This is the zero year of the first documentary festival held on the island of Madeira. The honoree was the filmmaker, photographer and painter, William Klein, one of the most influential and controversial artists of the twentieth century, but the project is more audacious goals since it intends to differentiate itself by searching the island component in future editions and a bet on young filmmakers work for the documentary genre.
Makes sense having another festival of documentary cinema?
Henrique Teixeira: I think it makes perfect sense because Madeira has to follow the modern global world, there is a gap in the documentary genre and makes sense, because you see that there is an audience you want to watch this film genre. This is just the same principle, nor will I consider this the first edition, this is a zero. It's experimental and reach the public takes some time.
Then you need to educate the public to watch documentaries?
The Madeira public is not accustomed. The documentary does not reach the cinema business, if wasn't the festival people have no access to them, except in sporadic versions of the DVD, but watching a documentary at home is one thing, and seeing it in a theater is another, which is the place to see movies. So festivals of documentary are growing in the world why? Becouse audience grows, the highest ratings are in Doc.Lisboa, so I think in Madeira we should not be left behind. Of course, everything is measure thinking on scale. The scale of the island. I am delighted to say that finally we have a documentay film festival. I'm not worried at all if we have much, or little public support. What I am sure that there is a 100% interest in those who come looking for this kind of gathering.
But what will differentiate it from other festivals of its kind?
There is such a strategy, not in this issue start. There is a concept that will grab and build for the future. The very name of the festival we want to invoke the concept of the island to the documentary filmmaking. The theme is very comprehensive. Emigration is a side of the islands. Speaking of fishing and isolation that implies social situations. There are many islands in the world and they produce documentary films and many festivals and Madeira island did not now have one.
There will be greater investment in national documentary, as was the case with this?
There has to be, because the production of the documentary genre in Portugal is of high quality judging by the awards obtained world wide. Here we have some examples. We have the movie Filipe Ferraz, "Rock on Tchaikovsky." "The stop, listen and look" was hugh succes of box office and wan a prize. Will also have the objective and the obligation to support young local filmmakers, who are by the way few. I want to feel they can do it, you can document a lot and all you need is a digital camera to shoot with high resolution. Just creativity, needs no direction of actors, not big productions.
