Two posts within a day of each other from Indiewire this week aimed to provide some insight and analysis about the fall film season and the relation of the fall lineup of major film fests that have tended to kick off Oscar season over the past 12-15 years.
The first came late enough Wednesday that I didn't have a good chance to get it read and digested for inclusion in my Thursday post.
Anne Thompson's article entitled "Oscars 2021: Awards Season Will Be Very Different, and Festivals Will Take a Backseat" talked specifically about Telluride, Venice, Toronto and New York. Included is this take from an Oscar campaign veteran that signals that some version of each of those four fests seems likely:
“Cooperation will be the spirit of the whole season,” said one veteran Oscar campaigner. “People are in that mood. We are supporting filmmakers and storytellers, not competing with each other. They toiled on these projects. We need to get them into the world, but not put anybody in jeopardy.”
Specifically with regard to Telluride Thompson writes:
"However, distributors are waiting to see how demanding festival directors Tom Luddy and Julie Huntsinger will be in terms of sending talent. Virtual participation is far more likely — and if fewer talent attends, and media follows, how eager will studios be to program their films? Most likely, distributors will wind up screening movies curated by the tastemakers at Telluride for media in L.A. and N.Y. under safer conditions in rooms sparsely filled by media and awards voters. “Telluride films will be ones you pay attention to,” said one awards campaigner."
As an additional note that suggests that Telluride is continues to plan an in-person experience, there was some Twitter chatter this week that students for the Student Symposium had been notified that they had been selected to participate.
Thompson's complete post is linked here.
MEANWHILE: AND THEN PART TWO
The day after Thompson's musings were published Indiewire posted Noel Cowan's piece called: "How Film Festivals Can Navigate the Risks and Rewards of Reopening — Analysis".
Cowan delineates four categories of festival "types" as a descriptor for fest organizers thinking as the calendar moves toward the first of May: Absolutists, Conservatives, Optimists and Radicals.
In the article Cowan suggests that his take on circumstantial evidence is that:
"The fall festivals have, so far, been falling decisively into the “optimist” category, with Venice announcing business as more or less usual. There are also strong signs that Telluride and Toronto intend to take place, featuring a significant number of live events."
Cowan defines the "Optimist" category in this fashion:
"Optimists see a rapid evolution of society into risk-takers and the risk-adverse and see film festivals geared chiefly to “risk takers.” Festivals would end the most egregious examples of social non-distancing — red carpets, fan meet-and-greets, packed hotel lobbies, and round table junkets — and enforce rules at the door. Face masks might be obligatory, everyone gets a squirt of hand sanitizer, but, in principle, everyone coming to see a film will be under no illusion they are not taking a chance."
The complete post is linked here
NEW YORK FILM FEST PLANNING TO PLAY
And then there's this...Charles Barfield writing for The Playlist tells us that it seems that the New York Film Festival is on record as still being committed to festing beginning on Sept. 25th.
That's important to Telluride attendees as the announcement and premiere status at New York has become a helpful tool in sussing out what films will play at Telluride first before landing in NYC.
A note of caution, however, with the pandemic altering plans across the board that method, which has been very accurate as a TFF bellwether may not be as solid as it has been in the past few years. As with most things in the film and festival worlds right now, even that is up in the air.
Barfield's article is here.
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