The inaugural red carpet gala was held at Merida’s José Peón Contreras Theater….
MERIDA — The 2017 Merida Yucatan International Film Festival (FICMY) began the night of Saturday, August 19, at the José Peón Contreras Theater with a red carpet event that paraded directors such as Gabriel Retes and Carlos Marcovich, the actors Jorge Carlos Ruiz, Cassandra Ciangherotti, Erick Elías, Eduardo España, Cecilia Suárez, Livia Brito and the principal actress honored in this edition, Blanca Guerra, as well as authorities, producers and jurors.
The inauguration began with the Folkloric Ballet of Yucatan and then gave way to the speech of the actress Livia Brito, who highlighted the beauty of the state. “Yucatan is a land of origins, of return to the beginning. It set a standard to explore the ends of the world, it is a destination capable of offering unique experiences,” she said.
Merida Yucatan International Film Festival (Photo: Google)
Karla Paola Medina, director of FICMY, thanked sponsors, film personalities and the general public for attending the third edition of a festival that “seeks to have as many editions as the great festivals in Mexico.” She expressed thanks for the presence of Estrelle Parker, Deputy Adviser in the Australia’s Trade and Affairs Department, the third country invited and with whom a co-production agreement is currently underway.
She highlighted the huge number of organizations that collaborate in this year’s FICMY, such as NASA. She also talked about programming comprised of more than 51 feature films and 68 short films in competition and out of competition. The festival is an event that encourages the film culture and that generates industry because “during the two years we have produced a total of 145 short films made with the support of the State Film Commission”, she said.
(Photo: Google)
19 national premieres and three world premieres will be presented: El Hotel, Morir de Amor and Yacuna: Amor a la Vida. She also recalled that the platform Jaguar de Oro chooses a winning script to be produced in the state of Yucatan. The award portfolio is one and a half million pesos in cash and prizes such as post-production, sponsored by New Art, Televix, LCI Seguros, CTT, VFX Guys, among others.
Among the competing sections are the International, Mexican, Latin American and Children category. “I’m very excited about the children’s section. We have a jury made up of children aged 7 to 12 who choose the short animation winner. Something very nice is that children are prepared and taught how to make a film review of animation with the aim of supporting them in their training and achieve a film culture,” she added.
The representative of the Australian Embassy, Estrelle Parker, commented that the Australian film industry is full of artists and talent who through their productions show a little of their culture. “It is little known that the first feature film in history The Story of the Kelly Gang, was screened in 1906 in Australia. I am pleased to see that there are stories from our indigenous communities among the films in the show.”
For his part, Roger Metri Duarte, Secretary of Culture and Arts, stated that cinema has given us the best of what we are as human beings. Finally, the event concluded with the screening of the inaugural film, Goldstone, an Australian fictional film by Ivan Sen.
Source: www.lajornadamaya.mx
