The 1st International Film Festival & Awards – Macau (IFFAM) is scheduled to happen from December 8 to 13 at the Macau Cultural Centre and the Science Center, and is planning to screen 43 films in different categories, as well as to bring to town hundreds of film professionals and a number of celebrities.
The director of IFFAM is Marco Mueller, a world renowned film festival director and programmer, formerly in charge of similar high-profile events in Venice, Rome and Locarno.
At a press conference held last month at Macau Tower, Mueller explained something of the Festival’s concept in terms of programming: “We’re going to screen films that are very accessible and at the same time creative, mainstream but very original”.
The director promises “a particular look over the genre of popular cinema”. “It can’t be only commercial cinema, it has to be ‘mainstream’ but with a touch of difference,” he added.
Looking at the local film scene, Mueller hopes that the Festival may “act as a catalyst to develop and solidify the Macau film industry and to bring forth local talents to launch in Greater China and in the international arena.” He says that the Festival is going to “start small” because “Macau is a small place”. However, he recalled that, before having one of the most important film events in the globe, “Cannes was also a place with beaches and casinos, nothing else”.
The program of IFFAM features a competitive section, expected to have 12 films, red carpet events with some of the most important movies of the year; a “Best of Fest Panorama” section, with award-winning films from other festivals around the world; a “Hidden Dragons” section devoted to Asian cinema; and a retrospective part, entitled “Crossfire.” Master classes, Workshops and a Film Market will also be part of the event.
IFFAM’s first edition will have a budget of MOP55 million, with 20 million coming from the Macau Government Tourism Office. The director of MGTO, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, was also present at the press conference held last month and stated that the new film festival can bring a “long-term benefit for the sustainable development of the tourism industry and the creative industry in Macau”.
The event is organized together with the Macau Films & Television Productions and Culture Association (MFTPA), whose head is Alvin Chau, also the boss of Suncity Group. Quoted by Macau News, Chau said the Festival “will mainly invite original film works that are relatively more popular in the market, with the aim to make IFFAM into one of the major international events and marketplaces in Asia.”
