Daily News-June 20th

Avant garde animation film vies for Golden Goblet award

By Joyce Xu(Shanghai Daily)

“SHe,” the latest offering of young Chinese animated filmmaker Zhou Shengwei, premiered at the Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts yesterday. Zhou also held talks with local college students and movie buffs after the screening.

The 95- minute film is Zhou\'s first feature- length animated movie. It is also vying for the Golden Goblet Awards in the category of animation films at the ongoing 21st Shanghai International Film Festival.

It took Zhou around six years to make the avant- garde production which is composed of over 58,000 photos. Most of the film\'s characters and scenes are inspired by items from daily use. Zhou personally created the 268 or so models in the movie.

The film is a fantasy story about shoe fairies and portrays a touching "mother\'s love" even in the world of shoes.

According to the 27- year- old director, animation is an ideal art form that goes beyond cultural boundaries.

"Human emotions are universal," Zhou said. "A good production tells a good story and expresses emotions with sincerity."

The movie scene of "SHe." Pic by Tigong

FORUM

Belt & Road filmmakers discuss movie trends

By Liza Li(Shanghai Daily)

Cinema\'s integral role to promote cultural exchange and understanding, break boundaries and connect audiences around the world was on display during yesterday\'s ongoing 21st Shanghai International Film Festival

The Belt and Road filmmakers salon invited exhibitors from Belt and Road Film Week to share their film stories, talk about movie development in their countries and discuss how to promote cultural exchange.

Chinese producer Nai An said that for art house and independent films, being able to reach more audiences and countries were among the key measures of a film’s success rather than ultimate box office result.

Egyptian director and scriptwriter Ahmed Amer said his country\'s film industry faced strong competition from television. The budget for films ranged from US $100,000 for small independent films up  to US $5 million for big budget action movies or comedies.

Amer said he started work in a bank then became a film editor in Hollywood where he eventually moved to scriptwriting and directing.“Kiss Me Not”was his first feature film, a mockumentary about a firsttime director and his major crisis with a lead actress.

“I wanted my first experience as a feature director to be something I really enjoyed and also to use my skills from the theater," he said. "Because the topic was quite sensitive, I used the comedy genre which would be easier for audiences to accept, rather than to be too heavy.”

Georgian actress Mariska Diasamidze said her country\'s younger generation was more "into" art house films which they mostly watched on the internet.

Poland director and scriptwriter Piotr Domalewski said people in his country liked to visit the cinema to watch both Hollywood blockbusters and art house films.

"Ten years ago, Polish distributors discovered that audiences also liked Polish films so the market is constantly improving with more and more films each year,”he said.

The group photo of the guests in forum. Pic by CFP

Guests were sharing their views in the forum. Pic by CFP

FOCUS

Poster show celebrates glorious China movie heritage

By Liza Li(Shanghai Daily)

Shanghai International Film Festival is hosting a movie poster exhibition called“Everlasting Pictures”at Shanghai Film Center to celebrate the 40th anniversary of China\'s reform and opening-up.

During the extraordinary past four decades, generations of Chinese filmmakers have produced numerous remarkable films that greatly satisfied the cultural needs of all Chinese people.

They also took significant steps to promote Chinese films on the global stage, telling Chinese stories and carrying the voices of China to the world.

China has now become the world’s second largest movie market, with an unprecedentedly commanding position in world cinema.

The exhibition takes viewers on a journey through the unique posters that were created to promote the movies of different eras.

It’s divided into different development stages in chronological order, starting from third-generation directors represented by Xie Jin, best know known for the films“Hibiscus Town”and“Legend of Tianyuan Mountain.”

The Reform and Opening- up decades also witnessed the development of various levels of international exchange in the movie industry.

Cities like Shanghai have become popular filming locations for blockbuster films including“Mission: Impossible”and“Skyfall.”

The exhibition\'s Footprints section also features the film festival\'s official posters.

The scene of the exhibition. Pic by Tigong

SPOT

Stars set to make \'Decoder\' movie a summer hit in China

By Joyce Xu(Shanghai Daily)

The film crew of domestic crime drama“Decoder,” which starts national release on August 3, attended a press conference during the ongoing 21st Shanghai International Film Festival yesterday.

The movie stars mainland actor Han Geng and Japanese heart throb Yamashita Tomohisa. It is centered on the adventures and growth of an IT engineer who is unexpectedly involved in intrigue.

It is the first appearance in a Chinese movie by Japanese actor and singer Yamashita Tomohisa, known for the TV series“Code Blue”and“Summer Nude.”

The film was shot in many cities in Asia and Europe.

The box office receipts from last year\'s summer movie releases in China exceeded 3 billion yuan and "Decoder" is expected to be a sensation due to the stars\' big fan bases.

The creator in chief of "Decoder." Pic by Tigong