UNICA Films in our club
Posted: Tue Feb 06, 2007 1:24 pm
Last night I saw some UNICA films in my club. In Flanders you can hire a DVD with some UNICA films on it. Perhaps also in Britain. I am sure that Dave Watterson has seen the film. He was a judge in South Korea and also some other forum friends attended the world festival down under.
The Dutch had made an introductory film for this DVD. I recognized Herman Otten and some of his friends. They wanted to attend the festival in South Korea. Their filght from Schiphol Airport Amsterdam, however, was cancelled. Therefore they took a rowing-boat. In Indonesia there was a tsunami. After the storm they could reach the shores of South Korea.
I enjoyed "Buon Giorno" made by the Italian filmaker Melo Prino very much. The psychiognomy of the main actor was fantastic. We laughed a lot. The best film, however, was "Darrera La Porta" made by the Spanish filmmaker Els Ultims Dinosaurus. A very strange name, isn't it ? It is a very very powerful film with superb photography. After the show I listened to some friends who said that they were sure that the actors in both films must be professionals. They wonder how much the filmmakers had to pay for them.
I agreed with them. I know that Ned and some other friends are just not of the same mind in this matter, but I still think that there should be always an "OPEN CATEGORY" for filmmakers who ask TV-stars to act in their films and even for filmschools. Some years ago there was an "open category" at BIAFF. I don't know why they have changed this. BIAFF still means "British International AMATEUR Film Festival". Shouldn't the organizers delete the word AMATEUR then ?
Working with actors from your own filmclub or with members of an amateur theatre group is a real challenge, but working with TV-stars in easier and more rewarding. I know a TV-star who always wants to direct the director when the latter is directing the actors.
A festival is a competition and why do we take part in it ? I don't like filmmakers who are always very fanatic when they have not won. Some friends are not able to get to sleep with bronze and even blue. That is ridiculous, but there is also something like fairplay. Douglas Boswell is a young professional filmmaker in my club. I have already told you this. From time to time he shows his films. We are very grateful to him.
Thanks to that UNICA DVD we had a wonderful evening. In particular the Spanish and Italian films have given me new inspiration for my own films. We need professionals who make commercialized films to improve our own films.
In my regio he has done it again. I mean one of our "prominent" filmmakers. He asked 6 or 7 TV-stars for his film. With a poker face he always claims that he never has to pay them. Of course we are not naive. That film will certainly be used again for cinemas. This works paralysing for real amateurs. I do not want to re-open the discussion about that problem, but I want to go on fighting for filmaking as a hobby. Our festivals are competitions for HOBBYISTS.
An other UNICA-film that I enjoyed very much was the Argentinian "In Golf We Trust". It's an amusing film about a golf player. I was also impressed by the German animation film "Der Verrükte, das Herz und das Auge" a film made by Annette Jung and Gregor Dashober. It was based on the story "The Tell Tale Heart" by the English author Edgar Allan Poe. Also this one was very professional.
It made me think of an animation film made by a young filmaker in my own region some time ago. I was the president of the judging panel. One of my colleagues had already seen that film on TV.
After the local heat the judging panel invited the young man in order to take a final decision. He admitted that he had made that animation film together with some members of his filmschool and he also said that his film was for sale in FNAC, a famous chain of stores in Holland and Belgium. As he was a young man we declared him to be the winner of the local festival, but we still had our doubts ... It was a difficult dilemma for us because we must also try to attract young filmmakers as most of us are just like dinousaurs. Me too !
Anyway, thanks to the UNICA-DV we had a very enjoyable evening.
The Dutch had made an introductory film for this DVD. I recognized Herman Otten and some of his friends. They wanted to attend the festival in South Korea. Their filght from Schiphol Airport Amsterdam, however, was cancelled. Therefore they took a rowing-boat. In Indonesia there was a tsunami. After the storm they could reach the shores of South Korea.
I enjoyed "Buon Giorno" made by the Italian filmaker Melo Prino very much. The psychiognomy of the main actor was fantastic. We laughed a lot. The best film, however, was "Darrera La Porta" made by the Spanish filmmaker Els Ultims Dinosaurus. A very strange name, isn't it ? It is a very very powerful film with superb photography. After the show I listened to some friends who said that they were sure that the actors in both films must be professionals. They wonder how much the filmmakers had to pay for them.
I agreed with them. I know that Ned and some other friends are just not of the same mind in this matter, but I still think that there should be always an "OPEN CATEGORY" for filmmakers who ask TV-stars to act in their films and even for filmschools. Some years ago there was an "open category" at BIAFF. I don't know why they have changed this. BIAFF still means "British International AMATEUR Film Festival". Shouldn't the organizers delete the word AMATEUR then ?
Working with actors from your own filmclub or with members of an amateur theatre group is a real challenge, but working with TV-stars in easier and more rewarding. I know a TV-star who always wants to direct the director when the latter is directing the actors.
A festival is a competition and why do we take part in it ? I don't like filmmakers who are always very fanatic when they have not won. Some friends are not able to get to sleep with bronze and even blue. That is ridiculous, but there is also something like fairplay. Douglas Boswell is a young professional filmmaker in my club. I have already told you this. From time to time he shows his films. We are very grateful to him.
Thanks to that UNICA DVD we had a wonderful evening. In particular the Spanish and Italian films have given me new inspiration for my own films. We need professionals who make commercialized films to improve our own films.
In my regio he has done it again. I mean one of our "prominent" filmmakers. He asked 6 or 7 TV-stars for his film. With a poker face he always claims that he never has to pay them. Of course we are not naive. That film will certainly be used again for cinemas. This works paralysing for real amateurs. I do not want to re-open the discussion about that problem, but I want to go on fighting for filmaking as a hobby. Our festivals are competitions for HOBBYISTS.
An other UNICA-film that I enjoyed very much was the Argentinian "In Golf We Trust". It's an amusing film about a golf player. I was also impressed by the German animation film "Der Verrükte, das Herz und das Auge" a film made by Annette Jung and Gregor Dashober. It was based on the story "The Tell Tale Heart" by the English author Edgar Allan Poe. Also this one was very professional.
It made me think of an animation film made by a young filmaker in my own region some time ago. I was the president of the judging panel. One of my colleagues had already seen that film on TV.
After the local heat the judging panel invited the young man in order to take a final decision. He admitted that he had made that animation film together with some members of his filmschool and he also said that his film was for sale in FNAC, a famous chain of stores in Holland and Belgium. As he was a young man we declared him to be the winner of the local festival, but we still had our doubts ... It was a difficult dilemma for us because we must also try to attract young filmmakers as most of us are just like dinousaurs. Me too !
Anyway, thanks to the UNICA-DV we had a very enjoyable evening.