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::FILM NEWS::
LE Newsletter - August 26, 2010
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TIFF On The Road Again … And Again
Source:
www.thestar.com - Jason Anderson
(August 23, 2010)
Q: Where have you travelled in the last 12 months to find films
for
TIFF 2010?
Piers Handling, director and CEO: Berlin in February,
Cannes in May, then London, Paris, Rome and Warsaw in June and
July.
Cameron Bailey, co-director: Chennai, Mumbai, Beijing,
Paris, Brussels, Munich, London, Casablanca, Tangiers, Cape
Town, Johannesburg, Cannes, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Berlin,
Sundance, Amsterdam, New York, Los Angeles, Montreal.
Giovanna Fulvi, Asian cinema programmer: Rotterdam,
Berlin, Beijing, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Cannes, Tokyo, Seoul.
Jane Schoettle, international programmer: New York City,
Sundance (Park City, Utah), SXSW (Austin, Tex.), Los Angeles,
Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, Tel Aviv, Cannes.
Q: Which countries or regions do you cover for TIFF?
Handling: I can range through all territories in my
selection as I am involved in the Gala selection but I now
concentrate on the UK, France, Italy and Poland, plus I see some
of the Canadian films.
Bailey: US, UK, France, Belgium, Germany, South Asia,
Africa, the Middle East.
Fulvi: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea,
Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia.
Schoettle: U.S. independent cinema, Australia, New
Zealand, Israel.
Q: How many days out of the last 365 would you say you’ve
been on the road on the fest’s behalf?
Handling: About 50 to 60.
Bailey: 120
Fulvi: About 12 weeks.
Schoettle: Rough count, 75 days—almost three months
Q: What are your favourite ways to kill time on long trips?
Handling: When I fly, I read. But to be honest there is
no need to kill time anywhere as I always have a full agenda. If
I’m not working on a Sunday, I’ll often visit a gallery or a
museum.
Bailey: I’ve become an expert sleeper on planes. I treat
it like going into suspended animation: melatonin, eye mask,
noise-cancelling headphones looping a playlist of ’90s trip-hop
at low volume. Five minutes later I’m across the ocean.
Fulvi: There is not much time to kill. I like shopping
in airports, visiting museums and spending time with friends.
Schoettle: Between screenings, meetings, and dealing
with email in the hotel, there isn’t much time left in need of
killing. Airports would be the exception — and that’s where I
read, both novels on my handy e-reader (next to my BlackBerry,
the best technology ever) and local newspapers. Shopping at
airports doesn’t appeal because the one thing that makes
traveling by yourself even harder is schlepping extra stuff.
I’ve learned to travel light, and, if I do say so myself, I’m a
remarkably talented packer.
Q: What have been the most memorable circumstances or
environments during which you’ve screened films?
Handling: Outdoor screenings at the Pan African Film
Festival in Ouagadougou. Woody Allen’s private screening room in
New York. Agnes Varda’s editing room in her house in Paris.
Bailey: Down alleys and up the stairs in Calcutta. In
the most astounding purpose-built home cinema I’ve ever seen, in
a gazillionaire’s home in Johannesburg. He told me it had the
best projection and sound in the entire country and I have no
reason to doubt him.
Fulvi: Watching films on computer screens at the house
of Chinese filmmakers or in quiet corners of Beijing coffee
shops.
Schoettle: A dark room is a dark room, no matter where
it is. But I do remember one day about four years ago when Noah
Cowan, Piers Handling and myself were in the screening room here
at 2 Carlton St. from 9 a.m. until 11 that night. I learned two
things that day: watch your fluid intake and give the
projectionist a break.
Q; Have you had much opportunity to enjoy these cities or
countries on your down time?
Handling: Absolutely, as I often travel to these cities
on my own time so I know them very, very well. And when I travel
to a city for a festival jury like Tokyo, San Sebastian, Torino
or Courmayeur, I make sure that I take time to see the place.
Bailey: Taking public transit is a good way to see the
place between appointments. A bus ride with migrant workers in
Dubai and the impressive Hong Kong subway stand out.
Fulvi: Food in Asia is great, so after long screening
hours, a good meal is always welcomed.
Schoettle: I always try to leave my departure day free
of appointments and go to one institution — an art gallery, a
museum, an historical spot — before my flight because you can’t
understand the film of a country if you don’t understand the
culture and history.
Q: Where are you eager to go next?
Handling: I have never been to Turkey and the film
festival there regularly invites me on to their jury so I hope
to go next year.
Bailey: I’m on the jury at the Reykjavik Film Festival
in Iceland after our festival’s done, but this time I get to go
with my wife Carolynne and our son Tate.
Fulvi: I have been invited to the first international
film festival of Phnom Penh in October and I am really looking
forward to visiting Cambodia for the first time.
Schoettle: Home. |
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::LANGFIELD
ENTERTAINMENT:: ENTERTAINMENT NEWS WITH A CANADIAN TWIST::
