In addition to CNC, Cannes also has these non-profit organizations that support films

In fact, in addition to French CNC, many countries also have similar non-profit organizations that support art films, independent films and young filmmakers, including China's China Film Foundation, Korea Revitalization Committee, etc.

The dispute between Cannes and Netflix not only brought the focus of both parties, but also made France's "cultural exception" principle and the French National Film Center (CNC) Film Industry Funding Fund famous. In fact, in addition to French CNC, many countries also have similar non-profit organizations that support art films, independent films and young filmmakers, including China's China Film Foundation, Korea Revitalization Committee, etc.

In this year's Cannes, Tencent Entertainment visited the China Pavilion and the South Korea Pavilion in the International Village. Through exclusive interviews with Yan Xiaoming, Vice Chairman of the China Film Foundation, Wu Yanyan, Director of the Wu Tianming Youth Film Special Fund, Lee Jianshang, Director of the Industry Revitalization Department of the Korea Film Promotion Committee, and Choi Ji-won, Publicity Director, they learned what role such non-profit organizations play in exchanges between China, South Korea and the world.

China Pavilion Forum

China Pavilion: A window for European filmmakers to solve their doubts

. Wu Tianming Youth Film Special Fund (hereinafter referred to as Wu Tianming Foundation) is a special fund under the China Film Foundation. It adheres to Wu Tianming's concept of supporting young filmmakers and provides full industry chain support to young filmmakers in terms of producers, directors and screenwriters. The Wu Tianming Foundation cooperates with the Cannes International Film Festival Film Market to select film projects from China suitable for young producers to be promoted internationally, and send them to the producer workshop hosted by the Cannes Film Festival for study and exchange. This year is the third year that the Wu Tianming Foundation has operated, and it has established the China Pavilion in Cannes International Village for two consecutive years. Thanks to the high recognition of the "Wu Tianming" brand and outstanding achievements, the Cannes Film Festival has conducted a detailed background investigation., reached a cooperation with the Wu Tianming Foundation to establish the China Pavilion and make it the most important window for Chinese filmmakers to connect with the international market. "Wu Tianming is the most effective artist in supporting young directors in the history of China's film. It was with the support of director Wu Tianming that the fifth generation of directors rose. When many people hear the name Wu Tianming, they think it is trustworthy. Second, through its operations over the past few years, the Wu Tianming Foundation has actually done some practical things to help young filmmakers connect with the world and broaden their horizons. At the same time, we will provide them with certain financial assistance." Yan Xiaoming, vice chairman of the China Film Foundation, said. The Cannes Producers Workshop Program is an important cooperation project between the Wu Tianming Foundation and Cannes officials. In 2016, the Wu Tianming Foundation brought five producers to Cannes. Now, three projects have achieved very good development and results. Among them,"Blizzard is Coming" starring Duan Yihong, which was just successfully completed not long ago."When Will the Lord Come Again" has also been filmed, and "The Last Night of the Earth" is about to start. This year, the Wu Tianming Foundation took six producers to participate in the producer workshop officially organized by the Cannes Film Festival, and promoted their projects to the leaders or producers of European Film Funds at the China Pavilion.

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Wu Tianming Foundation conducts a relatively strict selection in China for Wu Yanyan's selection of producers. First, the preliminary evaluation judges will select them, and then the final evaluation judges will select them. The screening criteria are that there must be a work, and the second is that it depends on the overall quality of the producers and their overall explanation of the project, as well as whether the Cannes platform is helpful to his project. But the subject matter does not need to be particularly international. The judges are different every year, taking into account both art and business. According to Wu Yanyan, the projects brought by young producers this year are more diverse and more typed. During the process of selecting the projects, the judges argued very fiercely. "We try to balance art and business. It would be great to balance both, but it would be very difficult. So we will now be more diversified in project selection." Wu Yanyan revealed. During this selection process, the Wu Tianming Foundation has no decision-making power, and the selection results are determined by the judges. The Wu Tianming Foundation is a purely public welfare organization. Selecting and sending young producers to Cannes is a purely public welfare funding without any interest demands.

In addition to recommended projects, this year the Wu Tianming Foundation also joined hands with "Watch Movies" to hold more than 20 forums, meetings and other activities in the China Pavilion. Invite presidents of major domestic film and television companies to have face-to-face exchanges with filmmakers around the world. They not only brought an interpretation of China's film market and production industry, but more importantly, they brought an interpretation of China's policies and regulations, which were welcomed by many European filmmakers. "Now that it has been open to this extent, especially after the film law was announced, they need first-hand interpretation." Yan Xiaoming introduced.

"In addition, the area of the China Pavilion has doubled this year, and there are significantly more guests than last year. All foreign film companies or media that come to Cannes regard this place as a contact point for China. They not only come to inquire about who they want to enter the China market, but also ask for help if they want to participate in China film festivals. Especially in Europe, the effect was not particularly good when entering China in the past. They especially wanted to understand the tastes of China audiences and how to combine European films with connotation and taste with the movie-watching habits of China. Europeans are very anxious now and feel that they are lagging behind the Americans." Yan Xiaoming said with a smile. "This shows that the China Pavilion has played a positive role in increasing exchanges between China films and international film festivals." Yan Xiaoming also revealed that in addition to cultural exchange activities, the China Pavilion also provides a venue for exchanges and interviews for China films participating in screenings and competitions at the Cannes Film Festival.

Wu Tianming Foundation is also exploring more advanced and good operating models, such as learning from CNC. But Yan Xiaoming reminded us that no one needs to rush: "First support commercial films and make the cake bigger, we can cut another piece for art films." If the whole cake is not made enough, the money will not be available. This idea is also correct. There is a process, take your time." Wu Yanyan also took this opportunity to appeal to more people to support the creation of young filmmakers: "In addition to some government support, most of the funding sources still need to be raised through us to obtain social funding support. We hope to receive help and support from more people and social forces in the future."

Korea Pavilion

Korea Pavilion: The

Korea Pavilion is located in the seaside area of the International Village, which handles both film and meal delivery. The front door is facing the back door of the Film Palace Market, and the back door is facing the Bay Port. Its location is unique in the International Village. When she first stepped into the Korea Pavilion, Choi Ji-won was discussing with another staff member at the front desk. On the left wall, one of the participating films "After" and three screenings "Claire's Camera" and "The Evil Girl" were clearly visible. Poster of "The Non-Khan Party". Everything is clear and in good order. After inquiry, we learned that it was difficult for the three busy directors Park Tsan-wook, Bong Joon-ho, and Hong Sang-soo to make an appointment for interviews. We offered to interview her to find out what KOFIC's group was in Cannes, and we received a straightforward answer.

Let's first popularize the relevant knowledge of KOFIC. The Korea Film Promotion Committee (hereinafter referred to as KOFIC) was established in 1973 and initiated by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea. It is an official non-profit organization that supports and promotes Korean films. According to Choi Ji-won, the Korea Film Promotion Committee spends 4 billion won (about 24.53 million yuan) every year to support films. After 43 years of operation, the Korea Film Promotion Council has established a funding system that is detailed according to the stage of film production on how to use these funds.

First, KOFIC selects 60 outlines every year and provides creators with funding of up to US$70,000 based on their previous performance. Secondly, South Korean filmmakers can submit scripts online through the Korean Film Script Market website (scenariomarket.or.kr). KOFIC selects up to 4 excellent scripts every month. These scripts have the opportunity to apply for a three-month tutoring course to help the creators improve the script. Among all the polished scripts, KOFIC selects 10 scripts each year to provide funding, ranging from US$5000 to US$50000 to help them complete the production. In addition,$900,000 will be distributed specifically to 50 market-oriented scripts. In order to allow more funds to flow to the local film industry, KOFIC will also allocate US$10 million from venture capital funds that control less than 50% to provide funding-this funding will be decided by the fund itself, and KOFIC will not participate in the decision-making. It is worth mentioning that KOFIC also allocates US$1.1 million every year to produce short films and documentaries.

In addition to the creative stage, KOFIC is also deeply involved in the distribution process. They fund and help run independent theaters such as Artplus Film Network, Indieplus, Cine Arirang, KOFA, Indiespace and Cinematheque Seoul Art Cinema, funding projects ranging from theater maintenance costs to helping with the production of subtitles. In addition, KOFIC also provides a publicity fee of US$30,000 each year for 15 independent films.

Helping Korean films participate in international film festivals is a key work direction of KOFIC. KOFIC has been continuing to expand new markets unfamiliar with Korean films, holding various Korean film screenings, introducing Korean films and producers to the world, and responsible for the transportation and accommodation of the creative team. In addition, if you hold Korean film festivals internationally or invite Korean films to participate in exhibitions, you can apply for DCP or subtitle support from KOFIC. Feature films can reach US$3000 and short films can reach US$600.

Specifically in Cannes, according to Cui Zhiyuan, because major companies such as CJ and N.E.W. have long-term cooperative relationships with the film festival, KOFIC has become a bridge between the products of small and medium-sized companies and Cannes. Directors who want to enter Cannes can first submit the DVD to KOFIC, who will then send it to the Cannes film selectors. Sometimes, the film selectors of Directors 'Biweekly and Film Critics' Week may personally go to South Korea to select films in November and December of the previous year. Not only Cannes, Berlin, Venice and Shanghai Film Festival, KOFIC will recommend works based on actual conditions. Choi Ji-won does think that South Korean films have become the darling of the film festival in the past two years. Whether it has attracted newcomers to be shortlisted to shoot "film festival style" films, but she believes that none of the four films in this film festival are included. In fact, in her view, Korean films seem to be "popular" in recent years, but in fact they have not increased significantly every year. For example, in 2013, only two Korean films were shortlisted. It is worth mentioning that directors like Hong Shangxiu, who are quickly shortlisted for filming, are just a special case. Directors like Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon-ho, who have been studying a major production for several years, may not be able to catch up with Cannes in delivery time, so it actually does not mean that Cannes intends to "favor" the trend of Korean films. However, in terms of the market alone, more and more Korean filmmakers are indeed coming to Cannes. This year, more than 200 people have applied for badges and registered them. In fact, there may be more.

After arriving in Cannes, in addition to holding the Korean Pavilion as an external contact window, KOFIC will also help participating Korean companies set up booths, print marketing materials, and provide legal advice for Korean companies to sign contracts with international companies. Another important task is to organize the "Korean Film Night" event, where Korean filmmakers can share information and enjoy delicious food. However, this year, after a South Korean filmmaker died of a heart attack in Cannes,"Korean Film Night" implemented everything simple.

When it comes to Korean films in Cannes in 1970, the dispute between "Yuko" producer Netflix and Cannes is an inseparable topic. Visiting the Korea Pavilion again the next day, Tencent Entertainment was lucky enough to interview Li Jianshang, Minister of the Industrial Revitalization Headquarters. He expressed his views to Tencent Entertainment. In his view, this contradiction is normal. The development and growth of Netflix will definitely affect traditional theater distribution, but in the end everything depends on how the audience chooses. However, in the case of Yuzi, Li Jianshang said that he could not express his opinion on whether Nextflix's day-and-date could be approved by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Tourism. Regarding "Yuzi", he also revealed to us that a few minutes before accepting this interview, he had a long discussion with the producer of "Yuzi" because "Yuzi" actually received 2 billion won from KOFIC and received a lot of support during its three days of filming in South Korea. However, because this part of the funds actually came from KOFIC's overseas funds,"Yuko" was ultimately an American film and lost the qualification to participate in South Korean domestic film awards such as the Blue Dragon Award.

Another matter that has attracted the attention of China and South Korea is the "South Korean restriction order"-due to the "Sade" incident in August 2016, various aspects such as South Korea's cultural goods import and tourism industry have been restricted in China, and many ongoing China-South Korean film cooperation are also facing forced suspension. With Jae in winning the election on May 10 and becoming South Korea's new president, the confrontation seems to be showing signs of breaking the ice. As soon as Moon Jae-in came to power, he called on South Korea not to rush to deploy the THAAD system, a move that was seen as a sign of the loosening of the "South Korea restriction order." Soon after, a South Korean agency said that many Chinese companies had begun to inquire about the schedules of their singers, and their attitude was very positive. At the end of the interview, Li Jianshang confirmed the news to Tencent Entertainment. According to him, South Korean production companies and filmmakers have been telling each other that "spring is here" recently and are very eager to restart cooperation between China and South Korea. The Korea Film Promotion Committee is also actively promoting China-South Korea cooperation to be restored as soon as possible before the "Saad" incident.

Editor: jessica