Tuesday, 10 February----The 45th edition of the INTERNATIONAL FILM GUIDE, the definite yearbook of world cinema, had its first international exposure this wee, at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival. The Guide, again edited by film scholar Ian Haydn Smith and published by Wallflower Press, the largest independent film book publisher in the UK, was first published in 1963, and enjoys an unrivalled reputation as the most authoritative and trusted source of information on contemporary world cinema.  At a reception event, co-hosted by the Wine Country Film Festival (www.wcff.com) and the Frankfurt Book Fair, held last evening, journalists, festival representatives and other industry professionals mingled while sampling the finest vintage Mondavi wines from the Sonoma County wine district in northern California.  The International Film Guide offers comprehensive international coverage of the international film industry via its ‘World Survey' section encompassing the cinematic output and film industry trends and developments in over 120 countries, written by expert local correspondents who present critical reviews assessing features, documentaries and shorts. The cover image of the 2009 Guide is from the award-winning Israeli film WALTZ WITH BASHIR, which is not only a major arthouse film event around the world, but also represents a watershed of animation technique and international co-production prowess. Special features this year include the 5 Directors of the Year (including John Sayles, Paolo Sorrentino, Angès Varda, Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Hayao Miyazaki), a ‘Country Focus’ on the expanding Israeli Film Industry, an Industry Focus on digital distribution and a Special Report on the 2004 expansion of the European Union covering the development of cinema in the ten new member countries – Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.  

The 450-page reference book also includes detailed breakdowns of international box office statistics and film festival award-winners, plus detailed listings and descriptions of hundreds of International Film Festivals. Over 2000 copies of the Guide were distributed at the Berlinale to a diverse group of filmmakers, industry VIPs and journalists. The book launch also coincided with announcements of the sister website, www.internationalfilmguide.com, intended to provide year-round coverage of the independent and  international film scenes, and the newly minted International Film Guide Inspiration Award to be given at a host of film festival in the coming months (for information, visit: http://www.internationalfilmguide.com/p.aspx?t=text&mid=7).

Sandy Mandelberger, Berlinale Dailies Editor