First gov’t-organized short film festival to take place next month

MISFF organizers with 10 local filmmakers

The Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) revealed plans yesterday for the first-ever government-organized International Short Film festival, scheduled to take place between Mar. 23 and Mar. 30.

Despite sharing the same name, the event is unrelated to the Macao International Short Film Festival organized for the past decade by Creative Macau – Center for Creative Industries.

Sponsored by the Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG), the new short film festival aims “to create an international short film exchange and exhibition platform and to promote Macau’s film and TV shows to the world,” IC president Deland Leong said in her opening speech. She added that the festival also “aims to boost exchanges between local and international film and TV professionals, introduce a diverse range of international and Asian films to audiences and showcase the diversity and vitality of short films in the hope of inspiring and connecting global filmmakers and audiences.”

Questioned by the media about the relation between the two short film festivals, Leong clarified that they were unrelated and had different goals. “Our goal is a little bit different as we hope that through this festival, we can dynamize and facilitate exchange between the professionals of this field and give them opportunities to take their local productions to international stages.”

She gave assurances that the decision to create this new festival was not due to dissatisfaction with Creative Macau’s efforts, which she emphasized the government is pleased with.

She expressed the hope that the Macao International Shorts Film Festival, using short films as a medium, will become a global exchange platform for film creations. She noted that the IC intends to leverage different mechanisms to assist the film and TV industry to introduce more local productions to the world.

Organizing Committee led by Gaia Furrer

Gaia Furrer, an Italian film producer, will lead the organizing committee and oversee festival decisions and the competition. Furrer has also been working at Venice Days (Venice Film Festival’s sidebar) as a programmer and Head of Programming since its inception.

The committee also includes Jason Anderson, the short film curator of the Toronto International Film Festival; Shen Yang, a mainland curator and film producer; and Thai actress Aokbab Chutimon.

The festival will also include the two programmers: Hong Kong actress and singer Winnie Lau, and the experienced Asian Festivals programmer Giovanna Fulvi.

To stay or not to stay

The president of IC noted in her opening speech that the festival aims to “gradually become an exchange platform for the world’s film creations.” However, when questioned by the media, she said that the decision to make the event recurring is yet to be confirmed.

“This is just the first edition. We hope that it will continue in the future but we don’t know yet if this will happen,” she said. “Only after this edition is concluded and we evaluate the outcomes can we decide if we will continue to organize it in the future or not, and also if it will continue to be presented in March.”

For the time being, this year’s festival will have a total budget of 9.4 million patacas, which will include prize money for the winner and runners-up of the short film competition.

Four categories

This edition will be divided into four different categories, including: Macau Shorts, New Voices from Horizon, Director in Focus, and Special Screenings.

The first two categories are considered to be the main categories in the competition. The films will be judged by cinema professionals from mainland, Southeast Asia, Portugal, other European countries and America. The IC noted that there will be awards for the Best Short Film, Best Technical Contribution, Best Director, Innovative Narrative Award, and Best Short from Macau.

The winner of the Best Short from Macau category will receive 40,000 patacas in prize money.

Within the Director in Focus category, the festival will present several shorts and feature-length films authored by the Japanese film director Shunji Iwai.

For the Special Screenings, the IC will showcase films selected for their “exceptional art, innovation or profound sociocultural understanding” to enrich the program.

The festival also includes a series of workshops from Mar. 25 to 28.

Screenings e-Awards Ceremony

From Mar. 23, the short films will be screened at both the Cinematheque Passion and at Galaxy Macau Cinemas. The final closing and award presentation ceremony will take place at the Galaxy International Convention Center on Mar. 29.

Tickets for all screenings will go on sale from Mar. 10 through the Macau Ticketing network. Program details can be found at the website (www.macaoisff.com).

Committee to decide all matters related to the films

The organizing committee of the first Macao International Short Film Festival, led by Gaia Furrer, will be in charge of all decisions and procedures regarding the films, the president of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), Deland Leong said in response to an inquiry from the Times.

Addressing questions on the criteria for film selection and any guidelines (or restrictions) on topics or themes, Leong said that the IC and government’s role was to decide the four categories included in this year’s festival. All other matters are under the purview of the organizing committee contracted by the bureau.

Leong did not address the question on the criteria or requirements leading to the selection of the 10 local short films that will be presented in the competition for the Best Shorts from Macau.

The films in the running for the awards include “Before the Flight” by Kiwi Chan, “Bubble” by Ellen Wong, “Sea” by Johnson Chan, “Step by Step” by Chiang Kun Ieong, “Till the End of the World” by Emily Chan, “The Best Gift Ever” by Hao Chit, “The Melancholy of Gods” by Lei Cheok Mei, “Unearthed Memory” by Ho Kueng Lon, “Unsettled” by Ho Cheok Pan, and “A Beautiful Journey: Documentary of Na Tcha Customs and Beliefs” by U Chi Wan.

The winners will be announced on Mar. 29 in a ceremony at the Galaxy International Convention Center.  RM