Written by Octavia Wang，2021 Cohort
Film festivals are an integral part of the history of cinema. With the important mission of promoting films and connecting film producers, countless film festivals have started operating over the past century.
Venice Film Festival
In 1932, the world’s first film festival was held in Venice. As part of that year’s Venice Biennale, Venice Film Festival had received the full support of the Italian fascists and thus was able to guarantee sustainable development. The First Festival was noncompetitive but at the following one, they decided to set an award which was named Coppa Mussolini to the best film of that year. The award was later changed to another name that might be more familiar for us, which is the Golden Lion (Leone d’Oro).
Now, this oldest film festival became one of the big three international film festivals in Europe. (The other two are the Cannes Film Festival and the Berlin International Film Festival). The Golden Lion award also became a household name, as well as one of the highest awards for world-class film.
However, like any other similar form of activity, not all festivals can sustain long and steady growth. To face the fierce competition that comes with the expansion, many festivals decided to have a specific focus point, such as a certain aspect of expression or a specific genre.
Festival International du Film d’Animation d’Annecy
Annecy animation film festival focuses on encouraging animation filmmaking. As its name mentions, it is held annually in the town of Annecy. It’s one of the four grand international animation film festivals approved by the International Animated Film Association.
It’s also my favourite animation film festival in recent years, especially since I’ve started to get tired of the heavy commercialism of the recent Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature Film. I advise all of you who enjoy animated features to check it out!