Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner
Slide Nr 1It’s the start of a new year, and our thoughts begin turning to travel as we plan for adventures to come. For film fans, the festival circuit offers a chance to indulge both our love of travel and our love of cinema, discovering new locations by day and new artistic voices by night. Whether you want to rub shoulders with A-Listers, dive head-first into a unique genre, or experience film in a setting like no other, we offer our calendar of unmissable events that will satisfy a variety of tastes. [Photo: The Locarno Festival via Facebook]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 2January: Slamdance (Parck City, Utah, USA) – Held every year since 1995, this edgier alternative to the Sundance Film Festival has provided a platform for independent young talent to thrive, evolve and, most importantly, get noticed. Famous names to have first gained notoriety at the festival include Christopher Nolan, Lena Dunham and Marc Forster; as well as films such as Paranormal Activity and The King of Kong. Considered an avenue for more outlandish or low-budget fare to thrive (with no competition film costing more than $1 million), more than two decades on, the festival continues to provide an anarchic escape for Park City dwellers who tire of the corporate nature of the festival’s larger equivalent. [Photo: Crystal Swan, Hanna Constant]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 3February: Berlinale (Berlin, Germany) – One of the biggest festivals in Europe, The Berlin International Film Festival opened with a bang in 1958 by premiering Alfred Hitchcock’s Rebecca. Previous recipients of the festival’s top prize, The Golden Bear, include Brazilian classic Elite Squad, Terrence Malick’s The Thin Red Line and Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away. Set in the booming cultural hub of Berlin, it’s one of the more accessible of the year’s major film festivals, and its importance in the world of film distribution means that what hits big here will more than likely be a preview of what shines at the box office for the rest of the year. [Photo: Andreas Teich © Berlinale 2015]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 4March: Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival (Yubari, Japan) – Aside from its resort-like setting, YIFFF is a wonderful example of film bringing people together. Created as a means of generating tourism in the former mining town of Yubari, it has been embraced by the filmmaking community and even found its place in Western film culture. Quentin Tarantino wrote part of Pulp Fiction while at the 1993 festival, and named a character in Kill Bill after the town. Dividing categories into international and Japanese filmmaking while focusing on young talent, there’s truly something for everyone here, against a backdrop like no other.
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 5April: The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival (Toronto, Canada) – Documentary film is an underrated but increasingly important part of the filmmaking landscape. If you love Toronto, but perhaps want something more unique than September’s crowded TIFF, the Ontario capital hosts a separate festival solely for documentaries. Not only does the event offer a spotlight, but also the chance for distribution, with success here often earning films a place on cinema tours and on-demand platforms. It’s the perfect place for the kind of debate and learning that only documentaries can provide. [Photo: David Spowart]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 6April: Imagine Film Festival (Amsterdam, The Netherlands) – Do you like films that are a little bit to the left of the mainstream? Amsterdam’s Imagine Film Festival could be for you. Specialising in genre films, most notably horror and science fiction, the festival also offers programmes for children and budding filmmakers to really engage with the industry and learn from the best. The audience-voted Silver Scream Award has been won by films such as Get Out and Donnie Darko, while winners of the Lifetime Achievement Award include Wes Craven, Tim Burton and Stan Lee. [Photo: credit Eva Boeter, Marije van Woerden & Almicheal Fraay]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 7May: The Cannes Film Festival (Cannes, France) – Perhaps what everyone thinks of when the phrase “film festival” comes up, there are few festivals as famous or influential as Cannes. Hosting everyone from Lars von Trier to The Spice Girls in over 70 years of existence, it’s where studio films are grandly unveiled, and the best of the best awarded the coveted Palme D’Or. If you do get into a screening, Cannes crowds are notoriously brutal, booing anything deemed beneath the Cannes standard. If you can’t get into screenings, however, strolling around La Croisette is an experience in itself, as you soak in the famous faces promoting their wares.
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 8June: Shanghai International Film Festival (Shanghai, China) – One of Asia’s biggest film festivals, SIFF has worked its way from the ground up to be considered a prestige event for lovers of cinema the world over. With several categories putting a focus on homegrown talent – and even an awards ceremony dedicated to action movies and named after legend Jackie Chan – this is an event that has flourished through its innovation and unique character.
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 9August: The Locarno Festival (Locarno, Switzerland) – Perhaps you want to avoid the glitz of Cannes, but still want to mingle among the movers and shakers? This long-running Swiss event is considered the destination of choice for the art house film industry. Having been around since the ‘40s, Locarno has been a big part of the history of world cinema, welcoming filmmakers from Stanley Kubrick to Claire Denis. The festival’s most visually striking events are the screenings at The Piazza Grande, where you can share the experience with 8,000 other cinema lovers. [Photo: The Locarno Festival via Facebook]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 10August: Arrow Video FrightFest London (London, England) – A small but very significant festival in the UK capital, FrightFest does exactly what the name implies – showcases the best in horror filmmaking, usually from a low budget perspective, and gives regular fans the chance to gorge on upcoming films and filmmakers, shown alongside big studio prospects and timeless classics. Catching everything may be something of an endurance test, but this is a festival for horror lovers which eschews much of the pomp of bigger events. Previous festival participants include Oldboy, Final Destination 5 and Cult of Chucky. [Photo: Julie Edwards]
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Events
The 2019 Film Festival Planner.
Slide Nr 13December: Dubai International Film Festival (Dubai, UAE) – A relatively new film event, having only been established in 2004, The Dubai International Film Festival is a reflection of the city’s evolution in a worldwide cultural destination. Held every two years, the most recent edition featured Christian Bale’s Hostiles as the opening night gala, with BAFTA running a costume exhibition and even an early preview of the most recent Star Wars film. Everyone loves a bit of winter sun, and what better to combine it with than a feast of international cinema? [Photo: DIFF via Facebook]
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