The International Film Festival & Awards Macao
(IFFAM) is delighted to announce the appointment of Academy Award winner
Nicolas Cage as Talent Ambassador for the 3rd
edition of the festival, which will take place from 8th
to 14th December 2018 in Macao.
Cage, internationally renowned American actor,
director and producer, joins Hong Kong based star Aaron Kwok as an IFFAM Talent
Ambassador, reflecting the festival’s ambition to bring together local and
international industry professionals, to highlight Macao’s East-meets-West
culture and to introduce local audiences to the best in international cinema.
Mike Goodridge, Artistic Director of the IFFAM,
comments: “Nicolas Cage is a brilliant, iconic actor and a star for the ages.
We are proud and delighted to welcome him to Macao this year as our talent
ambassador, and to show his extraordinary new film Mandy.”
Cage will be present at the IFFAM Opening Ceremony
which takes place on 8 December. Additionally Cage will
participate in a Master Class on 9th December, with
further details to be announced.
Cage’s latest film Mandy, a supernatural thriller
directed by Panos Cosmatos, will be presented at the festival. Mandy features
in the IFFAM Flying Daggers section, a non-competitive selection of
international genre films. Cage stars alongside a supporting cast led by Andrea
Rise borough and Linus Roache. Mandy is set in the primal wilderness of the
Pacific Northwest in 1983. Outsiders Red Miller
and Mandy Bloom lead a loving and peaceful existence. When their pine-scented
haven is savagely destroyed by a cult led by the sadistic Jeremiah Sand, Red is
catapulted into a phantasmagoric journey filled with bloody vengeance and laced
with fire.
Nicolas Cage is an actor, director, and producer
whose remarkable versatility has led to great success across all genres for
over three decades. In 2017, he starred in Brian
Taylor’s critically acclaimed black comedy, Mom and Dad, which premiered at the
Toronto Film Festival and screened at IFFAM last year.
Cage received an Academy Award among many other
awards for his performance as a suicidal alcoholic in Leaving Las Vegas(1995) before
coming to the attention of worldwide audiences with mainstream blockbusters,
such asThe Rock(1996),Face/Off(1997),Con Air(1997),City
of Angels(1998) and National Treasure 1and2(2004,
2007). He earned his second Academy Award nomination for
his performance in Adaptation(2002). He also directed the
film Sonny(2002), and has produced films such as Shadow of the
Vampire(2000) and The Life of David Gale(2003).
During his early career, Cage starred in a variety
of classic films including Valley Girl(1983), Racing with the
Moon(1984), Birdy(1984), Peggy Sue Got
Married(1986), Raising Arizona(1987),Moonstruck(1987),
Vampire’s Kiss(1989), Wild at Heart(1990),
Fire Birds(1990), Honeymoon in Vegas(1992)and
Red Rock West (1993).
More recently, Cage appeared in Bad Lieutenant:
Port of Call New Orleans(2009),Kick-Ass(2010),Drive
Angry(2011),The Croods(2013),Joe(2013) and
Paul Schrader’s Dog Eat Dog(2016).
MGTO signs a memorandum of cooperation with China
Film Producers’ Association
To enhance mutual cooperation for IFFAM, China
Film Producers’ Association (the “Association”) and Macao Government Tourism
Office signed a memorandum of cooperation. The agreement was signed by Chairman
of the China Film Producers’ Association, Ming Zhenjiang, and MGTO Director Senna
Fernandes on behalf of their entities, unveiling a collaborative program
effective for three years. With the memorandum signed, the Association has
become a supporting entity of IFFAM and will recommend influential Mainland
film celebrities to join the Film Festival. In addition, both parties will give
mutual recommendation of remarkable films and make collaborative endeavors to
promote exchange and cooperation with international filmmakers and nurture the
next generation of film talent.
Head of Tourism Product and Events Department of
MGTO, Jennifer Si Tou; representative of the Macau Films & Television
Productions and Culture Association (MFTPA), Deputy Secretary General and Chief
Financial Officer of the IFFAM Organizing Committee, Lei Sou Ian, and representative
of the Secretariat of the IFFAM Organizing Committee, Wong Chi Wai; as well as
Secretary General of the China Film Producers’ Association, Wang Fenglin, also
participated in the above occasion.
Before the memorandum was signed, the MGTO delegation
met with Chairman of the China Film Producers’ Association, Ming Zhenjiang, and
Jury President of IFFAM and film director Chen Kaige to exchange perspectives
on the progress of preparations for the 3rd IFFAM.
China International Culture Communication Center
recognizes IFFAM’s contributions
In order to equip IFFAM with quality resources and
platforms for cultural dissemination, help propagate traditional Chinese
culture across the world and enhance Macao’s tourism development through
culture as an enhancer, MGTO signed another memorandum of cooperation with the
China International Culture Communication Center (“CICCC” or the “Center”) in
early March, followed by continuous mutual communication and the Center’s
support to promote IFFAM among the Mainland film industry and recommend
Mainland films and outstanding film talent for this edition of IFFAM. In this
visit to Beijing, MGTO Director Senna Fernandes and her team met with the
Secretary of the Leading Party Members’ Group and Executive Chairman of the
China International Culture Communication Center, Long Yuxiang, to share the
latest preparations for IFFAM. Both sides engaged in a profound dialogue on the
tasks that lie ahead. During the meeting, CICCC Executive Chairman Long Yuxiang
expressed his recognition for the role of IFFAM as a cultural exchange platform
between the East and West, and indicated the continuous support of the Center
to the work of the IFFAM Organizing Committee.
As the President of the IFFAM Organizing
Committee, MGTO Director Senna Fernandes believes in the vast potential of
IFFAM to grow and reach new milestones in its third edition to come. She looks
forward to infusing the Film Festival with new elements through partnership
with prominent filmmakers from different countries and regions, while getting
inspired from their experience to make IFFAM an extraordinary event. The Office
will also make an incessant effort to enrich the diversity of local tourism
products in line with the vision of building Macao into a world centre of
tourism and leisure.
2018 IFFAM Programme Highlights
Bringing A New Avenue to The World of Films, the
IFFAM programme will comprise of the following strands:
Competition – An international competition
comprising a maximum of twelve feature films which is a showcase for first and
second time film-makers with 60,000 USD as the award
winning prize.
Gala – mainstream crowd pleasing films will be
presented, comprising a maximum of six films
Flying Daggers – A non-competitive selection of
international genre films
Best of Fest Panorama –A non-competitive selection
of films from other major international film festivals of the year
New Chinese Cinema – A showcase of four to six
films representing the programming team’s choice of the best of Chinese
language cinema first screened in 2018.
Director’s Choice (Retrospective) – A
non-competitive selection of six classic genre films, selected by six
well-known directors; three films from Asia selected by non-Asian directors and
three films from the world outside Asia selected by Asian directors
In Focus (Retrospective) – A celebration of one or
two specific outstanding talents to be invited among directors, actors,
actresses, writers, directors of photography, production designers, producers,
composers, editors etc. with screenings of their films and on-stage interviews
Special Presentations – Screenings of films at the
discretion of the Artistic director and jury president related to special guest
attendance and lifetime achievement honourees
For All the Family – A small collection of one to
three films which will appeal to a wide family audience.
The IFFAM Industry Hub and Masterclasses will also
be held during the event.
For more information, please visit the official
website: http://www.iffamacao.com
