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Contact: Matt Heindl - T: 718-388-4306 - F: 718-599-5039
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BIFF 2002 - Progress Edition
5th Brooklyn International Film Festival:
Partial line-up announced.
Brooklyn, New York (March 20, 2002) - The Brooklyn International Film Festival (BIFF) today announced the partial line-up for this year's Progress Edition program.
"This year we received an overwhelming response to our call for entries - more than 1,000 films were submitted from every corner of the globe. The general quality of this group of entries is particularly high and we are still deliberating on the final cut," said Ursino, BIFF Director. "There are, however, a number of films that are clearly part of our program. The final line-up will be announced on April 3 at our kick-off party."
A common trend running through many of this year's film submissions is the coming of age through intergenerational conflicts and misunderstandings. They are about climbing through life stages and obstacles with a new attitude -- much more 'human' than in past years, yet they are as experimental and fresh as our times. The settings and the stories are contemporary. The genres are all represented: from Japanese martial arts and sexy New York comedy to Danish dogma and Italian and Chinese neo realism.
GETTING MY BROTHER LAID
Dir: Sven Taddicken, Germany - East Coast Premiere
JULIETTA
Dir: Christoph Stark, Germany - US Premiere
OPERATION MIDNIGHT CLIMAX
Dir: Will Keenan & Gadi Harel, United States - World Premiere
BLACK PICKET FENCE
Dir: Sergio Goes, United States - World Premiere
PRINCESS BLADE, THE
Dir: Sato Shinsuke, Japan - East Coast Premiere
STRIKE A LIGHT
Dir: Giovanna Sonnino, United States - US Premiere.
More info on featured films available at www.wbff.org/films/
"This year's edition's theme is Progress. Progress is intended as the analysis of today's realities and hopes. With Progress, we explore political and social issues and extend our geographical boundaries -- Progress creates the opportunity to find out where we stand as global human beings, and illustrate universal emotional ties every culture shares", said Ursino.
Although BIFF presents several world premieres, many of the European films have previously been shown at major European festivals including the Venice and Berlin Film Festivals. Some of the films have already a European distribution deal and are looking to enter the American market. Asian, Australian, and South American submissions have tripled since 2001, which will be reflected in the program. The big surprise is that most of the filmmakers selected for our 2002 competition are first time filmmakers.
International films make up a large portion of the program, however, BIFF will screen more American features than ever before, including two New York based world premieres. BIFF also promotes its American films abroad by contacting foreign distribution companies and festivals as well as organizing a tour of festival's winners overseas.
Although BIFF's main program takes place April 29-May 5 at BMA, BIFF is giving a sneak peak at its past festivals' winners as part of BMA's "First Saturdays" program - free to the public. BIFF also plans to showcase films in more of Brooklyn's neighborhoods as part of the "Best of Fest" tour this summer and fall. "We want to share these great films with our community as well as put Brooklyn on the map for its cultural prowess locally, nationally, and internationally," said Ursino.
About Brooklyn International Film Festival
The Brooklyn International Film Festival (BIFF) is a competitive festival for and by independent filmmakers. BIFF , originally founded as the Williamsburg Brooklyn Film Festival (WBFF), is in its fifth year running. This year's festival takes place at the Brooklyn Museum of Art and will show 80+ films total in the Feature, Documentary, Animation, Experimental and Short Film categories. BIFF's goal is to showcase up and coming filmmakers from around the world to Brooklyn's diverse population of film fans, as well as further the careers of featured filmmakers. BIFF's mission is to discover, expose, and promote independent filmmakers while drawing worldwide attention to Brooklyn's artistic, business and cultural communities. BIFF 2002 takes place at Brooklyn Museum of Art April 29-May 5 - then continues with a summer showcase series throughout the neighborhoods of NYC. BIFF/WBFF is a non-profit organization. BIFF's 2002 sponsors are Stella Artois, DTV by Time Warner Cable, WNYC Radio, J.P. Morgan Chase, Panavision NY, and NYSCA among others.
About Brooklyn Museum of Art
The Brooklyn Museum of Art is the second largest art museum in New York City and one of the largest in the United States. One of the premier art institutions in the world, its permanent collection includes more than one and a half million objects, from ancient Egyptian masterpieces to contemporary art, and represents almost every culture. It is housed in a 560,000 square foot, Beaux-Arts building that welcomes approximately half a million visitors each year. Located in Central Brooklyn, a half-hour from midtown Manhattan with its own subway stop, the Museum is set on Eastern Parkway and one block from Grand Army Plaza in a complex of 19th-century parks and gardens that also contains Prospect Park, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and the Wildlife Center
For more information on BMA, contact Sally Williams, Public Information Officer or James Gordon, Media Relations Manager at +1-718-638-5000 or visit its website: www.brooklynart.org
CONTACT:
Matt Heindl - press08 wbff.org
Tel.: 718-388-4306 - Fax: 718-599-5039
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