Synopsis
Cahier du Cinema and SRF presented an significant project in this year's Directors' forrnight in Cannes. The society raised a question of globalization-American Domination of world Cinema and proposed that each of the Directors from various countries produce and direct a short film in response to the following question : "What is your reaction to the idea that globalization represents a danger to the diversity of cinematic creation?"
The directors who responded with short film answers are as follows: China's Lou Ye and Jia Zhang Ke, Israel's Amos Gita? Germany's Helma Sanders-Brahms, Egypt's Yousry Nasrallah, Italy's Jean-Marie Sutraub and Danièle Huillet, Spain's Marc Recha, and Mexico's Arturo Ripstein. The short films by these directors were shown at the Directors' forrnight in Cannes and in this year's Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival, Korean director LEE Hyun-seung replies with his film, < Director Driver >.
When the films were shown at Cannes, the audience was somber, sometimes giving out a big round of applause-in certain cases; a quiet sobbing could be heard. Jia Zhang Ke's < The Dog Condition > showed dogs inside a sack, and one dog's struggle to break free from the sack, biting the sack and trying to pull himself free from it-symbolizing the situation of today's directors in China. Lou Ye answered with a film of a man staring at the camera, without blinking even once. A hope for coexistence of different films were shown in < The Films of the Fishes >, depicting a group of fishes in an aquarium. A film, in which the director himself stars and answers the question, < Surgeon General's Warning > was shown. And < Immondialisable > was a direct film about the progress in which the images in films become globalized.
The Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival sympathizes with the
SRF project, and after the screening of the short film, there will be a 'Megatalk' with guests. We hope this special presentation will offer the viewers a chance to reflect on the meaning of globalization, and a chance to find the right answer. (Ellen KIM)