29/08/2003

Viviane Reding: video interview

“We have to encourage young people to think “European cinema is cool!”. That is the task that the European Commissioner for Culture and Audiovisual Media, Viviane Reding has set herself. Reding decided to present the preliminary programme of Cinedays 2003 at the landmark 60th Venice Film Festival. The second edition of Cinedays is scheduled for 10-24 October 2003.
The first Cinedays event was boarded by 50 TV channels, hundreds of film theatres and film libraries and gave around 100,000 young people the opportunity to see both recent and classic European films. Their schools also arranged a series of teaching projects about the importance of moving images.
“Our young people’s senses are dulled by the huge promotional and marketing campaigns that drive US blockbusters,” said Reding. “No one is teaching them about the importance of seeing our films. When that does happen, however, our young people are amazed by the quality of the films they’re shown. Educating people about moving images is very important.”

The Commissioner spoke about a preliminary list of Cinedays participants, and it is expected that many more will join. “To date, 40 TV networks, including RAI and Mediaset in Italy, Pro7/Sat1 in Germany, ARTE, BBC4 in the UK and Spain’s TVE. Numerous film libraries and cultural associations have also become involved. Cinedays 2003 will be supported by two cinema circuit networks: UGC and Europa Cinemas, which is funded by the MEDIA Programme to give preferential treatment to European films. A good number of film festivals have also joined in.” Cinedays 2003 patrons include Gillo Pontecorvo, Penelope Cruz, Aki Kaurismaki, Ken Loach and Manuel De Oliveira.

Cinedays 2003 will be opened in Brussels on 9 October and the Italian EU presidency is organising the closing event for 24 October in Rome.

(Translated from Italian)