You would have read by now all the articles in the mainstream and social media about the technical problems that have plagued this year's edition of the festival, ranging from botched screenings, cancellations, and new problems this year include the blatant disregard and disrespect to paying filmgoers by screening screeners which came complete with watermarks, and in low-resolution blown up for the big screen. The usual bug bears of inaccurate film timings, lack of quality control in its published material (though it was full-coloured), the lack of proper and prompt communications through its website and other official channels, still plague the festival, made more interesting with a self-fulfilling prophecy of a hack job trailer that seem to suggest plenty of problems from behind the scenes.
What topped it all off is the poor response reported in the press for all and sundry with the usual tai-chi skills of certain festival programmers. Sure it isn't easy running a major film festival where 1001 things can go wrong, but having more time this year with the postponement from the usual April period, and seeing that lessons from previous editions weren't learnt - sure a new makeshift, last minute team got assembled - just frustrates and betrays its supporters.
On the positive side, the twitter feed was great, at least complaints can be fired off from where you're seated in the cinema hall when things go wrong, instead of getting out of the hall squeezing past legs to get to someone at the festival desk who may just be an unmotivated volunteer who doesn't give a hoot. The twitter feed was monitored constantly by someone who can make decisions, so that was nice, even though problems that crop up can be beyond an immediate solution.
If SIFF aspires to be a great festival that we can all be proud of, it seriously needs a lot of soul searching during this lull, and dedicated staff members to make things happen. Here's wishing a better job done next year. It will be a quarter century so it's either make, or be remembered as a festival that continues in its decline in both quality and delivery. Good luck!
Reviews
Armadillo
Clash (Bay Rong)
Echoing Love (World Premiere)
Eclipses (World Premiere)
Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within (Tropa de Elite 2 - O Inimigo Agora É Outro)
The Forbidden Door
Ignore All Detour Signs (World Premiere)
I Have Loved (World Premiere)
Life in a Day
Lights Out (Simon Werner a Disparu...)
The Outsiders
The Reef
Revenge of the Electric Car
The Selling (International Premiere)
Salvation Boulevard
Sing the Blues (World Premiere)
Tolong! Awek Aku Pontianak (Help! My Girlfriend is a Vampire)
Q&A / Introduction Sessions
Eclipses
Echoing Love
Ignore All Detour Signs
I Have Loved
Lights Out (Simon Werner a Disparu...)
The Outsiders
The Selling
Sing the Blues
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