Udine Far East Film Festival Press Release

[Stephen Cremin]

I'll include the full lineup and guest list in next week's issue of THE 
ASIAN FILM LIBRARY BULLETIN, but in the meantime here's the official press 
release.  There will be at least a couple of guests from Japan ... as well 
as an exciting international premiere which has yet to be announced.

Stephen Cremin

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Centro Espressioni Cinematografiche with the collaboration of Cineteca del 
Friuli and Teatro Nuovo ?Giovanni da Udine? presents:

FAR EAST FILM
The World?s Largest Showcase of Asian Popular Cinema
UDINEINCONTRI CINEMA 2000 - XIV EDIZIONE

Films and filmmakers from nine territories in East Asia will converge at 
Udine, near Venice, Italy, for FAR EAST FILM II - an eight-day celebration 
(8-15 April) of quality mainstream cinema of the past year from the world's 
most exciting moviemaking region.

This year's festival follows the 1999 inaugural event, already hailed by 
both press and public as "the most important window for cinema from the Far 
East."

FAR EAST FILM II will open on Saturday, 8 April, with the European premiere 
of the South Korean terrorist thriller, SHIRI, the most successful movie 
ever released in the country. The festival will close on Saturday, 15 April, 
with the Western premiere of Gordon Chan's action drama 2000 AD, shot in 
Singapore. The film opened in Hong Kong over Chinese New Year.

During eight days, over 50 features will be screened, with some 30 
filmmakers in attendance. New countries featured this year include Japan, 
Thailand and Vietnam.

Acknowledging the pan-Asian boom in psychological thrillers during the past 
year, one day of the festival (12 April) will be designated as "Horror Day", 
with seven films guaranteed to give audiences a sleepless night.

Highlights of the full programme include:

* TRIBUTE TO STEPHEN CHIAU: The Hong Kong megastar will be feted with the 
first-ever tribute in the West to his comedic skills, with screenings of his 
two latest movies, THE TRICKY MASTER and KING OF COMEDY, plus four earlier 
works, including FROM BEIJING WITH LOVE and FORBIDDEN CITY COP. The 
notoriously publicity-shy Chiau will be present in Udine.

* NEW FROM HONG KONG: Latest movies by some of the biggest Hong Kong names, 
including Ringo Lam (VICTIM), Johnnie To (THE MISSION), Andrew Lau (A MAN 
CALLED HERO), Sylvia Chang (TEMPTING HEART), Teddy Chen (PURPLE STORM) and 
Gordon Chan (2000 AD).

* SALUTES TO ASIAN ACTRESSES: Present in Udine with their latest films will 
be top South Korean actress Kang Soo-yeon (with the raunchy GIRLS' NIGHT 
OUT) and fast-rising Taiwanese actress-singer Rene Liu (with the 
relationships comedy THE PERSONALS). As a salute to her distinguished 
career, the festival will be screening two of Kang's earlier films, 
including her 1987 Venice prizewinner SURROGATE MOTHER, directed by Im 
Kwon-taek. Liu will be saluted with a screening of the film that first 
brought her to attention, SIAO YU, directed by Sylvia Chang in 1995. Both 
actresses will be present in Udine.

* NEW FROM KOREA: From South Korea's resurgent industry, the best films of 
the past year, including serial-killer chiller TELL ME SOMETHING, period 
drama MY HEART, and the first-ever coproduction with Japan, KAZOKU CINEMA. 
Plus the festival's opener, SHIRI, the film that outgrossed TITANIC in Korea 
last year.

* NORTH KOREA: An extremely rare chance to savour the virtually unknown 
cinema of North Korea, with eight features from 1985 to the present.

* CHINA: New movies from China, including the award-winning generational 
drama SHOWER (by Zhang Yang, director of SPICY LOVE SOUP) and Xmas 
box-office hit SORRY BABY (by Feng Xiaogang, director of BE THERE OR BE 
SQUARE).

* NEW THIS YEAR: For the first time this year, movies from Thailand 
(box-office blockbuster NANG NAK, a period ghostly romance), Singapore 
(youth picture EATING AIR), Vietnam (apartment drama THE BUILDING) and Japan 
(see Horror Day, below).

* HORROR DAY: Headlining the seven movies will be THE RING and THE RING 2, 
the two Japanese movies that started the whole boom for psychological 
thrillers throughout the region. Also showing from Japan: the chilling 
HYPNOSIS and the supernatural love story SECRET.

FAR EAST FILM
Centro Espressioni Cinematografiche
via Villalta, 24
33100 - Udine -Italy
tel +39 0432 299545
fax +39 0432 229815
e-mail: fareastfilm at cecudine.org
web: www.fareastfilm.com
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