Expresión en Corto
San Miguel
Fri–Tue, Jul 24–28
Guanajuato
Wed–Sun, Jul 29–Aug 2
Free

Expresión en Corto at Cannes 
By Daniel Kandell

This week the Expresión en Corto International Film Festival hosts receptions and unveils projects inside the Short Film Corner within the Marché du Film at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival in France.

Expresión en Corto also will renew its partnership with the Cannes Cinéfondation La Résidence program during a welcoming brunch in honor of the next generation of MexiCannes, as well as host a cocktail reception for members of the international film industry.

For the second year in a row, Expresión en Corto celebrates the partnership with Cinéfondation which produced the MexiCannes Summer Residence Program. This program serves as an extension to the Cannes Cinéfondation Residence Program, which yearly selects a dozen of the very best young filmmakers from around the world (in addition to two of the top Mexican filmmakers on special scholarship from Expresión en Corto) and offers them a platform designed to propel their careers. The program includes private master’s classes, workshops and meetings with producers, distributors and financiers during the festival’s International Pitching Market, helping them secure financing for their projects.

This year Expresión en Corto welcomes the next generation of MexiCannes during a brunch on the morning of May 15, on the Plage de Palmes where the 12 laureates from this year’s 17th and 18th sessions of the Cinéfondation La Résidence will be invited along with special guests. Later that same afternoon, Expresión en Corto also will invite friends and associates of the film industry to a cocktail reception inside the Short Film Corner.

Expresión en Corto and Avon Products will launch the third edition of the “Speak Out Against Domestic Violence Short Film Contest” at Cannes. The competition originated in Mexico in 2007 as part of a joint project between Avon Cosmetics Mexico and Expresión en Corto, and has been held on two previous occasions.

The “Speak Out” contest will be launched officially during a presentation May 15, noon–1pm within the Short Film Corner, the most important platform in the world for short film distribution. Producers, international sellers, distributors and financiers meet at this visible location within the Marché du Film to make the deals for tomorrow’s films. Immediately following the presentation, the “Speak Out” program will be screened 1:30–3:30pm in one of the Marché du Film rooms within the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès.

The program, representing the best films from the first two years of the “Speak Out” contest, will be viewable on 40 screens within the Digital Film Library and highlights of the films will be found in the Short Film Corner’s program catalog and website. This Digital Film Library can be viewed by festival guests, industry professionals, festival programmers, television stations, media outlets, producers and distributors looking to program and purchase content.

“We are pleased to invite filmmakers from around the world to reflect and react upon this important topic and help raise awareness against the problem of domestic violence within our society,” commented Sarah Hoch, the Executive Director of Expresión en Corto. “We also would like to encourage programmers to collaborate with us in bringing these important films to wider audiences around the world by inviting the program for future screenings at festivals and events,” added Hoch.

The contest will be announced once again at Expresión en Corto in Guanajuato on July 31, as part of the Women in Film and Television Luncheon, before the festival’s invited guests and assembled media. The competition closes October 1, the deadline for entries. The third “Speak Out” edition culminates during the awards ceremony to be held on November 24, at the Cineteca Nacional in Mexico City, when the 2009 award winners will be announced. Cash prizes totalling 100,000 pesos will be awarded to the top three films.

Expresión en Corto is Mexico’s largest competitive film festival and the most prestigious of its kind in Latin America. The nonprofit festival has been held since 1997 during the final week of July in San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato. The festival does not charge admission to its audience and estimates an attendance of 72,000. Over 2,000 works from 84 participating countries are expected in its international competition. It presents films, conferences, workshops, tributes and activities. This year’s Expresión en Corto will be in San Miguel July 24–28, and in Guanajuato July 29–August 2.

Visit www.expresionencorto.com for additional information on the “Speak Out” contest, including the official call for entries and online registration form, as well as general information about Expresión en Corto.