Actor and filmmaker Asia Argento will be guest of honor at this year’s Neuchatel Int’l Fantastic Film Festival (NIFFF), a choice the NIFFF director sees as emblematic of the festival’s own self-image.
“Asia is an icon,” says NIFFF chief Pierre-Yves Walder. “She’s someone we ourselves have grown up with, and whom we watched grow up. She’s established herself as artist who makes few concessions, who practices her profession with absolute freedom and who is always ready to take big risks. She has a punk side and never hesitates, and because of her career – which stretches back to the foundational horror films of her father [Dario Argento] towards something more contemporary – she also bridges versions of NIFFF past and present.”
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“She also helped spearhead the MeToo movement,” Walder continues, “which led to some very difficult moments. She has had some shadows on her journey, and those are important as well. She’s somebody that might have suffered a great deal, leaving her with an acute sensitivity and giving her the kind of raw, flayed and vivid nature this festival very much appreciates.”
As guest of honor, Argento was offered a carte blanche and invited to program her own section however she saw fit. The star went for an all-killer-no-filler crop, selecting Michael Powell’s “Peeping Tom,” Georges Franju’s “Eyes Without a Face,” Carl Theodor Dreyer’s “Vampyr” and Shinya Tsukamoto’s “Tetsuo: The Iron Man,” four films that shaped her own sense of fantasy possibilities.
“We were very curious what she would come up with,” says Walder. “Her work is so varied and eclectic, but at the same time, she’s really into the fundamentals of fantasy. As we explore great contemporary films in other sections, this carte blanche will set a powerful foundation.”
Time and again, Walder underscores Argento’s multi-faceted career, drawing parallels between the star’s work as an actor, director, author, activist and musician and the festival’s similarly multidisciplinary remit. Indeed, alongside the film screenings and social events, NIFFF will host a number of events and conferences related to digital imagery, as well as contemporary art and literature.
Through the NIFFF Extended conference program, the festival has long placed significant emphasis on both the history of visual effects alongside new innovations within the field, a subject Walder deems equally intrinsic to the festival’s identity.
“Fantasy cinema has always been deeply connected to scientific and technological progress in terms of image creation, shooting techniques and film production,” he says. “We want to explore the cutting edge, and with that, all forms of digital culture and storytelling not just limited to film production.”
Conferences will include VFX breakdowns with the teams behind “The Last of Us” and “3 Body Problem” and practical workshop with prop designer and layout artist Simon Weisse – the miniature magician who has worked Guillermo del Toro, the Wachowski sisters and Steven Spielberg, though perhaps none more closely than with Wes Anderson, with whom Weisse has become a key (and recurring) artistic collaborator.
“Weisse is a craftsman in every sense of the word,” says Walder. “His work incorporates live action, 3D and practical effects, so we can really offer a 360-degree vision of everything that goes into creating fantastic on-screen images in cinema, series, online and in games. It’s all connected.”
