By Yelena Ponomareva
The Belarusian films won’t be participating in the main competition programme; rather, they’ll be shown in Short Film Corner (established in 2004 to introduce new filmmakers). The forum also includes lectures and master classes, allowing filmmakers from around the world to establish creative contacts and forge new friendships.
Belarus’ cartoon Fish Called Impossible-3, by director Alexander Lenkin, has already won various and prizes at international festivals, as has Mikhail Tumelya’s How I Serve the Pan. Also being screened are the documentaries Special Theatre. Looking for Happiness by Yekaterina Makhova, Taken Land by Yury Timofeev and Oksana Volkova A Prima Vista by Natalia Zhamoidik.
The 66th International Film Festival in Cannes opens with The Great Gatsby, directed by Australian Baz Luhrmann and starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The main competition features 19 films, including those by the Coen brothers, Roman Polanski and Takashi Miike. The jury is chaired by American legend Steven Spielberg.
In 2012, In the Fog by Sergey Loznitsa, shot jointly by Belarusfilm and European film companies, won the FIPRESCI prize (International Federation of Film Critics) as best film in the main competition.
