Vesoul Festival Unveils Lineup of Asian Films – Global Bulletin

Patrick Frater
·4 min read
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VESOUL UNVEILS ASIAN LINEUP

The Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema has unveiled its 85-title lineup for the edition that starts later this month (February 28 to March 7, 2023). Elements include a 10-film competition section, a 10-film documentary film section, a tribute to the Turkish director Semih Kaplanoglu; a thematic section “Asian Diaspora Cinema” offering a panorama of works by directors from Asian countries living in exile; and a Philippines cinema sidebar.

Fiction films in competition include: Azerbaijan’s “Cold as Marble,” by Asif Rustamov; China’s “In Our Prime,” by Liu Yulin; Korea’s “A Letter from Kyoto,” by Kim Min-ju; India’s: “Behind Veils,” by Praveen Morshhale; Iran’s “No End,” by Nader Saievar; Mongolia’s “The Sales Girl,” by Sengedorj Janchivdorj; The Philippines’s “Feast,” by Brillante Mendoza; Singapore’s “#LookAtMe,” by Ken Kwek; and Vietnam’s “Memento Mori: Earth,” by Marcus Vu Manh Cuong. The president of the jury is Lee Yong-kwan, president of the Busan film festival.

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The tribute to Kaplanoglu will see the entirety of his feature film work presented, including “Hasan’s Promises” and 2010 Berlin Golden Bear winner “Honey.” The Philippine cinema sidebar aims to highlight recently-restored works of such veterans as Lamberto Avellana, Mario O’Hara, Ishmael Bernal, Mike de Leon, Kidlat Tahimik or young talents like Sheron Dayoc, Mikhail Red, Zig Dulay.

ARIYOSHI ASSISTS

Netflix will next month air “Ariyoshi Assists,” a comedy-variety series that marks the first time that Nippon TV has produced a show exclusively for a global streamer which will not air nor stream on Nippon TV. With the well-known and ever popular Ariyoshi Hiroiki as host, the show will comprise 10 episodes of between 30 and 60 minutes each, filmed in Japanese and sub-titled for international viewers.

Ariyoshi assists ten guest hosts, including artists and professional athletes, who each host their own episode. Every episode is built around a unique concept and format catered to highlight the special talents of the hosts. Experienced comedians, including both veterans and up-and-comers, participate and attempt to conquer the various segments proposed by the hosts, all while trying to land jokes about the absurd set-ups that Ariyoshi suddenly throws at them. Nippon TV pitches it as “the epitome of the world-coveted crazy Japanese comedy show genre, wild and hilariously funny.”

The show emerged from Nippon TV’s content strategy division which was set up in June 2022 and aims to accelerate large-scale co-development and co-productions projects with streamers, broadcasters, and producers around the world. It launches from March 14.

JEONJU APPOINTS

The Jeonju International Film Festival has appointed Park Taejoon, CEO of Birdy Film, as the executive producer of the Jeonju Project, the festival’s film development operation. He will be active as the executive producer of Jeonju Project, and will be in charge of planning and managing the Jeonju Cinema Project, the wider industry program. Park best-known as an executive producer of Bong Joon-ho’s “Mother” and as co-producer of “Snowpiercer.” Other film credits include “Luck-Key” (2016), “The Handmaiden” (2016), “Believer” (2018), and “Heart Blackened “(2017). The Jeonju IFF will be held for ten days from April 27 to May 6, 2023. The project market will run three days from April 30 to May 2.

AMAZON ADDS

Prime Video has extended the rights to exclusively broadcast the Wednesday top-pick match in the UEFA Champions League in Italy for three additional seasons from 2024 through 2025. The new deal ensures that Prime Video will have exclusive UEFA Champions League football in Italy and Germany through to 2027, as well as the U.K. which will begin in 2024. From 2024, this will include 18 live and exclusive matches per season in Italy and continues the promise to feature an Italian team, if qualified, from the group stage to the semi-finals.

SINGH MEETS

NBA India ambassador and Bollywood star Ranveer Singh participated in the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game over the weekend. He played for Miami Heat legend Dwayne Wade’s team. Singh also got to meet the player he looks up to and has been inspired by all his life – LeBron James.

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