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P r e s
s R e l e a s e
FAMA Press Office
Tirana International Film
Festival Received Applications by 679 filmmakers from 63 world countries
Tirana International Film
Festival 4-10 December 2004
While four years ago
Albania had not a single theater room, the successful organization of
the first Edition of International Film Festival in Tirana by the end of
2003, the first and unique in the Albanian cinematography, showed the
world that even a small Europe’s country had the energy and fantasy to
realize a competition of the world level.
The success of this
Festival, organized by FAMA, came out to be a surprise both for the
Albanian filmmakers and particularly for the foreign ones, establishing
thereafter already affirmed parameters by cinema experts.
The local media and at
the same time the international one, along with outstanding critics of
the Seventh Art, would affirm in an undisputed way the success of the
first edition in many articles published in newspapers, magazines and
prestigious websites.
“Think different, See
Alike”, will continue to be the motto of the Second Edition of Tirana
Film Festival.
Participation
This year, Tirana
International Film Festival will take place from 4-10 December, with the
competition in the genre of the short film, including as well a special
program of feature and documentary films.
A record of 640 films
from 62 countries of the world submitted their applications in the
website from August 1 to October 10. The video tapes of the films, which
are undergoing the selection phase, fall into the following categories;
305 fiction, 115 animation, 102 documentaries and 111 experimental.
According to the statistics that are found online in TIFF website,
www.tiranafilmfest.com, most of the submitted films are a production
of the last two years. With regard to this, TIFF 2004 could be
considered among the most prestigious European Festivals of the short
film which brings the most recent productions of the contemporary
cinematography.
It is quite impressive
the fact of a considerable participation of Italy with 79 films, the
United States, Britain, Belgium, Spain, Germany, etc.
A quite satisfying
interest has been observed this year from the Balkans, especially from
Serbia and Montenegro, while the participation is at a low level from
Greece.
In the meantime, this
second edition includes also many other countries which are presented
for the first time, like Brazil, Chile, Burkina Faso, Morocco, etc.
A special contribution in
ensuring this extraordinary participation have played the international
cinema institutions, such as Film Institutions, Film Commissions,
associations as well as cultural and artistic foundations throughout the
world. A great appreciation for this festival is also the participation
of many international prize-winning films. This has not stopped short
the authors of these films from competing in the small and modest
Tirana, in order to add to their artistic CV another competition to
participate, considering its ambitious and reputable.
By the end of October we
will publish the full list of the films due in competition.
Partners
During this year, TIFF
has realized a very good collaboration with its partners, like Cork Film
Festival, Sienna Film Festival, Warsaw Film Festival, Hamburg Film
Festival, etc.
The assistance of these
greatly experienced partners has consisted not only in making TIFF known
in the world, but also in the very support they have provided so that
Tirana Film Festival, as the only representative of Albania, be accepted
as member of the European Coordination of Film Festivals (ECFF). ECFF
is an international body attached to the Brussels-based European
Commission, which coordinates over 200 film festival actually taking
place throughout Europe.
Program
The five days of this
event will offer about 100 films in competition. Screenings will be open
for cinematographers, journalists, and students. The program will be
repeated also for the public in city’s theaters. A special program, much
more comprehensive than the last year, will be of special interest for
the participants and the public. Well-known authors will for the first
time have projected in the Albanian screens some of their masterpieces
which make some of the peaks of the world cinema.
For the first time,
Kosova will be presented with the best films in years by Kosovar
authors.
The Film Schools from
Belgium, Finland, Israel, Spain, Kosova, Iran, will introduce the public
and particularly to the students the trends and cinematographic
alternatives of this year
Post-Festival
TIFF 2004 will issue the
TIFF Tribune newspaper in two languages, Albanian and English, which
will provide information through the latest news from TIFF, interviews,
pictures, and critique.
A press conference will
take place on a daily basis, where the participating authors will
respond to the interest and questions of the journalists accredited near
TIFF.
The program of the day
will be completed every evening with a Talk Show which will be broadcast
live in one of the national television stations and will involve in a
debate journalists, art critics, directors, producers and others.
TIFF 2004 Awards
An international jury
will evaluate the competitors of this festival, whose winners will be
proclaimed in a Gala on December 10.
At least Euro 20.000 is
the cash value to be offered with the following prizes:
The Best Film of TIFF
The Best Fiction
The Best Animation
The Best Documentary
The Best Experimental
The Best First Film
The Best Albanian Short
Public Award
Media Award
Every prize is
accompanied with the festival cup, an art piece realized by Thoma Thomai.
At the same time, an
international jury composed of Albanian and foreign journalists will
assign to the competitors the Media Award.
An important sponsor will
deliver the public award, which will be result of the direct collection
of the opinion of the public during the days of the festival.
Hospitality
The hospitality starts
since the arrival of the participants at Mother Theresa International
Airport and it will be completed during all the days of TIFF 2004 with a
variety of cultural and entertaining activities such as the visits in
the National Historical Museum, Durres Amphitheater, the National Art
Gallery, etc.
Like the last year, the
organizers offer full accommodation in the best hotels and restaurants
of Tirana.
The provided conditions
aim at having a highest number possible of filmmakers and visitors
during the days of the festival, in order to contribute also to a change
on the image of Tirana and make it mostly attractive from the cultural,
artistic and tourist perspective.
Sponsors
It would not have been
possible to organize this activity without the support of the Ministry
of Culture, Youth and Sport. A special contribution has been provided by
other institutions as well, such as Tirana City-Hall, the U.S. Embassy,
while on the other hand there is an inexplicable indifference and apathy
from part of the diplomatic representation offices accredited in
Albania, considering
that this festival is a
great opportunity to propagate the values of their own countries.
We thank that part of the
business community which has expressed confidence on this ambitious and
difficult project. Usually used with sponsoring commercial and simple
entertaining activities, we hope that this community this time supports
as well activities like this festival, which is an investment of theirs
in time to show a Tirana, an Albania rich with political, economic and
cultural values.
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