Luang Prabang Film Festival Announces 2017 Dates, Releases Design
LUANG PRABANG FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES 2017 DATES, RELEASES DESIGN — SCREENINGS, PANELS, AND EVENTS IN LUANG PRABANG FROM 8-13 DECEMBER
The Luang Prabang Film Festival (LPFF) has announced that its eighth annual event will take place on 8-13 December 2017. The festival, which celebrates Southeast Asian cinema every December in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Luang Prabang, Laos, will feature a range of feature film screenings, short film programs, panel discussions, and events.
This year, LPFF audiences can look forward to a continuation of the SPOTLIGHT program with a new focus on Thailand, led by Bangkok Post writer Kong Rithdee. With a current Thai film industry that is flourishing across many genres, this year’s SPOTLIGHT on Thai films should be fascinating for festival goers.
Along with the announcement of the festival’s dates, LPFF has also released the visual identity for this year’s festival, which features a crowd of recognizable figures (traditionally-dressed locals, monuments come alive, and characters from folktales) from all 10 ASEAN countries enjoying a film screening at LPFF’s popular and always-packed Night Venue. Art Director of MeIdea Full Service Agency, Manilla Chounlamountri, has executed this concept.
“We asked for a visual that would make people stop and stare,” Festival Director Gabriel Kuperman said. “We also wanted to make something that reflected Southeast Asia’s diversity. This design is jam-packed with a lot of different characters–some traditional, some contemporary, some totally mythical–but they’re all united through the experience of watching a movie.”
The festival has become known as an unmissable event for filmmakers from across the region, with plentiful opportunities for building connections with professionals from the ever-expanding Southeast Asian film industry. LPFF also stands apart from other film festivals in that it gives audience members intimate access to filmmakers, whether it be after their screenings, at public discussions, or at festival events.
“One of the Luang Prabang Film Festival’s main goals is to encourage conversation, and so we really take pride in how easy and natural it is to ask your favorite filmmaker a question,” Kuperman said.
And finding filmmakers at the festival is not difficult. At the 2016 festival, over half of the 32 films had their directors, producers, or lead actors in attendance, and LPFF expects these numbers to increase at the 2017 festival.
More than 22,000 people attended the festival over the course of the weeklong event in 2016, taking advantage of its many screenings, Q&As with filmmakers, panel discussions, and live performances that go beyond the screen to include dance, theater, and live music.
All festival events are open to the public and free of charge, and visitors can go easily between the main venues on foot or via LPFF’s complimentary tuk-tuk shuttle service.
LPFF is funded by corporate sponsors, non-governmental organizations, embassies, and private donors.
