Fantasporto

• View
• Edit

IT'S TIME FOR CINEMA... IN RIVOLI

from February 21 to March 6

Get ready because the big party of cinema is about to begin! In only 5 days the Rivoli Theatre will open its doors to Pre-Fantasporto, for what will be another deluxe edition where the cinema becomes the unifier of culture and arts. The painting, sculpture, music, literature and multimedia shows will enliven the varied spaces of the festival in a true forum, where the film plays the main role. Newsworthy are the official guests, also the jury members that will have the difficult task of awarding prizes, as well as the Committee of Honor which includes the most prominent personalities of the Portuguese society. Although the cinema continues to be in highlight of the 31st edition of the International Film Festival of Porto with all the atmosphere and glamour proper to the Seventh Art, there are many other details to draw the attention to.

PROGRAM ARTS AND CINEMA

This year it is the turn of Fine Arts to occupy a place of honor. The most renowned Portuguese artists will be present, such as Júlio Resende and José Rodrigues among many others. Around twenty of the top artists are involved in the project. Through debate sessions on the state of art in Portugal, live painting classes and workshops; through painting and sculpture exhibition that will enliven the lobbies of the Rivoli Theatre and the screening of 17 films produced expressly for Fantasporto in a close collaboration with the University of Porto, the Faculty of Fine Arts as well as the Portuguese Catholic University, the festival once again provides an encounter of cinema and the arts.

A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE OF INTERACTIVITY

A unique show and an unforgettable multimedia experience is proposed by "Suferrosa" from the Polish director Dawid Marcinkowski. Interactive cinema session where viewers are asked to decide the plot of a movie they are currently viewing and the director assures real time and live editing. Different audiences decide various narratives, so each session can give a totally different movie. A satire on the cult of beauty and youth in western society, cocktail of cinema, music and literature, this is a truly unconfined film! Inspired by works like "Alphaville" by Jean Luc Godard, "The Manuscript Found in Saragossa" W.J. Has, by the tradition of American "film noir" and French writer Vernon Sullivan, the alter ego of Boris Vian, "Sufferrosa" tells the story of a detective, named Ivan Johnson, who is hired to find a missing woman.

COMMITTEE OF HONOR 2011

If the prestige of a cultural event could be measured taking into account the persons who agree to make part of its Committee of Honour, then Fantasporto definitely would occupy a top position. The most prestigious Portuguese personalities from the national and local governments, as well as politicians of all parties represented in Parliament and figures of the business and cultural life of the country have shown us their consideration and accepted to be part of the Committee of Honor.

Presiding over the committee is the newly re-elected Head of State, President Anibal Cavaco Silva. Among the members are the Prime Minister, Jose Socrates, and the Minister of Culture, Gabriela Canavilhas, together with almost all the rest of the Cabinet; also the Mayors of the Cities of Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia and Matosinhos; Presidents of the main political parties - Pedro Passos Coelho (PSD), Paulo Portas (CDS/PP), Jerónimo de Sousa (PCP), and Francisco Louçã (BE). As to the highest representatives from the film and tourism industries, Fantasporto will be honored with the presence of Louis Patrão from the Institute of Tourism, José Pedro Ribeiro from Institute of Cinema and Ausiovisuals and Maria João Seixas from the Portuguese Cinematheque.

GUESTS AND JURY MEMBERS

In a festival that is like a true party, the invited guests can become a major focus of interest to the audience and also film critics. Interacting directly with the creators of movies is always a special occasion and Fantasporto highly praises this opportunity.

To present their own films or in the category of judges, the city of Porto will host big names of the industry as members of the jury of Fantasporto. The Week of Directors, for example, will have the presence of Mick Garris, writer of "Miracle on 8th Street" and one of the most prolific filmmakers in the genre of fantastic, together with the singer, actress and director Maria de Medeiros, who is always one of the main media attractions, and the French director Stefan Le Lay, winner of Best Short Film Award at Fantasporto 2010 with his "La Carte".

The jury of the Official Section of Fantastic Film has confirmed the presence of the Portuguese filmmaker Tiago Guedes, co-author of "Coisa Ruim", the first Portuguese film to open an edition of Fantasporto. Another prominent member is Julian Grant, director of the saga "Robocop: Prime Directives" who returns to Fantasporto in the capacity of a judge and also as the director of a special tribute to gore films that will have its world premiere here at Fantas.

The Jury of the Orient Express Section will consist of the producer Xosé Carlos Fernandez (Spain), the German distributor Stephan Weiz and the journalist François Casales (Belgium).

To preside over the jury that will grant the two newly created awards dedicated to the Portuguese Cinema, Fantasporto has invited the director and professor Jorge Campos. This board will have the delicate task of assigning the Portuguese Film Award - for Portuguese films or the ones made in co-production with Portugal, present in this edition and dated with 2010 (short or feature films), and also the Young Filmmaker Award for Portuguese films of 2010 whose director, a Portuguese national, is not older than 30 years (long or short films).

From the long list of guests who will present their works and mingle with the audience and the media, special focus on the controversial Srdjan Spasojevic, who will talk about the problems of censorship that his shocking "The Serbian Film" has been dealing with worldwide.

Other already confirmed presences are the ones of Frederique Bél, French actress from "The Russian Dolls" or "A Very Long Engagement Sunday" and the brand new "The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec" and "Red Nights"; the German actor Christian Berkel ("Inglorious Basterds", "Valkyrie" and "The Downfall - Hitler and the End of the Third Reich" and "The Lost Employee"); José Luis Aleman, director of "La Herencia Valdemar II: La Sombra Prohibida", and also Miguel Angel Vivas, co-winner of Fantas for the film "I'll See You in My Dreams".
Bruno Chatelin co founder of filmfestivals.com and fest21.com and producer www.emotionfilmfactory.com and sales agent www.majorbuzzfactory.com will also be attending and feeding Fantasporto dailies.

SPECIAL CONFERENCE

The editor of the prestigious "International Film Guide", Ian Haydn Smith, and Dale Martin, a representative of the magazine "Variety", will discuss the Portuguese Cinema as seen from the outside, in a conference entitled "The International Film Scene -How Portuguese Cinema Can Become More Competitive". Working language - English.

IN TIMES OF CRISIS SPARE EVERYWHERE BUT ON QUALITY

At a time when crisis is the main subject of many conversations, it is natural that the question of funding is one of the most appealing to the media.

It took several adjustments to the budget of the festival, given the unavailability of many companies that were contacted to collaborate with. And although we had our first application accepted by the Media Programme of the European Union, they reduced significantly the official funds on which the event was counting on. The general structure was kept intact, as well as the international disclosure, the protocols with festivals throughout the world and the presence of guests over the period in which Fantasporto occurs.

In essence, the show goes on and we were even able to magnify it with the production of new films and two new awards. With the Sponsorship of the Ministry of Culture, via ICA and Municipality of Porto, of the European Union via the MEDIA Programme, of the Ministry of Economy via the Tourism of Portugal, with SuperBock as the main sponsor and also the support of ZON we were enabled to maintain the financial equilibrium of the event and keep its brand intact.

the 31st edition of FANTASPORTO has, as usual, two distinct partitions, the first between February 21 and 24 - called Pre-Fantas and the second, the Festival itself, which officially opens its doors on February 25, ending on March 6 with the display of the award winning films. This year Fantas is back again at the Rivoli Municipal Theatre, having exclusive use of auditoriums, and will have the traditional farewell party, the Vampires Ball, on the Carnival Saturday, March 5, at Teatro Sá da Bandeira.

One final note goes for the Nights of Rivoli, a special program prepared by the Cinema Novo CRL, at the invitation of the Municipality of Porto. In order to re-accustom the audience with this cultural landmark and ex-libris of the city which the Rivoli Theatre definitely is, two artistic programs were created: one with music and other with humor shows, all with Portuguese artists. The initiative has achieved the outlined goals. Rivoli has been returned to the city, attracting different types of public, different age groups and demonstrating the interest in Portuguese artists. The financial result pays off by a balance in the accounts, as for the artistic result one can surely consider it being of high quality, taking into account the exceptional performances that were offered to the population.

Internet Addresses: http://www.fantasporto.com 

February 21st till March 6th 2011 / 21 de Fevereiro a 6 de Março de 2010