Film festivals team up to offer free global fest on YouTube
As the COVID-19 pandemic has put all art, cultural and sporting events to a halt, world’s top 20 film festivals including Cannes and India’s Mumbai Film Festival have joined hands for a 10-day-long digital film event `We Are One: A Global Film Festival` to stream on YouTube.
Other festivals which can be watched online will also contribute curated programming, including the Sundance Film Festival, the Venice Film Festival and those in Berlin, Tokyo and New York.
The festival will benefit the World Health Organization (WHO) and local relief organizations, and encourage viewers to donate to COVID-19 relief efforts. Tribeca Enterprises declined to say what movies would be included but ‘We Are One’ isn’t expected to feature prominent feature films that were set to premiere at cancelled festivals like Mays Cannes Film Festival or still planned ones like Septembers Toronto Film Festival.
We hope that everyone gets a taste of what makes each festival so unique and appreciates the art and power of film, said Jane Rosenthal, chief executive of Tribeca Enterprises, in a statement.
Mumbai Film Festival on Monday took to Twitter to express its excitement for being a part of the global film festival. “We are so honoured to join festivals around the world to launch We Are One: A Global Film Festival in support of helping those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The free 10-day digital festival on @YouTube begins May 29th,” Mumbai Film Festival informed on its official Twitter handle.
We are so honoured to join festivals around the world to launch We Are One: A Global Film Festival in support of helping those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The free 10-day digital festival on @YouTube begins May 29th. Visit https://t.co/UB1ymOUgQE for updates. #WeAreOne https://t.co/tC5YQsOrW0
— JioMAMIwithStar (@MumbaiFilmFest) April 27, 2020
This comes after Amazon announced its own festival called ‘SXSW Virtual Festival’ that kicked off this week. The Amazon festival will launch 39 films from 27 April through 6 May.
(With inputs from agencies)
