香港國際電影節今天起將十六天的映期延至廿三天。不過全球絕大部份電影節的運作模式卻跟香港截然不同。
也許有人問，為何電影節映期不會太長？
外地的電影節，一般映期只會有七至十天。而每天均以密集方式播放電影。例如一個以播放約三百部電影的電影節，便會安排同時有至少十五至二十個銀幕播放。相比之下，香港的播放場面一般不會多於十個。
其實過長的電影節，可算是對嘉賓、觀眾及電影節本身「三輸」的活動。時間一長，嘉賓留港開支增加，觀眾像「磨爛蓆」一樣，而電影節職員處於緊張時間加長，所以一般電影節都會重質不重量。
同時間，對記者來說，很多人都要走訪多個電影節，他們不願為一個非大型電影節投於太多資源。或許有人問，全情投入的觀眾又如何？真的投入去看電影節，他們自會請假觀看，映期在七至十天，請假又相對起較化算。
對於長長的電影節映期，大家又會否感到吃不消？
歴蘇
電影節…係吸引外地人仕來港消費方法之一；就如”鮮浪潮”電影比賽…係比外地人仕以為香港係一個有文化、藝術的方法之一… 其實，通通都是BS。
70s
/電影節…係吸引外地人仕來港消費方法之一/
你覺得好多人會電影節而來港消費嗎?
對於電影節, 我也覺得不宜太harsh. 以下轉貼David Bordwell的two cents: ^^
http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/?p=729
…
As an outsider, I offer my $.02.
There are now a huge number of festivals, chasing the same films, lusting for red-carpet events. In Asia alone, Pusan, Tokyo, and Shanghai have become strong contenders, all more or less imitating Hong Kong. Moreover, the western world has finally recognized that Asia is a source of tremendous cinematic innovation, and now the big European and American festivals are cherry-picking films and filmmakers. If Wong Kar-wai can premiere his film at Cannes, why should he offer it to Hong Kong a month before? The HKIFF is hurt by its years of success: many of the filmmakers it introduced to the world are now snapped up by other festivals.
Just as important, the festival has offered comprehensive documentation of local cinema. Recognizing that Hong Kong film was largely unknown, the festival set about creating retrospectives and publications that brought to light the entire history of a great tradition. (On right, the festival’s book on the 1970s.) Without the precious catalogues published by the festival, both Chinese and westerners would know much less about Hong Kong cinema. The festival’s mission of education and scholarship has continued unabated, matched by the programs and publications of the Hong Kong Film Archive.
The festival shrewdly merged with a broader event, the Entertainment Expo, which included Filmart, the Asian Film Financing Forum, and the Asian Film Awards. Variety reports that a lot of business was done at Filmart, and the Awards were broadcast and rerun on Chinese television. In all, the festival seems to have created a unique identity for itself as a regional gathering place for both industry types and film fans.
Like all great festivals, this is really many festivals in one. Confronted by nearly 300 programs in 23 days, you’re in a vast cafeteria. You could, as I did, stick close to the Hong Kong retrospectives and archival shows. But you could also attend a rich array of avant-garde screenings, highlighted by the Paolo Gioli work. Or a documentary thread, including Enemies of Happiness and Nanking. Or a sampling of contemporary Asian film, showcasing dozens of works from South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, India, and on and on. Viewers craving contemporary European items had a chance to see eight films from Romania, eight from Germany, eight from the Nordic countries, and assorted titles from France, Italy, Portugal, and elsewhere; not to mention retrospectives of Visconti and Pedro Costa.
Add to this the enormous friendliness of everyone you encounter and the sheer exhilaration of being in this city. *** It would be ungrateful to ask for more. *** For the chance to see all these movies and wander through Hong Kong, I’d let Starbucks stamp its logo in my tooth fillings.
Will I see you here next year?
mad dog
HKIFF多年來都係兩個零星期攪掂, 今年破天荒成三個多星期, 對攪手, 觀眾, 尤其是外地來港睇電影既影迷都係太攰, 太長. 好多人都覺得, HKIFF係時候要定位, 究竟個電影節應該以乜野為重點, 因為據外國學者反映, 近年好多專程飛黎HKIFF既都寧願去斧山, 柏林, 溫哥華等地既電影節啦.
lrz
你說得很對！
另一方面，對我這個本地消費電影的人而言，電影節長一點是好的，選電影放工去看也很方便呢！
Ryan
歷蘇：同意最後一句，因為真的要搞的，會係另一回事。
Ryan
70s: David Bordwell是著名的港片學者，出過書講港片，而他對HKIFF亦十分鍾愛，而HKIFF方面亦十分善待他。
不過，對好多業內人士，太優閒同太長的電影節，只會令他們感到不具成本效益而已。
Ryan
mad dog:
去電影節亦睇月份的，柏林二月、釜山十月，未必跟香港電影節直接競爭，直接的有新加坡。但係，對不少經常去電影節的朋友來說，就會精打細算一個有齊歐、美、亞洲等地區電影節。如果去得釜山，而又知康城Film Market有大量港片看，HKIFF又未必想去。
Ryan
Irz: 問題是，國際電影節目的是為哪方面？倘若是業界活動為主，太長對他們只會失去興趣。定位反而是HKIFF現在要想的。
同時，若是公餘看戲，其實應有不同的電影專題放映，而不是只倚靠HKIFF每年一度的活動。