Le Ballon Rouge, Albert Lamorisse, 1956
by Josie Ainscough
Le Ballon Rouge is a short, beautifully made film shot in colour, which tells the story of a little boy who finds a bright red balloon tied to a lamppost. He unties it, and finds out that it has a mind of its own. The balloon follows him around, bobbling along behind him, on the bus to school, even getting him into trouble with his head teacher. A group of bullies, jealous of the boy and his friendly balloon, chase them thr...
Silver Princess Statuette (replica of the original "The Palace" statue of Ilijana, daughter of the Romanian Queen Mary of Edingburg)
The voices of this year's directors show more clearly than ever that people from all nations are bonded by the same love, loss and laughter. Whether from Africa, Asia, America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand or the Middle East we are one in our needs and emotions. Perhaps in the 21st century the hand written note has been replaced by th...
The Edinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) announced today that Sylvain Chomet's magical animated feature film THE ILLUSIONIST will be the Opening Gala at this year's Festival, which runs from 16 - 27 June 2010.
Released in the UK by Warner Bros. Pictures UK on behalf of Pathe, THE ILLUSIONIST is directed, adapted and designed by Academy Award® nominee Sylvain Chomet (THE TRIPLETS OF BELLEVILLE / BELLEVILLE RENDEZVOUS), from the original script by comedy genius and French cinema l...
By Sophie Nellis
The view of Paris from Parc de Belleville
Next stop on our tour of Paris is the area of Belleville. Straddling the 19th and 20th arrondissements, Belleville is located between Rue de Belleville, Rue des Pyrénées, Rue de Ménilmontant and Boulevard de Belleville. It is situated on and around a hill and if you make it to the Parc de Belleville there are some amazing views of the city’s skyline.
Belleville began its life as a working cla...
CELEBRATING THE BEST OF ISRAELI CINEMA June 3 – 18, 2009 The 24th Israel Film Festival, the largest showcase of Israeli films in the United States, announced today its most dynamic program since its founding. Encompassing over 30 movies, including award winning features, documentaries and student films, the Festival runs from June 3rd – June 18th, 2009 in Los Angeles. The gala Opening Night festivities will include the West Coast premiere of Lost Islands, the highest grossing and most hon...
A rare glimpse into the hidden secrets of Toledo, Spain. A heartbreaking drama about a Tunisian Jewish family in Paris. A poignant portrait of Iraq’s Jewish society. An introduction to a small Jewish community in Mumbai that believe s itself descended from one of the lost tribes of Israel. The story of an Ethiopian Jewish boy who dreams of being the Spike Lee of Israel. These are but a few of the fifteen films from fourteen countries being screened at this year’s gala 13th Annual New York Se...
The 23rd Israel Film Festival will kick off in New York on October 29th at the Ziegfeld Theatre and run through November 13th at the Clearview’s 62nd & Broadway Cinema. Meir Fenigstein, Founder and Executive Director, announced today the full lineup of films for this year’s Festival which showcases more than 30 new feature films, provocative documentaries, ground-breaking TV dramas, and innovative student films celebrating Israeli life and culture. List of films to follow. The Israel Film F...
CROSSROADS, the Co-Production Forum organized by the Thessaloniki International Film Festival, created by the TIFF Director Despina Mouzaki and headed by Marie-Pierre Macia, has selected 15 projects this year, based on the quality of the script, the creative team and the likelihood of it being produced. All selected projects are either produced or co-produced by a country in the Balkan or Mediterranean area or contain story elements linked to these regions. The selected projects come fr...
The 16th annual Hamptons International Film Festival will run October 15th through the 19th, celebrating some of the finest films from around the world. Spanning across the East End, from East Hampton, Sag Harbor, Montauk and Southampton, this year’s Festival promises everything we have grown to love from this culturally-rich festival, while expanding the international scope of films, industry and attendees. For more information: www.hamptonsfilmfest.org.“This is a very exciting time,” s...
Thursday, May 15-------Don’t bother trying to contact American film professionals in their New York or Los Angeles offices this week…..the bulk of them are cruising the Croisette at the Cannes Film Festival, looking for films that they can add to their theatrical slates. Distribution bigwigs are mixing with smaller specialty companies in a mad search for the next small European gem that could become a major box office champion. With many available titles vying for attention in the Official...
The second Animation Production Day (APD) will take place on May 05 to 06, 2008. More than 40 international producers, distributors, world sales groups and banks are due to take part. Participants will negotiate over 19 feature films from, for example, Germany, France, Spain, Ireland and Denmark with a financing volume of approx. 180 million Euros.The event was launched last year to create an exclusive international business platform where potential partners could negotiate efficiently and concr...
What better way to start the year than sailing down the Seine on a paquebot filled to the gunnels with buyers, sales agents, producers, actors, directors, journalists and others, all united by a common passion for French cinema? It marked the culmination of three hectic Parisian days in darkest January of deal-making, encounters and screenings. The tenth edition of the annual Rendezvous with French Cinema, organised by Unifrance, provides proof of the pride and pleasure the French take in promot...
British cinemagoers see more French films on release now than they did a decade ago, but the French Film Festival UK (from 15 April to 4 May 2007) still has a vital role to play in throwing a spotlight on the vast majority of le cinéma français which never makes it across the Channel.
All the films in the festival in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee do not as yet have a British distributor in place – but the aim is to make the industry more aware of the pote...
British cinemagoers see more French films on release now than they did a decade ago, but the French Film Festival UK (from 15 April to 4 May 2007) still has a vital role to play in throwing a spotlight on the vast majority of le cinéma français which never makes it across the Channel.
All the films in the festival in London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee do not as yet have a British distributor in place – but the aim is to make the industry more aware of t...
The biggest and starriest showcase of French cinema ever seen will be presented around the UK during March 2006 – in both independent and multiplex cinemas.The Renault French Film Festival 2006 - a new fusion of two events that previously have promoted le cinema français in the UK, will deliver a stimulating and, at times, challenging array of films in nine key locations: London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee.The French Film Festival UK which...
Ace animator Sylvain Chomet who made Les triplettes de Belleville and has moved his production outfit to the UK, will preside over this year's 13th anniversary French Film Festival UK running from 15 November until 5 December 2004.Chomet who lives in Edinburgh with his wife Sally, declared himself delighted to be named honorary patron "now that I have made my home and work place in Scotland."He added: "Although the festival has grown enormously and spread its wings to such English cities as Lon...
The 19th Annual Film & Television Trade Forum:September 22 - 25, UBC at Robson Square B.C.'s film & television industry professionals, both established and emerging, will gather this week for The Film & Television Trade Forum of the Vancouver International Film Festival, set to take place Sept. 22 - 25 at UBC, Robson Square. In twenty panel sessions, plus master classes and one-to-one meetings, Canadian and international guest panellists address some of the most pressing business issues of the...
The 19th Annual Film & Television Trade ForumSet To Inspire New Filmmakers With Success Story in Open Water Vancouver, BC - New and established filmmakers will be interested in the story of Chris Kentis, whose success with low budget feature Open Water is a highlight of this year's New Filmmakers' Day, September 25. New Filmmakers' Day, aimed at emerging filmmaking talent, follows three days of Trade Forum panels at UBC Robson Square, September 22 to 24, with the latest information on the art ...
HIGHLIGHTS FREE OUTDOOR SCREENINGS PROGRAM AT MONTRÉAL WORLD FILM FESTIVALSA cornucopia of acclaimed movies from Canada and around the globe will be screened free-of-charge nightly during the 12-day run of the 28th Montréal World Film Festival, August 26 – September 6.The Cinema Under The Stars program, presented by Loto-Québec in association with the MWFF, will feature two hit films each night starting at 8:30 pm on the Esplanade of Place des Arts, Sainte-Catherine at Jeanne Mance. Only on...
The 12th Stuttgart International Festival of Animated Film 2004 (1st – 6th April) has broken the attendance record of the last Festival: the organizers expect the number of visitors to total over 40,000. The evening events were completely sold out and even the repeat screenings of the competition programmes were all very full.500 films were screened at four venues (Alte Reithalle, Atelier im Bollwerk, Treffpunkt Rotebühlplatz and KOKI im Filmhaus) over the six days. At the centre of the world...
76th Academy Awards®Oscars® for the 76th Annual Academy Awards were presented on Sunday, February 29, 2004 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.Actor in a leading role Johnny Depp in "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" (Buena Vista)Ben Kingsley in "House of Sand and Fog" (DreamWorks in association with Cobalt Media Group)Jude Law in "Cold Mountain" (Miramax)Bill Murray in "Lost in Translation" (Focus Features)++++ Sean Penn in "Mystic River" (Warner Bros.)...
12th Stuttgart International Festival of Animated FilmFrom 1st – 6th April 2004 Stuttgart will once again be the Mecca of animated film. The International Festival of Animated Film, which was founded in 1982, is now entering its twelfth year. With over 40,000 visitors, the world’s second largest festival for animated film is the most important event of its kindin Germany.Over 1,200 film entries means that a new record has been set compared with the last Festival (932 entries). Concentrated a...
Foreign Films – and Denys Arcand -- Invade HollywoodThough fewer and fewer foreign films flicker on America’s screens every year, foreign films – and foreigners -- enjoyed a strong showing at Sunday night’s Academy awards. Nominations went to Brazilian’s City of God, New Zealand’s Whale Rider, France’s The Triplets of Belleville and Germany’s Die Rote Jacke, to name a few. Not one of these films walked away with the gold Sunday night, but plenty of New Zealander from the Lord of ...
The truly gigantic success at the local box office of Erik Van Looy’s De zaak Alzheimer (The Alzheimer Case) and Jan Verheyen’s Team Spirit II, in combination with indigenous arthouse hits such as Tom Barman’s Any Way the Wind Blows and the Oscar-nominated French-Flemish-Canadian-UK co-production Les triplettes de Belleville (Belleville Rendezvous/The Triplets of Belleville) resulted in a quadrupling of admissions for Flemish films last year. A total of well over 1 million Flemish and Br...
NOMINATIONS BY CATEGORY - 76TH AWARDS -“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” 11 nominations“Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World” 10 nominations“Cold Mountain” 7 nominations“Seabiscuit” 7 nominations“Mystic River” 6 nominations“Lost in Translation” 4 nominations“Finding Nemo” 4 nominations“City of God” 4 nominationsBest motion picture of the year«The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”(New Line) A Wingnut Films Production Barrie M. O...
