Pusan Strengthens British Asian Film Ties

The UK Film Council and UK Trade and Investment are supporting British companies attending this year’s Pusan International Film Festival in Korea comprising the Asian Film Market (AFM) and industry event the Pusan Promotion Plan (PPP) from 4 to 12 October 2007.
The UK Film Council’s International Department, which works to help promote the British film industry in overseas markets, is backing three key British film companies at Pusan.
Bankside Films, Odyssey Entertainment and Silk and Steel Productions will all be in attendance at the Asian Film Market, strengthening ties between the British and Asian markets, and promoting 15 titles in total.
The films are:

• Bankside Films: 'Normal' Director Carl Bessai, Writer Carl Bessai and Travis McDonald; 'Shake Hands With the Devil' Director Roger Spottiswoode, Writer Michael Donovan; 'How About You' Director Anthony Byrne, Writer Jean Paisley; 'The Baker' Writer and Director Gareth Lewis; 'Sparkle' Writer and Director Neil Hunter & Tom Hunsinger.
• Odyssey Entertainment: 'Nutcracker: the True Story' Director Andrei Konchalovsky, Writer Andrei Konchalovsky and Chris Solimine; 'Is there anybody there?' Director John Crowley, Writer Peter Harness; 'An Education' Director Lone Sherfig, Writer Nick Hornby; 'A Bunch of Amateurs' Director Andy Cadiff, Writer Ian Hislop and Nick Newman; 'The Deaths of Ian Stone ' Director Dario Piana, Writer Brendan Hood.
• Silk And Steel Productions: 'Eight' Writer Francesco Ferracin; 'Jade River' Writer Roger Clarke; 'jasmine.elf' Director Lou Ye, Writer Francesco Ferracin and Lou Ye; 'That Year in China' Writer Terence Doyle and Francesco Ferracin; 'Wanderlust' Writer Francesco Ferracin and Malin Schwerdtfeger.

The Pusan International Film Festival incorporates screenings of new British films including: 'Control' directed by Anton Corbijn which won the Camera D’Or' Special Mention at Cannes 2007 plus Best New British Feature and Best British Performance at Edinburgh; 'Nightwatching', the forthcoming feature from auteur Peter Greenaway which premiered at Venice; Jim Threapleton’s 'Extraordinary Rendition'; Asif Kapadia’s 'Far North'; David Mackenzie’s 'Hallam Foe'; Ken Loach’s 'It’s a Free World'; Tom Collins’s 'Kings'; Kadri Kõussaar’s 'Magnus'; Nacho Cerdá’s 'The Abandoned'.
The Pusan Promotion Plan includes UK producer Peter Fudakowski's project 'The Secret Sharer', based on Joseph Conrad's short story of the same name.
Clare Wise, Head of International at the UK Film Council, said: “We are pleased to be supporting the British film companies at this year’s Pusan International Film festival. It continues to be an integral event, offering an opportunity for us to strengthen links between the British film industry and a dynamic Asian market.”
(SP)