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The Vancouver International Film Festival Hana |
The Vancouver International Film Festival Taking place in a city close to the Pacific Ocean, the Vancouver Film Festival, now celebrating its 25th year, is one of the world's leading showcases of East Asian and Canadian films. In 2005, there were 106 Canadian films, including 33 features, nine mid-lengths and 64 shorts. Unheard of only twenty five years ago when Asian cinema meant only China and Japan, the East Asian nations represented in this years VIFF include Cambodia, China, Bhutan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. Featuring over 300 films and attracting an average of 150,000 viewers each year, the Festival also includes a broad spectrum of fiction and nonfiction films from around the world divided into the following sections: Cinema of Our Time featuring the best new films from around the world; Canadian Images reflecting the best new Canadian films; Dragons and Tigers: The Cinemas of East Asia, the largest annual exhibition of East Asian films outside Asia; Nonfiction Features; and Spotlight on France. This year the following world-class directors are represented: Jafar Panahi, Tsai Ming-liang, Jia Zhangke, Achipatpong Weerasethakul, Hirokazu Koreeda, Jong Boon-ho, Hong Sang-soo, Claude Chabrol, Darren Aronofsky, Pedro Almodovar, and many others. ©2006 Howard Schumann |