Inside Move: Pics, polls on bill
Paris fest hashing 'cultural exception'
Half of the films will screen in new 35mm prints
8/29/08 4:16pm
Boston Film Fest scales down
Event opens Sept. 12 with 'Appaloosa'
8/29/08 12:55pm
Kiarostami handed Venice prize
Director takes Glory to the Filmmaker Award
8/29/08 9:22am
IFC takes 'Flame & Citron' to U.S.
Danish hit screens at Telluride, Toronto
8/29/08 7:50am
Thessaloniki focuses on Middle East
Twelve films from region to be shown
8/29/08 7:07am
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The issue is almost as contentious in France as abortion rights or gun control are Stateside.
Capitalizing on the fury generated by Vivendi Universal topper Jean-Marie Messier's recent remarks claiming the cultural exception is "dead," organizers of the 17th Paris Film Fest (April 1-9) will host a panel, "Creators Question Politicians," that will drill candidates on their platforms.
Current President Jacques Chirac, Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and other likely candidates are expected to participate.
"The stakes are especially high," fest organizers say. "Next year France must defend the established Euro-wide media protections embodied in the Television Without Borders directive that is up for renegotiation."
In France it is the government's role to guarantee that those engaged in creating French movies, TV shows and music have enforceable tools with which to keep the American entertainment steamroller at bay.
With a fresh new four-year mandate, Marco Mueller finally has a chance to burnish his legacy on the Lido and take it to a higher plateau.
In frugal times, studios are rethinking the value of expensive European preems and the impact on box office and Oscar.
European producers, sales agents and financiers are approaching the fall festivals with trepidation. Toronto will be the first real chance for them to inspect the damage.
Vet docu-essayist Avi Mograbi permits his personal ideology and interests to overpower "Z32," an idiosyncratic take on soldiers' traumatic memories of horrors both seen and perpetrated.
My Stars
Children of the Pyre
Valentino: The Last Emperor
