The conference on the new Drake International Film Festival at the Italian pavilion started, as all real Italian conferences should, about forty-five minutes late. That’s not to say, however, that the press members in attendance were not entertained. On the contrary, representatives from the festival, including the president, Francesco De Lorenzo himself, sat around the small pavilion area with the attendees, answering questions about the brochures covered in beautiful pictur...

Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) announced today that DIFF will be hosting the amfAR Cinema Against AIDS Event to be presented during the Fourth edition of the film festival which takes place December 9-16th, 2007. The Dubai International Film Festival was founded on the unique theme ‘Bridging Cultures. Meeting Minds.’ launched in 2004 using the powerful medium of film to serve as a platform for inter-cultural dialogue.   The association with amfAR offers the opportunity to extend ...

Against the background of the new audiovisual legislation adopted by the European Commission on 24 May which will extend the advantages of the "Television without Frontiers" Directive to video and video-on-demand (giving European works more exposure on new media and generating new revenue for film-making), the fifth Europe Day will be held in Cannes under the sponsorship of Brazilian director Walter Salles on the subject "Film-making in Europe: the new rules of the game". In ...

Mexican director Carlos Reygadas's career is an integral part of the history of the Cannes Festival. In 2002, his first film, Japan, was featured by Directors' Fortnight. Three years later, Battle in Heaven, his second feature-length film, was selected in Competition. This year, Reygadas is again competing for the Golden Palm, with Silent Light, his third film. It is an exploration of the community of the Mennonites, a religious sect with a large settlement in northern Mexico. The Mennon...

With the in-Competition presentation of Death Proof – A Grindhouse Film, the Cannes Festival is reunited with one of its most loyal directors, none other than Quentin Tarantino. After bursting onto the scene in 1992 with Reservoir Dogs, winning the Golden Palm for Pulp Fiction two years later, and then presenting his Kill Bill – Volume 2 here in 2004, the very year when he officiated as President of the Jury, this year the American filmmaker is traveling with some especially original reels i...

Le dernier film de Michael Moore est un documentaire qui nous présente le système de santé aux Etats-Unis.  On se rend compte que malgré leur statut de puissance les gens ne peuvent pas avoir un accès correct à la santé. « La sécurité sociale » comme est appelé en France  est privée pour les américains. Nonobstant, les assurances utilisent n’importe quel prétexte pour ne pas donner les soins dont les malades ont besoin. Le film enquête pourquoi des pays comme Canada, Roya...

                One of the shortest films in the short film corner, at only four minutes long, “French Lesson” relies entirely on an almost music video-esque quality to propel its narrative. The story of the film, which was directed by Nic Osborne, is based upon the familiar idea of boredom in the classroom. Utilizing the well-known metaphors of black and white versus color à la Wizard of Oz to show the audience the change in mood, the film follows Lolita during the Alizée s...

Magnus, premier film du réalisateur Kadri Kõusaar  est une histoire extrêmement  touchant qui montre avec subtilité le portrait une société au bord de l’abîme. Pour cela le réalisateur utilise l’histoire d’un  jeune homme qui a toujours manqué d’amour et qui rapidement perd l’envie de vivre.  Les images d’une grande  plasticité décrivent le désespoir qui règne dans un pays  comme l’Estonie. Les couleurs très fades de la nature et du décor, les plans flous, la l...

At a press conference for German Film Music yesterday, May 21st, "Sony/ATV Music Publishing (Germany) and Soundtrack_Cologne, the Cologne convention on music in film and the media, announced a far-reaching collaboration in the field of talent scouting."As part of a first-look agreement the winners of NEW SOUNDS IN EUROPEAN FILM, SoundTrack_Cologne’s European competition, will, among others, get the chance to be signed up for a publishing contract with Sony/ATV. For this purpose both...