Press Release from Future Film Festival
The Future Film Festival 12th edition will take place, as usual, in Bologna, Italy, from 26th to 31st January 2010 at Teatro Duse (Via Cartoleria 42) and Palazzo Re Enzo (Piazza del Nettuno). Advance news about the programme.
FOCUSES
Saul Bass & Motion Graphics
Future Film Festival 2010, following its constant analysis of animated image, will dedicate a focus to the vertigo_sitoMotion Graphics, one of the most contemprary techniques used by young artists, in which the graphic applications give the illusion of movement. The Future Film Festival will focus on some key figures of contemporary motion graphics as Mischa Rozema, cofounder of Post Panic, the production company based in Holland, and author of commercials and videos for well known brands as Nike and MTV, and the English artist Rob Chiu, (alias The Ronin) author of a lot of works for Nokia, BBC, EMI, Greenpeace and many others. The FFF will focus on also their source of inspiration: the work by Saul Bass, great opening titles’ author and pioneer of motion graphics.
Saul Bass (1920-1996) is one of the key figure on graphic headlines for cinema. Thanks to Saul Bass, this work became an art. When he was young, he became his carreer as assistant in the art department of Warner Bros. based in New York and he gained experience in the field of Costructivism and Bauhaus. After some experiences as graphic designer, in 1954 Bass collaborated with Otto Preminger for the Carmen Jones poster and opening titles. After that, he realized The Seven Year Itch (1955), The Big Knife (1955), The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) title sequences. In 1959 he realized the Preminger’s Anatomy of a Murder poster and opening animated sequence with the original jazz score by Duke Ellington.
Saul Bass collaborated also with Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick and Martin Scorsese, working on Vertigo (1958), Psyco (1960), Spartacus (1964), Goodfellas (1990). He also worked with Steven Spielberg and he realized the posters for the Accademy Awards since 1991 to 1996.
Stop-Motion Animation
After the great success of the last Henry Selick’s Coraline, Future Film Festival will pay an homage to the one of the oldest animation technique, that now is used in a very inventive way by artists and production companies. A fil rouge will follow the audience amongs movies, labs and meeting dedicated to stop-motion. The key figures of this focus will be the artist from Aardman Animations (Chicken Run, Wallace & Gromit), the English artist, Osbert Parker, famous for the original mix in his works of a lot of techniques, from stop-motion to cut-out to live action. Also the Japanese artist Fusako Yusaki will attend the FFF; she works and lives in Italy, and she’s famous for animated advertisings as Fernet Branca.
In collaboration with British Council, the FFF will organize a panel discussion about this technique on the cinema.
Canuck Animation
In 2010 Canada will be the guest country of the Festival, with focuses on contemporary animation, meetings with authors and B2B area dedicated to companies in the field of animation. In collaboration with Emilia-Romagna Region - Council of Production Assets.
Regione Animata - Projects Award
Future Film Festival 2010 will present as previews the works by the winners of Projects Award, the contest realized with the Animated Region network and with the support of Emilia-Romagna Film Commission. Thanks to the support of Emilia-Romagna Region - Council for Culture and the Cabinet - POGAS, in the 2007, FFF has promoted a contest dedicated to animators and young artists based on Emilia-Romagna for the production of shorts, pilots, tv series. During these months, the four winners are working on making videos. The works by Luca Pinciani, Federico Guidi, Andrea Nadalini and Ettore Tomas will be presented as special event during the 12th edition of FFF.
SECTIONS
3dDAY
After the first date on stereoscopic cinema in Italy that Future Film Festival organized in January 2009, the Festival will present in 2010 a new panel and a lot of screenings dedicated to this new cinematographic avatar_webrevolution that today involves also TV and the videogame worlds. The FFF programme of January 30th and 31st will be dedicated to the stereoscopic 3D with a round table with technology producers, professionals in the field of 3D, cinema owners, distributors and contents producers to explore the present and the future of this technology. The 3dDAY will be the chance to think about the 3D evolution for TV and the new applications for videogames. The section will present also a lot of 3D screenings such as the Pixar Animation Studios masterpieces, Toy Story and Toy Story 2, distributed in Italy by Buena Vista.
Special guest of FFF2010 will be Joe Letteri, cofounder of Weta Digital, and visual effects supervisor of Avatar, the last movie by James Cameron, who will present to the audience, as big première, the making of the movie.
Meetings and workshops
As usual Future Film Festival will organize panels with professionals in the field of animation and special effects such as the awaited meeting with Joe Letteri, cofounder of Weta Digital and visual effects supervisor of Avatar.
Special event will be also the preview of the last short by the painter, illustrator, comic-strip artist and ricci_webanimator Stefano Ricci. The artist will attend the FFF and meet the audience to present the making of the short, Febbre suina, Gallina evasa, based on a text by Marco Baliani and produced by the production centre L’Arboreto Teatro dimora in Mondaino. On the occasion, an exhibition with the original paintings will be presented at Galleria Stamperia Squadro (Via Nazario Sauro 27/b, Bologna).
The special guests of FFF will hold workshops adressed to the professionals: Rob Chiu and Mischa Rozema will give a workshop dedicated to Motion Graphics. In collaboration with the UK Council, there will be panel discussions and labs on stop-motion. Digital Video will realize a special workshop on the new StoryPlanner software.
CONTESTS
Platinum Grand Prize
The Platinum Grand Prize is the contest for feature lenght movies in animation or with special effects. In 2010 there will take place the third edition of Platinum Grand Prize and a special jury will give the prize to the best movie.
Future Film Short
Future Film Short is the section adressed to short from all over the world realized in traditional or digital animation or live with special effects. As the previous editions, the festival audience will award the best short and for the second time there will be a special jury thanks to the support of Province of Bologna. Groupama Assicurazioni is partner of the section.
SHOWCASES
SeriesMania
The section dedicated to the new and innovative tv series from all over the world comes back. Previews of new productions which from tv will conquer the audience keen on animation and cartoon.
Festival Showcase
A lot of international festivals like Expotoons (Argentina) and Red Stick International Animation Festival (USA) will present during the FFF 2010 a special programme selection with the best of their last editions.