A high-stakes game of "who's first" has been playing out in the world of top Asian film festivals.
The
industry has been abuzz recently with talk that the Tokyo Intl. Film
Festival would shift to a September slot from next year.
That
would encroach on Pusan's ability to secure world preems for the fest.
Ditto for the rivalry between PPP and Tokyo Project Gathering.
Launched
in 1985, TIFF has long prided itself on being Asia's premiere fest, but
has been eclipsed by PIFF in terms of international interest and
programming clout.
A rumored shift to a September or early
October date might enable it to poach more of the regional and world
bows that now go to PIFF, while stealing the junior fest's foreign
critical and media buzz.
Tokyo has not yet gone on the record to
announce its 2008 dates. But sources within and close to the org say
that chances of a major change are small.
"We are fundamentally
committed to a late October opening," said a TIFF rep, who asked to
remain anonymous. "That is not likely to change for next year." Another
source in UniJapan, which promotes Japanese pics abroad and has close
ties to TIFF, said that rumors of a shift to dates before PIFF, which
have reportedly spooked Pusan fest organizers, are "just not true, at
least for next year."
But sources did confirm that TIFF chairman Tsuguhiko Kadokawa,
who has worked to internationalize and expand the scope of TIFF in his
five years as topper, will leave the fest following its upcoming 20th
edition, set to unspool in Tokyo from Oct. 20-28. "He had planned to
retire after the last festival, but decided to extend for one more
year," the TIFF source said. TIFF has not yet decided on a replacement.
For the moment, TIFF seems content with its current post-PIFF sked, though Kadokawa's successor may have different plans.
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