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Young film fans put themselves in frame
By Xu Wenwen |
October 18, 2012, Thursday
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THREE years ago, when college student Shan Zuolong organized screenings of a handful of short films at local universities, little did he think that it would grow into a major festival - but that's exactly what's happened.
This year, Hangzhou Asia Film Festival (HAFF), that runs until Saturday, has received 483 short films submitted by young directors (foreign directors of Asian origin are included), and has film celebrities, including Taiwanese scholar and film producer Chiao Hsiung-Ping, sitting on the jury.
As there are no entry fees for submitting films and screenings are free, the festival - run by a six-strong operations team with an average age of less than 25 - relies on sponsorship.
"We want to make a real film festival for the young generation," explains 23-year-old Shan.
Fellow organizers are his classmates from the humanity college at Zhejiang University of Technology, all of whom graduated two or three years ago. Festival chairman Zhao Yu was their dean.
Their cinematic adventure started at 2009, when Shan's 29-minute film, "Settled," that tells the story of changing China by focusing on the story of 83-year-old man won several awards home and abroad and was shortlisted at foreign film festivals.
Shan brought some short films back to university and showcased those works in colleges and universities in Hangzhou and other nearby cities as a film exhibition.
The next year, the team turned the exhibition into Hangzhou College Students Festival and brought in more short films. Often these received a mixed response; sometimes only a few people turned up and on occasions audience members would leave early.
Organizers were determined to extend the event beyond campus screenings, unveiling the Hangzhou Asian Film Festival since 2011, which received 243 works from a dozen of countries and regions.
The move was rewarded with full houses for many screenings, whether in cinemas or lecture rooms.
The festival could now also boast a prestigious and international jury, including Situ Zhaodun, dubbed as the father of Chinese documentary making, and Sirkka M?ller, a freelance film curator, documentary consultant and expert of Berlinale Talent Campus, a six-day creative summit for up-and-coming filmmakers.
Behind the success is lots of hard work; looking for sponsorship, liaising with cinemas, improving the website, inviting young Asian directors to participate and experts to be on the jury and organizing a "talent camp" with masters' lectures given to shortlisted directors.
And all this with very limited funds.
"We want to make everything the best, while we have very little money," says Huang Yulong, who is responsible for marketing.
The "best" they want to borrow are parts of international film festivals, like the "large but very organized Berlin International Film Festival" and "small but comprehensive TOKYO FILMeX," says Yao Yingjing responsible for public relations.
Yet the group has no budget for visiting other film festivals, and the only chance for them to experience the wider world of filmmaking depends on Shan - provided the young filmmaker's work gets shortlisted or receives awards at international film festivals.
So tight is the budget that if Shan goes to a formal event, such as an opening ceremony, he has to borrow a suit.
Huang says the costs of the event include reception, accommodation, flights, payment to lecturers, promotions and other items, while salaries for staff are a very small part because, "if we want to be real filmmakers we must prioritize directors and audiences," adds Huang.
This year, the committee covers more than 50 percent of flight fees of 15 shortlisted directors and free four-star hotel rooms, plus food subsides.
Preparations are meticulous. Before the festival they send every director a 23-page document detailing everything from the way from airport to maps - complete with photographs - of ATM machines, toilets and bus routes.
In addition, 48 student volunteers are arranged to provide one-to-one service to guests throughout the festival.
Such meticulous planning wins respect. "I was amazed when I saw the work these young people had done. They do better than many international film festivals," Chiao Hsiung-Ping said at the opening ceremony.
"I was surprised at the age of the organizers, and they impressed me with everything from the catalogue, to the food - all of which was very professional," Israel director Nadan Pines tells Shanghai Daily. His work "Treasure Hunt" won Shine Asia the Best Documentary Award.
This year the festival has been divided into three parts: the main program, the Shine Asia Shorts Competition; a special program devoted to diverse cinematic topics; and festival events themselves - screenings, lectures and the public forum.
Elements include a "Master's Retrospective" (this year, Japanese documentary filmmaker Shinsuke Ogawa), "Taiwan Prides," "Best of Fests" and "Asian New Talent" (this year, Chinese mainland director Zhao Ye).
The organizers say they have created the framework for HAFF, but now want to add depth.
"I am surprised at local audiences' good taste," says Shan.
Future festivals may charge audiences a low ticket fee, around 10 yuan (US$1.59) to 20 yuan.
"Documentary and artistic film festivals are not simply expected to lure audiences in, but to guide them," says Shan.
The Awards of HAFF
? Shine Asia Grand Prix Award
"The Sound of Rain" - Jalal Saedpanah from Iran
? Shine Asia Jury Award
"Tanaka's Happy Farm" - Wang An from America
? Shine Asia the Best Documentary Award
"Treasure Hunt" - Nadan Pines from Israel
? Shine Asia the Best Fiction Award
"I Hope This Match Never Ends" - Ng Chun from China
? Audience Award
"Female Director" - Yummy Yang from China
This year, Hangzhou Asia Film Festival (HAFF), that runs until Saturday, has received 483 short films submitted by young directors (foreign directors of Asian origin are included), and has film celebrities, including Taiwanese scholar and film producer Chiao Hsiung-Ping, sitting on the jury.
As there are no entry fees for submitting films and screenings are free, the festival - run by a six-strong operations team with an average age of less than 25 - relies on sponsorship.
"We want to make a real film festival for the young generation," explains 23-year-old Shan.
Fellow organizers are his classmates from the humanity college at Zhejiang University of Technology, all of whom graduated two or three years ago. Festival chairman Zhao Yu was their dean.
Their cinematic adventure started at 2009, when Shan's 29-minute film, "Settled," that tells the story of changing China by focusing on the story of 83-year-old man won several awards home and abroad and was shortlisted at foreign film festivals.
Shan brought some short films back to university and showcased those works in colleges and universities in Hangzhou and other nearby cities as a film exhibition.
The next year, the team turned the exhibition into Hangzhou College Students Festival and brought in more short films. Often these received a mixed response; sometimes only a few people turned up and on occasions audience members would leave early.
Organizers were determined to extend the event beyond campus screenings, unveiling the Hangzhou Asian Film Festival since 2011, which received 243 works from a dozen of countries and regions.
The move was rewarded with full houses for many screenings, whether in cinemas or lecture rooms.
The festival could now also boast a prestigious and international jury, including Situ Zhaodun, dubbed as the father of Chinese documentary making, and Sirkka M?ller, a freelance film curator, documentary consultant and expert of Berlinale Talent Campus, a six-day creative summit for up-and-coming filmmakers.
Behind the success is lots of hard work; looking for sponsorship, liaising with cinemas, improving the website, inviting young Asian directors to participate and experts to be on the jury and organizing a "talent camp" with masters' lectures given to shortlisted directors.
And all this with very limited funds.
"We want to make everything the best, while we have very little money," says Huang Yulong, who is responsible for marketing.
The "best" they want to borrow are parts of international film festivals, like the "large but very organized Berlin International Film Festival" and "small but comprehensive TOKYO FILMeX," says Yao Yingjing responsible for public relations.
Yet the group has no budget for visiting other film festivals, and the only chance for them to experience the wider world of filmmaking depends on Shan - provided the young filmmaker's work gets shortlisted or receives awards at international film festivals.
So tight is the budget that if Shan goes to a formal event, such as an opening ceremony, he has to borrow a suit.
Huang says the costs of the event include reception, accommodation, flights, payment to lecturers, promotions and other items, while salaries for staff are a very small part because, "if we want to be real filmmakers we must prioritize directors and audiences," adds Huang.
This year, the committee covers more than 50 percent of flight fees of 15 shortlisted directors and free four-star hotel rooms, plus food subsides.
Preparations are meticulous. Before the festival they send every director a 23-page document detailing everything from the way from airport to maps - complete with photographs - of ATM machines, toilets and bus routes.
In addition, 48 student volunteers are arranged to provide one-to-one service to guests throughout the festival.
Such meticulous planning wins respect. "I was amazed when I saw the work these young people had done. They do better than many international film festivals," Chiao Hsiung-Ping said at the opening ceremony.
"I was surprised at the age of the organizers, and they impressed me with everything from the catalogue, to the food - all of which was very professional," Israel director Nadan Pines tells Shanghai Daily. His work "Treasure Hunt" won Shine Asia the Best Documentary Award.
This year the festival has been divided into three parts: the main program, the Shine Asia Shorts Competition; a special program devoted to diverse cinematic topics; and festival events themselves - screenings, lectures and the public forum.
Elements include a "Master's Retrospective" (this year, Japanese documentary filmmaker Shinsuke Ogawa), "Taiwan Prides," "Best of Fests" and "Asian New Talent" (this year, Chinese mainland director Zhao Ye).
The organizers say they have created the framework for HAFF, but now want to add depth.
"I am surprised at local audiences' good taste," says Shan.
Future festivals may charge audiences a low ticket fee, around 10 yuan (US$1.59) to 20 yuan.
"Documentary and artistic film festivals are not simply expected to lure audiences in, but to guide them," says Shan.
The Awards of HAFF
? Shine Asia Grand Prix Award
"The Sound of Rain" - Jalal Saedpanah from Iran
? Shine Asia Jury Award
"Tanaka's Happy Farm" - Wang An from America
? Shine Asia the Best Documentary Award
"Treasure Hunt" - Nadan Pines from Israel
? Shine Asia the Best Fiction Award
"I Hope This Match Never Ends" - Ng Chun from China
? Audience Award
"Female Director" - Yummy Yang from China
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