Reporters 'need to distinguish between hype and reality'

Dubai: The DIFF Young Journalist Award Open Workshop, "Covering a Film Festival", held in association with MBC Group, provided illuminating insights on a wide range of writing issues on the opening morning of DIFF 2009.

The 90-minute workshop was presented by Scott Macaulay, from Filmmaker Magazine and producer, Forensic Films, and Colin Brown, formerly at Screen International and now at CNBC Business, who shared their wealth of industry knowledge and experience with the group of budding UAE film journalists.

Colin Brown set the scene by reflecting on the changing nature of film festival writing, recalling when daily papers for Screen International could be anything up to 240 pages thick.

"The buzz around festivals, films and journalism are all part of the same continuum," he said. "It's organised chaos and that's part of the rush of covering events."

He said one of the timeless challenges for writers covering festivals is distinguishing between the factually accurate and the hype. "This industry is a master of creating a buzz around things that never happen."

Evaluation

Brown advised aspiring writers to get inside the head of filmmakers, and evaluate films in their specific contexts, and building up good working relationships with publicists was vital.

Macaulay said publicists also had a role to play: "The truly good publicists intellectually engage you about a film," he said.

For more information on the festival, please visit www.dubaifilmfest.com.