals coming up in the next months, especially the Sundance Festival in January 2013. That’s the beauty of cinema, it just keeps rolling!

 

This year’s awards:

Best film: Rust And Bone, directed by Jacques Audiard

Best British Newcomer: Sally El Hosaini – director/screenwriter My Brother The Devil

Sutherland Award: Benh Zeitlin for Beasts Of The Southern Wild

The Grierson Award For Best Documentary: Alex Gibney, director and screenwriter of  Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House Of God

BFI Fellowships: Tim Burton & Helena Bonham Carter