The 2015th Shangai Internationale Film Festival has selected and celebrated the winners.

 

The 2015 Shangai Internationale Film Festival was the 18th such festival devoted to international cinema held in Shangai from 13th to 18th June, China.

 

Prizes were decided by a jury headed by Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev ("Leviathan").

Organizers reported that the festival screened 391 films, 1,275 times on 51 screens in 45 movie theaters across 17 Shanghai districts. They reached an audience of over 300,000, and earned nearly RMB18 million at the box office.

 

The Golden Goblet Award Winners of the 18th Shanghai International Film Festival are:

 

Award for Best Feature Film

THE NIGHT WATCHMAN (France/Belgium) directed by Pierre Jolivet

 

Jury Grand Prix

CARTE BLANCHE (Poland)directed by Jacek Lusinski

 

Award for Best Director

CAO Baoping for THE DEAD END (China)

 

Award for Best Actor

DENG Chao, DUAN Yihong, GUO Tao in THE DEAD END (China) directed by CAO Baoping

 

Award for Best Actress

Krista Kosonen in THE MIDWIFE (Finland/Lithuania) directed by Antti Jokinen

 

Award for Best Screenplay

Patrick Tobin for CAKE (USA)directed by Daniel Barnz

 

Award for Best Cinematography

Vladislav Opeliyants for SUNSTROKE (Russia)directed by Nikita Mikhalkov

 

Award for Outstanding Artistic Achievement

THE SHAMELESS (Korea) directed by OH Seung-uk

 

Award for Best Animation Film

SONG OF THE SEA (Ireland/Belgium/Denmark/France/Luxembourg) directed by Tomm Moore

 

Award for Best Documentary Film 

THE VERSE OF US (China) directed by WU Feiyue/ QIN Xiaoyu

 

 

 

Asian New Talent Award ( a separate section of SIFF )

Award for best film and best cinematography

"13" (Iran) directed by Hooman Seyyedi

 

 

 

 

 

"Jurassic World" opened with $ 511.8 million worldwide, the highest global bow of all time. It marks the first time a film has ever grossed more than $ 500 million in a single weekend.

The dinosaur thriller is the top-ranking film, after opening in first place in North America and across all 66 international territories where it debuted.

 

Domestically, "Jurassic World" scored the second-biggest debut in history with $ 204.8 million, nipping at the heels of

"Marvel's The Avengers'" $ 207.4 million bow.

 

Internationally, results were boosted by a mammoth $100 million opening in China.

Other openings of note include:

-United Kingdom and Ireland with $29.6 million;

-Mexico with $16.2 million;

-Korea with $14.4 million;

-France with $12.5 million;

-Australia with $12.1 million;

-Germany with $11 million.

 

The only major territory remaining is Japan, where "Jurassic World" will roar on Aug. 5.

 

In terms of premium formats, Imax put up a record-setting international weekend of $ 23.5 million, and 3D screenings accounted for 50% of the global bounty.

 

Sources:

Variety.

 

Arts Alliance Media and Highlands Technologies Solutions have joined forces to launch CineCardz, a product which allows cinema customers to book a personalized "phrase" to play out in front of a film screening of their choice.

 

Exhibitors simply need to install an internet-connected CineCardz box at each site. The box connects to the cinema server to manage insertion of the CineCardz content into the playlist

Customers can upload a message that is then converted to a 30-second animation DCP (Digital Cinema Package), sent electronically to the relevant cinema and automatically inserted into the right place in the pre-show playlist.

The system uses a two-step moderation process, first automated then validated by the exhibitor to ensure content matches exhibitor policy.

 

Arts Alliance Media and Highlands Technologies Solutions deeply believe that CineCardz makes a visit to cinema even more special, providing a unique offering that further enhances the customer experience. Moreover that CineCardz drives customer loyalty, increases frequency of cinema visits and increases incremental revenue.

 

John Aalbers, CEO of AAM says:  "We are big believers that the end to end cinema experience can and should be enhanced by making it more interactive with the aid of innovative software solutions."

Patrick Zucchetta, CEO of HTS says:  " Not only is it a new and unique feature for cinema customers to say I love you, congratulations, well done, happy mother's day and many others, it's also very affordable and fun, adding excitement to the whole cinema experience."

 

Sources:

Digital Cinema Report-Nick Dager, ArtAllianceMedia, Highlands Technologies Solutions, pro.boxoffice.com.

Barco unveiled Barco Escape and announced that veteran producer Jerry Bruckheimer will use the format for an upcoming project. His company, Jerry Bruckheimer Films, will also explore re-envisioning a classic Bruckheimer film in the format offering audiences an unmatched viewing experience inside the action never before available.

"Barco Escape is a bold step forward in storytelling and the future of the cinema experience, allowing us to expand the creative vision of our films" says Bruckheimer.Barco Escape represents a significant advancement in the film industry's ongoing evolution and we are thrilled to work with Barco's team to develop projects that will transport audiences into movies in an unprecedented way."

Viewing a film in the Escape format, pratically in three different screens, is not the same as simply watching it on a much bigger visual plain such as with IMAX or Cinerama.

Barco Escape was introduced to audiences in September when it featured select scenes from director Wes Ball and 20th Century Fox's hit film "The Maze Runner" in the format. The sequel to The Maze Runner – also shot natively for Barco Escape – is scheduled to be released later this year.

 

 

 

Sources:

Digital Cinema Report Nick Dager, Celluloid Junkie.

Tale of Tales of Matteo Garrone reaches 897 thousand euro in the first week of the Cannes film festival.

 

Tale of Tales (Italian:  Il racconto dei racconti) is a 2015 Italian fantasy horror film, directed by Matteo Garrone,  starring Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones and John C Reilly.

The film was an Italian-led production with co-producers in France and the United Kingdom. It was Garrone's first English-language film. It competed for the Palme d'Or at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.

It is a screen adaptation based on collections of tales by Neapolitan poet and courtier Giambattista Basile : Pentamerone  or Lo cunto de li cunti (Tale of Tales, or Entertainment for Little Ones) which contains the earliest versions of famous fables like Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella.

 

 

 

The Baroque stories manage to mix real and surreal, with many metaphorical usages. Pentamerone was the first book of fairytales written in the 1600s that has inspired many others to follow, such as the ones by the Grimm Brothers, Hans Christian Andersen, Charles Perrault.

As a former painter Matteo Garrone has managed to paint the images on the silver screen with fairyland verisimilitude. A great inspirer has been the Spanish romantic painter Francisco Goya. ‘Tale of Tales' clearly evokes the world of the Caprichos, that Goya defined as "the innumerable foibles and follies to be found in any civilised society, and from the common prejudices and deceitful practices which custom, ignorance, or self-interest have made usual".

The four screenwriters approached with great humanism three female stories, where desire is what drives characters.

 

Dolby Laboratories unveiled Dolby Cinema at the show and announced that AMC Theatres will be building as many as 100 Dolby Cinema theatres at AMC Prime locations across the United States 'till December 2024.

 

The Dolby Vision laser projection system delivers high dynamic range with enhanced color technology that produces incredible blacks. The result is a richer, more detailed viewing experience that delivers strikingly vivid and realistic images that make audiences feel like they are in the movie's world.

 

Dolby Atmos moves audio around the theatre, even overhead, with amazing richness and depth. The lifelike sounds of music, people, and things flow all around the theatre in sync with the action to create a more immersive and moving experience.

 

The design of the cinema itself has been created to set a mood and draw audiences deeper into the story.

Through the Dolby technology, combined with the ultimate comfort and experience of the AMC Prime plush recliners with seat transducers, guests will feel closer than ever to the action on screen.

 

 

Sources:

Digital Cinema Report Nick Dager, Dolby Laboratories.

Youth (Italian: La giovinezza) is a 2015 Italian film written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino. Starring Michael Caine, it is the director's second English-language film and the follow-up to his Academy Award-winning film The Great Beauty (2013).The cast also includes Rachel Weisz, Paul Dano, Jane Fonda and Harvey Keitel. Youth premiered at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or.

 

A retired orchestra conductor is on holiday with his daughter and film director best friend in the Alps when he receives an invitation from Queen Elizabeth II to perform for Prince Philip's birthday.

 

While the Coen brothers-led jury showed no love for Paolo Sorrentino's Youth in Cannes, the new film swept the box office in his home country Italy.

 

The film, playing only in a dubbed Italian version, stars Michael Caine, Harvey Keitel, Rachel Weisz, Jane Fonda and Paul Dano. It brought in $2.88 million (€2.6 million), almost double its closest competitor, Disney's Tomorrowland, which debuted with $1.47 million (€1.34 million).

 

 

Resources:

Hollywood Report, Variety.

 

Philips developed "LightVibes" collaborating with Universal Music Enterprises, a division of UMG, the world's leading music company.

 

"LightVibes" add LED lighting throughout the movie theater which is synced with media content to create a fully-engaging experience.

Moreover, theaters that install LightVibes can receive access to an ongoing slate of superstar concert titles from UMG

 

Titles initially featured include historic concerts from Alice Cooper, The Doors, Dream Theatre, Morrissey, Paul McCartney and Wings, Peter Gabriel, Queen and The Rolling Stones.

Both companies will explore promotional activity such as local market events to support key releases.

 

The multi-screen technology delivers compelling, subtle ambient lighting to every viewer's peripheral field of vision, enhancing musical performances and events – as well as feature films, pre-show programming and advertising. LightVibes delivers true immersive theater that increases the impact of on-screen content, while bringing new capabilities to cinematographers and others in the creative community.

 

 

Sources:

Digital Cinema Report/Nick Dager, Philips, Variety.

The 68th annual Cannes Film Festival is currently being held from

13 to 24 May 2015.  

Joel and Ethan Coen have been announced as the Presidents of the Jury for the main competition.

French actor Lambert Wilson has been announced as the host for the opening and closing ceremonies.

 

" 68thPalme d'or "

View the list of winners ...

 

 

 

Winner in the Section
Palme d'or :
 

Dheepan - Jacques Audiard;

"The film has a happy ending because he agrees to what she wants. I liked this idea of a man accepting a woman's wishes. What interests me is the other person's perspective, and how we view the people that sell roses in restaurants. These people come from somewhere".

 

 

Winner in the Section
Grand Prix:
 

Lazlo Nemes - Saul Fia ( Son of Saul);

"I think that Europe is still haunted by the extermination of the Jews in Europe. In Hungary there were lots of deportations and I don't think that it is simply a page in history. I wanted to approach this issue from a new angle, and felt it was important to speak to the generation of survivors; there are fewer and fewer of them left".

 

 

Winner in the Section
Best Director:
 

Hou Hsiao-Hsien - Nie Yinniang (The Assassin);

"Once you reach a certain depth, it becomes about human beings, their way of life and what is becoming culture. And once it becomes about human beings, you are left with something universal."

 

 

Winner in the Section
Best Screenplay:
Michel Franco - Chronic;

"I wrote this script from a personal story, I wondered about the lives of the people who deal with such serious issues every day. So I mustn't forget to dedicate this award to my grandmother."

 

 

 

Winner in the Section
Jury Prize:
Yorgos Lanthimos - The Lobster;

"You always try to do something different in a film, which makes it hard to achieve unanimous approval. So to win an award is extraordinary."

 

 

 

Winner in the Section
Best Actor:
 

Vincent Lindon - La Loi du marchè;

"When it comes to your true secrets, you need someone to draw them out. Stéphane Brizé brought out things in me that I wasn't even aware of myself. I feel like all the parts I have played prior to this one were all leading up to what I give in this role".

 

Winner in the Section
Best Actress (ex-equo):
Ronney Mara- Carol;

Tonny Haneys speaking about Ronney Mara: "She is remarkable, it's an honour to be here to pay tribute to her. Both actresses are extraordinary, it's thanks to them that the film works."

 

Winner in the Section
Best Actress (ex-equo):
Emmanuelle Bercot - Mon Roi;

"Sharing the award means there's less weight on my shoulders. It's the third time I've won a prize at Cannes, and every time I share it, which is fine by me. I hope one day to play a role as wonderful as this one, but I won't hold my breath!"

 

Winner in the Section
Best Camera d'or :
Cesar Augusto Acevedo - La Tiera y La  Sombra;

"It's a film about the history, identity and memory of a people, there is a sense of progress."

 

Winner in the Section
Short Films:
Ely Dagher - Waves '98.

"Fiction was an obvious choice"

 

CJ CGV, the South Korean conglomerate behind the 4DX cinema system, unveiled ScreenX, a multi-projection technology that extends the movie from a main screen onto the sidewalls of a theatre. By using all three sides the technology offers the audience an immersive experience.

CJ CGV developed ScreenX in cooperation with KAIST. The multi-projection system was patented in Korea last September and has patent applications pending overseas.

 

The system uses six projectors per wall for a total of 13 projectors.

According to the company, ScreenX is projector and server agnostic, though currently the digital cinema projectors are from Christie, the servers are from Hewlett-Packard.

 

This system is primarily used for advertising and have yet to support a feature-length film. 

 

The next steps are to attempt a full-length motion picture with the technology, while expanding the ScreenX-enabled cinema footprint further to its outlets in South Korea (75 screens) as well as China (1 screen) and the U.S. (1 screen).

 

 

Sources:

Variety, Hollywood Report, Digital Cinema Report and Nick Dager.