Secretary of the 35th Tehran International Short Film Festival said this global cinematic event is the most important gathering in the field of short film in Iran and in the Middle East.
Sadeq Mousavi, who is also Managing Director of Iranian Youth Cinema Society (IYCS), made the remark in a press conference attended by Arash Abbasi, the IYCS Advisor and Communications Director.
A special hall for press:
Welcoming the press at the beginning of the conference, Abbasi said this year, for the first time, a hall has been dedicated for representatives of mass media aims to render better services to them and they can watch movies in better conditions.
Vital short film festival in region
Mousavi said the event is the most important cinematic event in Iran, and without exaggeration, it is the most significant international film festival in the Middle East, adding:” that this is the opinion of all the experts and is not the viewpoint of myself alone. The Iranian Youth Cinema Society is the organizer of this festival.”
“It is not our view that the festival is just a gathering for showcasing the IYCS activities, but we believe that the event offers the best perspective on Iranian short films situation to the world.”
Attendance of 1819 Iranian youth directors in global arena
“We are enjoying the best years of short film production in Iran. During this period, I broadcasted a lot of information about Iran's international short films. A list comprising 1819 Iranian artists who have attended the international arenas have been compiled in a book titled “1819”. The names of films, the cities where the films were displayed as well as the awards presented to the movies have been mentioned in the film,” he added.
Short film backbone of Iranian cinema
Mousavi said the short film is undoubtedly the backbone of Iranian cinema, adding nowadays Iran’s cultural and artistic cinema is guided by short films.
"We are witnessing pioneer artists, young minds and different creations in the field of short film. This is our belief and we do not exaggerate it. Although we have the lowest budget in this arena."
370 int’l awards for Iranian cinema
He said: “Since the assets of filmmakers are very low, they utilize their energies in terms of creativity and this is a huge capital. This does not signify that the short films are faultless. We have a better path ahead. In the short film area, we have attended almost 2,000 international events and have snatched 370 awards.”
Submission of 5,100 films from 120 countries
He added: “This year’s approximately 5,100 films have been submitted to the festival Secretariat. These films have been watched by a group of experts. We also emphasized on significance of not having any ordinary films in the international section. As a result, 67films have been selected.”
Mousavi said: “In my view, some of these films are alike to the educational workshop. All of these movies have been produced in 2017 and 2018. At least 120 countries sent us their films. On the other hand, the level of jury is not comparable to the previous editions, their names and records also have been published.”
Short films int’l market
“For the first time, we launched an international short film market during the event and invited a large number of buyers from different TV channels and various foundations. We hope that we can provide a new economic and, of course, cultural space for Iran’s short film,” Mousavi added.
Int’l pitching sessions
Mousavi continued: “This year, we will hold the international pitching for the first time. A few months ago, we issued a call for the festival so that those who were interested to attend in this event, they submitted their plans in Persian and English and a few months ago these plans were submitted to the jury to select these people and the plans for the workshop.”
“This year, Ms. Gabrielle Brunen Meyer is in charge for training the method of defending the projects. Before holding the pitching, Meyer, who is only specialist in this field, teaches the filmmakers the method of defending the projects financially and culturally for luring investors. After these trainings are been held, we will hold the pitching ceremony,” he said.
Mousavi said: “We also have invited both the domestic and foreign investors. We also talked to the managing director of the Iran Cinema House and he said many of the investors are interested in attending in this festival this year.”
Inviting 110 foreign guests
Mousavian said: “We have invited 110 foreign guests this year, and so far more than 40 of them have come to Iran. Interestingly, among the films submitted to the festival, most films are from France and then the US. We are seeking to create a venue for cooperation between Iranian and foreign artists.”
Holding 20 scientific & expert meetings
Mousavi reiterated that “This year, Dr. Alasti is responsible for our specific workshops. Our latest workshop in the international section will be held with the presence of the best instructors and every night there will be a 35-minutes interactive communication via Skype. These sessions will be held in four areas of Formalism, Realism, Minimalism, and Experimentalism.”
Displaying films of Tampere & Estonia international festivals
He said, “There are three prestigious international festivals in the world of which Tampere is one of them. The next part is related to the screening of works of Estonia film festival and this year we have dedicated a box to Estonian films.”
Iran safest country in region
Mousavi also said that the Islamic Republic of Iran is the safest country in the Middle East, adding that: “During these years, in spite of all the efforts made by some countries to isolate Iran, we will host more than 40 foreign guests at the festival and the low-priced production in Iran have made this opportunity for many filmmakers to participate in year’s event and make investment in a joint venture.
Displaying 154 films from 30 countries
The festival aims to identify and introduce the national and international short films, as well as create a constructive competition between filmmakers.
Some 154 films from 30 countries including France, America, Egypt, India, China, the Netherlands, Canada, Cyprus, Ireland, Colombia, Australia, Spain, Switzerland, Russia, Estonia, Germany, Hong Kong, Philippines, South Korea, Tunisia, Japan, Finland, Mexico, Belgium, Czech Republic, Portugal, Brazil, Greece and Iran will be displayed during the event attended by prominent and accredited referees from different countries of the world, including, Poland, Austria, Latvia, Norway, Ireland and Iran.
The festival will be held in Tehran on November 9-13, 2018 in Mellat Cinema Complex.
Photo By: Mansour Jahani
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