Third IFFAM wants to draw younger audience

Mike Goodridge

The 3rd International Film Festival and Awards – Macao (IFFAM), which will take place from December 8 to 14 in the region, is set to be presented as a “young film festival.” This was mentioned yesterday during the press conference by the director of Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) and the president of the IFFAM Organizing Committee, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, who announced the festival and its program.

“We have put a very scrupulous effort in the production of IFFAM as a young film festival,” Fernandes said adding, “[we have] opened our ears to opinions from different circles in the last two editions and we have flexibly adjusted our program and selected a range of films to forge IFFAM into a prestigious brand in the international film industry as well as an East and West cultural exchange platform across borders and generations.”

In order to make the Festival more appealing and dedicated to the younger generations, Fernandes added, “this year, we feature ‘New Chinese Cinema’ as a new competition section to bring more Chinese-language films into the festival and enhance the lineup of outstanding films.”

Artistic Director of IFFAM, Mike Goodridge presented the program of the Festival stating, “I am very pleased with the IFFAM program this year. The whole programing team has worked tirelessly to find the right films for our unique audience in Macau,” he said, adding, “we are confident that we can build on the enthusiastic audiences we attracted last year with a mix of a heady cocktail of bold brand new cinema.”

Goodridge mentioned that among over 50 Chinese and Western films, which will be screened through various sections in IFFAM, the organizers choose to open the Festival with the movie “Green Book.” This is a film based on a true story and directed by Peter Farrelly, unfolding the tale of an African pianist and his white driver on a concert tour across the United States in the early 1960s. Rising above conflicts sparked by racial prejudice, the two build an unusual friendship beyond their differences in ethnicity and social status.

About the choice, Goodridge said, “it’s a very funny and moving film which won the Toronto International Film Festival in People’s Choice Award, which is a great indicator of its future success at the Oscars, so this is the perfect film to open the Festival.”

According to festival’s director, there will be 11 films in competition, representing 11 different countries and three continents. Goodridge is very pleased with the caliber of the films and the range and talent of the filmmakers involved.

A special award will also granted to the section of the “New Chinese Cinema” in which a special jury from Screen International (a UK-based film magazine) will pick and award the best movie in Chinese language from the Festival.

In the competition will be: “Dear Ex” (Taiwan), “Baby” (Mainland China), “Xiao Mei” (Taiwan), “Up The Mountain” (mainland China), “Fly By Night” (Malaysia) and “The Pluto Moment” (Mainland China), that will compete for the Best New Chinese-language Film of the Year.
Hong Kong film director Shu Kei, British film critic Nick James as well as Australian film critic and editor Stephanie Bunbury will be jury members for this new section in the competition.

Macau will also be represented in the Festival through several local productions, among them being the film “Empire Hotel” directed by the Portuguese Filmmaker Ivo Ferreira, starring Rhydian Vaughan, Talent Ambassador of the 1st IFFAM.

“Nobody Nose” starring Gordon Lam and the gastronomy-themed film “Aruna & Her Palate” are the two other local representatives.

The IFFAM films will be screened at the Macao Cultural Centre, the Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Centre, and the Cinematheque Passion.

Tickets are on sale from today and film fans can purchase their entries through the Macau Ticketing Network or at the screening venues.

In addition to the Festival, tickets to a masterclass featuring actor Nicolas Cage (one of the Talent Ambassadors of this year’s edition) as the keynote speaker will be opened from today.