Diverse Film Festivals across Continents

Yong Jo Leen,

Correspondent (Film)

 

Film festivals are excellent venues for film promotion, networking with those in the industry as well as expanding knowledge on films. Especially, if the films screened are not widely available. Film festivals are usually held in a city or region, depending on its focus. This article provides a summary of several international film festivals across continents in the world in particular Asia, North America, Central America, Africa, Europe and Australia.

Asia

Ten years ago, the Freedom Film Fest (FFF) was established in Malaysia.  Members include states around Malaysia like Perak, Johor and Selangor. Its tagline ‘Dare to Document’ speaks of the kind of films the FFF show, that is, documentary.      The Freedom Film Fest is held annually with a focus on human rights issues and follows closely the themes contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Organised by Pusat KOMAS, some of the goals of the FFF include (1) allowing filmmakers and activists to promote films concerning human rights and advocate their causes (2) encouraging the Malaysian public to document and make films using the audio-visual medium.

Some of the themes of documentaries shown are freedom of expression and gender equality. Some of the deserving films were screened in London in 2010.  The upcoming Freedom Film Fest will be held from 7 December to 15 December 2013.

 

North America

One of the notable film festivals in the continent is Sundance Film Festival. The Film Fest is a platform to showcase independent film. It is held annually in January in Park City, Utah. Other than showcasing American films, the festival also screens international dramatic films as well as documentary films. The festival also includes feature films and short films.

Independent filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino and Darren Aranofsky achieved their big break here. It is managed by the Sundance Institute.

Central America

The Cuba Havana Film Festival is one of the oldest film festivals in the Caribbean. It was established in 1979. Its aim is to uphold the Latin American and Caribbean identity through film. The genres of film screened include animation, documentary and fiction.

Last year the festival showcased about 600 films from over 40 countries. The next festival will be held on December 3-13 2013.

Africa 

The Pan-African Film Fest was established in 1992. Its aims are to promote cultural and racial tolerance and understanding through the exhibition of film, art and creative expression. It features Black artists from almost every continent. Some of the films which bagged awards were Stones in the Sun and Our Rhineland. While the former clinched ‘Best Feature Narrative’ the latter grabbed ‘Best Narrative Short’.

 

Europe

One of the film festivals I found interesting was LUCAS. An international film fest, it is held in Frankfurt, Germany. Its focus is on children and youth films where they have categories such as short film, long film and row for minis. This year, the festival was held in September. It is managed and organised by German Filminstitut.

Australia

Tropfest is known as the largest film festival held in Sydney. Other than that, it is also a cultural and iconic event. It has contributed to Australia’s film industry as it presents opportunities to talented filmmakers through its blend of events and initiatives. Every year there is a certain theme known as the Tropfest Signature Item (TSI). This year’s theme is ‘CHANGE’. It is attended by Australian film stars and Sydneysiders. Held outdoors, it is also a public and free-of-charge event. Film entries are accepted from all over the world.

To sum up, there are many kinds of film festivals held all over the world. They are good opportunities for filmmakers to showcase their talents and discuss films. The audience could also learn and pick up something valuable from attending film festivals.

Image Courtesy: By Barnaby Dorfman from Seattle, WA, USA (reduced version of IMG_0996) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons