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Strong Canadian presence at the 2008 Rotterdam International Film Festival
Montreal, January 18, 2008 – Telefilm Canada is delighted to announce that Canada will have a marked presence at the Rotterdam International Film Festival with three feature films and 35 Canadian short films screening in different programs.
Continental, un film sans fusil (Canada; producers: Luc Déry & Kim McCraw; director: Stéphane Lafleur; production company: micro_scope inc.) will be screened in the prestigious “Sturm and Drang” programme; Cochochi will be seen in the section entitled “Time & Drag” (Co-venture; Mexico/United Kingdom/Canada; producers: Pablo Cruz & Donald Ranvaud; director: Israel Cardenas & Laura Amelia Guzman; Production Company: Canana Films/ Instituto Mexicano de Cinematografia/ Buena Onda Limited/ Canada World Cinema Project); and Freaky Useless Spicy Story (Co-venture; India/Canada; director: Kalpesh CI Patel) will screen in the “Time & Drag: Hinglish” section. The full list of the Canadian short films can be found on the Festival’s Website: http://www.filmfestivalrotterdam.com/eng/programme.aspx.
Also notable are the Festival’s signature industry events aimed at supporting emerging and experienced filmmakers: CineMart and the Rotterdam Lab. The feature length film Francine (producers/directors: Brian M. Cassidy & Melanie Shatzky; production company: Pigeon Projects), a Canada/United States co-venture, is one of 39 films selected from close to 500 submissions to be pitched in this year’s CineMart; while three Canadian producers were selected from 31 applicants to participate in the 2008 Rotterdam Lab: Matthew Cervi (British Columbia), Christine Falco (Quebec) and Andrew Rosen (Ontario).
“Telefilm is committed to supporting Canadian talent at home and abroad, as well as promoting the Made in Canada brand in the international marketplace,” said Wayne Clarkson, Telefilm’s Executive Director. “Our support of Canadian companies and producers at these international events also generates results by helping to stimulate the sale of Canadian works and facilitate pre-financing of production and co-production projects.”
Cinemart
Celebrating its 25th anniversary, CineMart is the first co-production platform to offer filmmakers the opportunity to launch their ideas to the international film industry and secure financing from new partnerships. The close to 45 projects/production teams selected annually can move on to present their project to potential co-producers, buyers, distributors, and broadcasters. This year’s Canadian selection, Francine is based on the production team’s 2007 short film entitled The Delaware Project, and is a tale of a woman in search of a connection in a once rural landscape which is now undergoing an aggressive suburban development.
Rotterdam Lab
Telefilm Canada has been an international partner of the Rotterdam Lab since 2003, working with the industry and markets abroad to promote Canadian productions. The Rotterdam Lab, a complement to CineMart, aims to give emerging producers the opportunity to gain international marketing knowledge and to develop a network through unique privileged access to CineMart participants, such as producers and distributors who will be participating in panel discussions and individual consultations. The three chosen Canadian producers will benefit from this unique mentoring experience.
Developing and promoting the Canadian audiovisual industry
Telefilm Canada is a federal cultural agency dedicated to the development and promotion of the Canadian audiovisual industry. Telefilm provides financial support to the private sector to create distinctively Canadian productions that appeal to domestic and international audiences. The Corporation also administers the funding programs of the Canadian Television Fund.
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Media inquiries:
Douglas Chow, Deputy Director, Strategic Communications
(514) 283-6363 or 1-800-567-0890, chowd@telefilm.gc.ca
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