Neuchatel's fantastic film fest kicks off

With a varied line-up ranging from sci-fi and horror films to Japanese manga, an annual Neuchatel film festival offers an alternative to the more traditional fare. Take your pick of the weird and wonderful from the 90 films on show, starting today and running through the weekend. The Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival aims to become a fixture on the festival calendar for those looking for something slightly different. Guests to the festival, now in its eigth year, include cult directors Joe Dante (director of 1980s furry frightener ‘Gremlins’) and Hideo Nakata, who has driven a revival in Japanese fantasy filmmaking.
Anais Emery, festival director, explains that the idea of fantastic film  is closely related to early cinema, in which fantasy elements were often combined with narrative to produce memorable movies.
"For us in Neuchatel, fantastic films are closed related to historical cinema and experimentation," she told Swisster. "The festival features films that come broadly from the genre of the imagination. We have a broader definition than the industrial view that understands fantastic films purely as horror films."
Entries from Sweden, Korea and even Macedonia feature in the festival's international competition, testimony to the variety and diversity of the festival. A separate competition is devoted to Asian films, with nine movies from six countries vying  for an award.

With a varied line-up ranging from sci-fi and horror films to Japanese manga, an annual Neuchatel film festival offers an alternative to the more traditional fare. Take your pick of the weird and wonderful from the 90 films on show, starting today and running through the weekend. The Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival aims to become a fixture on the festival calendar for those looking for something slightly different. Guests to the festival, now in its eigth year, include cult directors Joe Dante (director of 1980s furry frightener ‘Gremlins’) and Hideo Nakata, who has driven a revival in Japanese fantasy filmmaking.
Anais Emery, festival director, explains that the idea of fantastic film  is closely related to early cinema, in which fantasy elements were often combined with narrative to produce memorable movies.
"For us in Neuchatel, fantastic films are closed related to historical cinema and experimentation," she told Swisster. "The festival features films that come broadly from the genre of the imagination. We have a broader definition than the industrial view that understands fantastic films purely as horror films."
Entries from Sweden, Korea and even Macedonia feature in the festival's international competition, testimony to the variety and diversity of the festival. A separate competition is devoted to Asian films, with nine movies from six countries vying  for an award.

With horror pics and zombie films in abundance, the NIFFF is something of an acquired taste for moviegoers. For those who are afraid of watching the pictures in the dark, an open-air auditorium, which seats 600, will be used to screen various films including a preview of Get Smart and the Final Cut of Blade Runner. 
This year's edition also features an "Imaging the future" symposium, billed as a "multidisciplinary approach to the production and use of digital images." The symposium includes demonstrations and conferences by special effects designers, video game creators, conceptualé designers and researchers. An exhibition of Swiss design in Hollywood is a further attraction.  
The festival runs from Tuesday, July 1 until Sunday, July 6.