Not In Kansas Anymore

The fourth Beijing International Film Festival （BJIFF） kicks off this April. A young festival， BJIFF is rising amongst over 3，000 similar events globally. After previous festivals attracted appearances from the likes of James Cameron， Luc Besson， and Keanu Reeves， this year’s guest list is headlined by Gravity director Alfonson Cuarón， Oscarwinning director Oliver Stone， and MPAA （Motion Picture Association of America） president Christopher Dodd. Other high-profile names who have confirmed attendance include Paramount COO Frederick Huntsberry and Frozen producer Peter Del Vecho （along with Frozen’s visual effects specialists）， in addition to scores of other Hollywood professionals.

From its inception， the organizing committee endeavored to establish BJIFF according to international standards – a high-end cultural event featuring Chinese characteristics and Beijing flavor. In 2011， BJIFF invited 21 chairmen of international festivals， three from top-five international film festivals and eight from other highlyrespected festivals. Its caliber of judges testifies to BJIFF’s rivalry with other important international festivals. “The rise of Beijing International Film Festival can provide a better platform for cooperation between Asian filmmakers，” exclaimed Lee Yong-Kwan， chairman of Pusan International Film Festival.

In 2012， BJIFF invited 4，000 guests and attracted 640 organizations from the film industry， facilitating trade of 5.27 billion yuan. At the event， 260 films were screened， attracting thousands of spectators. Goals of “world class” and “professional operation” were secrets for the rapid growth of the festival. Borrowing experience from globally renowned film festivals， BJIFF adopted market-oriented operation approach， attracting both private and governmental funds to invigorate the festival.

Four basic indices appraise a film festival’s influence， namely stars， prizes， topics and services. In 2013， along with primary activities such as screenings and forums， the highlight of the 3rd BJIFF was a competition section with ten “Tiantan Awards.” Three top film festivals， Cannes， Berlin and Venice， all have uniquely influential prizes， a core element of a festival’s competitiveness.

The Tiantan embodies the cultural advocacy of the festival. The core value of the Tiantan Award is “Beauty in Variety， Harmony in Diversity，” showing respect for cultural diversity and promotion of cultural exchange. “If a film endeavors for worldwide popularity， its content and ideas should be based on common human feelings and convey universal human values，” noted Hawk Koch， President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. “The story can happen in China， Africa， South America， or U.S.， it doesn’t matter. The audience can see themselves in the characters of the film.” The universal acceptance standard also fits the values of an exceptional film festival.

Scheduled to begin April 16， the 4th BJIFF issued two posters for the first time. The first poster is called Stage of Dreams， inspired by the festival aim to “Share the Screen， Shape the Future”.The second poster， known as On the Hopeful Field， was inspired by the Tiantan Awards’ core value of “Beauty in Variety， Harmony in Diversity”. The event will continue to include seven major activities including the Tiantan Awards， Opening Ceremony， Beijing Film Panorama， Film Magic？Beijing Forum， Beijing Film Market， The Best In Wo？Film Carnival， and Closing Awards Ceremony.

World-renowned director John Woo is President of the International Jury， and the six other members are Andrés Vicente Gómez， one of the most respected producers in Europe， Irish director， writer and producer Jim Sheridan， Chinese director， writer and executive producer Lu Chuan， Italian actress Maria Grazia Cucinotta， French director， writer and producer Philippe Muyl， and Indian director and writer Rajkumar Hirani.

An advisory committee will be added to the 4th BJIFF， composed of social celebrities， famous filmmakers， event planners and marketing experts. The committee will be responsible for evaluating the festival’s planning， promotion， integrating Beijing’s film and TV resources and providing guidance for the festival’s specific projects. In addition， the three sessions of the “Film Magic？Beijing Forum” will be enhanced by invitations to famous filmmakers from home and abroad to discuss film industry development.

The audience favorite in past events， The Best In Wo？Film Carnival will be held at two venues and include large-scale filmthemed activities and comprehensive cultural and entertainment activities to create singular social effects.

15 Films Short-listed for 2014 Tiantan Awards

By the deadline on December 31， 2013， 837 films from 88 countries across six continents had been submitted to the Organizing Committee of the 4th BJIFF to compete for the Tiantan Awards. After three rounds of selections， only 15 of the 837 entries advanced to the Competition Section.

The French film A Promise， directed by Patrice Leconte， revolves around love， a universal human theme， with a plot reminiscent of Jane Eyre. Against a harsh war-torn backdrop， a hero and heroine separated by social classes remain committed to each other and ultimately tie the knot.

Another French film， Attila Marcel， was directed by Sylvain Chomet. Paul witnessed his parents’ death at a young age， suffered amnesia， and had never uttered a word since. Eventually， an herbal tea helps retrieve his memories.

The film Carmen from Romanian director Doru Nitescu depicts a mother named Mariana who does everything she can to save her ailing daughter. Carmen is flavored with aggressive shots that typify the latest filmmaking style. The film took the Five Continents Prize at the Nordic Film Festival and was nominated at the Sarajevo Film Festival in 2014.

The Serbian film Circles is based on a true story： Twelve years after soldier Marc’s mysterious death in the War in Bosnia， the wounds of war remain open， affecting both attackers and victims. Circles is director Srdan Golubovic’s follow-up to soul-stirring The Trap， which was dubbed “Black Wave” in Serbia. It won the Humanitarian Award at the Berlin International Film Festival and the Feature Film Jury Award at Sundance.

Hope， directed by the South Korean Lee Jun-ik， tells the story of tremendous physical and psychological torment in the wake of rape. Thanks to support from her family and tangential members of society， victim So-won manages to braces herself for the rest of her life. The film fetched Awards for Best Drama， Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress at the 34th Blue Dragon Film Festival.

Singaporean film Ilo Ilo portrays a story between a little boy and a housemaid. It is Anthony Chen’s feature debut which won the Camera d’Or at the 66th Cannes Film Festival， Best New Director Award at the 57th London Film Festival， and Golden Horse Award for Best Drama， Best New Director， Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Screenplay.

In Bloom depicts two teenage girls’ romantic choices and relationships with families and friends. Warmly received by spectators in its native Georgia， In Bloom has been screened at a variety of film festivals in Italy， Brazil， France， Germany and Japan， and won the Best New Director Award at Los Angeles and Hong Kong International Film Festivals.

Matterhorn from the Netherlands tells the story of two middle-aged men fighting loneliness. By chance， a widower stuck in an incredibly boring routine meets a mentally impaired vagrant. They are totally silent to each other at first， but sparks of a blossoming new relationship soon appear. They pass the days with each other’s company and become inseparable. Director Diederik Ebbinge’s previous film has dazzled film festivals in Russia， Canada， Brazil， the Netherlands， Spain， and elsewhere.

Siddharth was jointly produced by India and Canada. It tells the story of Mahendra， a zipper repairman， who travels across India searching for his 12-year-old son， the title character， despite the fact he has few ideas about where to look. Directed by Canadian Richie Mehta， the film stars Tannishtha Chatterjee， a famous Asian actress.

My Enemy Within from Greece is a story of a tough moral choice. Presented with realistic and suspenseful style， the film was directed by Yorgos Tsemberopoulos. He has excelled as director， actor， producer， as well as writer. Star Manolis Mavromatakis is quite influential in Greece.

The Rocket from Australia features the story of Ahlo， a boy believed to be cursed omen of bad luck who ultimately defeats his fate through wisdom and courage. The Rocket was helmed by Kim Mordaunt， a representative global new-generation director. It was nominated for Best Debut Feature at the 63rd Berlin Film Festival and the Flash Forward Award at the 18th Pusan International Film Festival.

Third Person from Belgium depicts three individual love stories in Rome， New York， and Paris， respectively， from the perspective of a writer. Directed by Paul Haggis， the film stars Liam Neeson， Adrien Brody， the Oscars’ youngest Best Actor winner， and Olivia Wilde.

Zoran， My Nephew the Idiot， the fruit of cooperation between Italy and Slovenia and the direction of Matteo Oleotto， was tremendously successful at the Venice Film Festival， taking the Award of the Venice International Film Critics Week 2013. Its star， Giuseppe Battiston， is well-known in Italy after appearing in nearly 40 films.

The Grandmaster is being screened after eight years of Hong Kong director Wong Karwai’s work. Set in the 1930s and depicting Yip Man， considered the godfather of modern Chinese martial arts， the film recounts a complicated story of combat masters of the North and South， their mutual recognition and appreciation， and intertwined experiences. Lead actor Tony Leung Chiu-Wai is a five-time Best Actor at the Hong Kong Film Awards and three-time winner of the Golden Horse Award of Taiwan， setting records for both.

American Dreams in China， directed by Peter Chan， tells an inspiring story of three young men who meet at school， develop strong ties over the years， chase a shared dream of running an English training school and ultimately achieve their dreams. Peter Chan is a well-renowned Chinese director and producer who has won the Golden Rooster Award， the Hong Kong Film Award， and the Golden Horse Award of Taiwan.