Moscow - For the first time in its history, the Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors’ Showcase (NDS) – a highlight of the annual Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for the past 23 years - is being shown in Moscow. Saatchi & Saatchi Russia will screen the New Directors’ Showcase reel and a film of the live show at the 35mm Cinema in Moscow on 30th August with support of the Moscow School of Cinema.

It follows the hugely successful London screening which took place in July on the Southbank, a cultural and creative hub of the city.  The international NDS screenings are presented in partnership with Cannes Lions and LBB Online.  After the reel of directors is shown, there will be a panel discussion lead by acclaimed Russian cinema and advertising directors - Petr Buslov, Dzhanik Faiziev, Roman Jirnih and cinema expert Vsevolod Korshunov. The moderator of discussion will be Ekaterina Cherkes-zade, a director of the Moscow Film School.

Every year Saatchi & Saatchi’s Worldwide Creative Board selects the very best of new directing talent for the reel, after sweeping the globe for outstanding work from the past 12 months.  Past showcases have featured internationally acclaimed directors including Chris Cunningham, Jonathan Glazer, Michel Gondry, Spike Jonze, Damian Kulash, David la Chapelle, Danny Kleinman and Tarsem.

The NDS has a different theme each year, which is revealed at the premier in Cannes, and the reel of directors is always introduced by a live show wrapped around a theme.  This year’s theme ‘Just for Hits’ was conceived by creative team Jonathan Santana and Xander Smith, and the live show produced by Juliette Larthe of PrettyBird, and directed by Marshmallow Laser Feast.  World-renowned British evolutionary biologist Professor Richard Dawkins was the star of the live show, which illustrated his theory of memes and its relation to the internet as an ‘incubator of creativity', affecting the way we create and share ideas.

The 2013 New Directors’ Showcase reel includes work from nineteen directors, two of which - Ilya Naishuller and Gevorg Karensky - are natives of the Russian Federation.   A broad range of styles and references is featured on the reel, including animation, visual arts, contemporary dance, stunning cinematography, innovative use of social media, surrealism, erotica, violence, vintage romance cover art, vampires, emotion and humour.  Music videos feature heavily on the reel, with directors coming up with edgy and unique ways of interpreting music from contemporary musicians including; White Doves, Antony and the Johnsons, Alpines, Biting Elbows, and Liars.

The screening in Moscow will be hosted by Shannon Cullum, CEO Saatchi & Saatchi Russia.  “We're thrilled to be bringing this amazing showcase to the big screen in Moscow - especially with two Russian Directors included. The films are highly provocative and visually stunning - I know people will be blown away.”

The power of the Internet on filmmaking today is evident on the reel, with Gevorg Karensky's accomplished student graduation film‘ GTA Rise' getting over 13.5 million hits on YouTube, and interactive directing trio One Pixel Wide's innovative promo for Masters in France, matching hashtagged vine films to song lyrics in a live feed.

Many of the films cross the boundaries between the visual arts, film and advertising, such as Lucio Arese's arresting CGI imagery, Ian Cheng's graphic drawings, and Jake Fried's hand-drawn animations. Other directors on the reel demonstrate great narrative and use of traditional filmmaking techniques, with powerful emotional or visual punch, or great comic timing, such as Ben Liam Jones's heart-wrenching film for ChildLine, Vellas's brilliant cinematography in his film ‘Soul' for Leica, and Max Joseph's witty ‘Follow the Frog'. Then there is pure surrealism, in the form of Wong Ping's darkly humorous animation ‘No-One Remains Virgin'.

This year's directors hail from all corners of the globe, emphasising the geographical reach of the Showcase. The reel includes; Casper Balslev from Denmark; Daito Manabe from Japan; Vellas from Brazil; Lucio Arese from Italy; Ohji Inoue and Miles Jay from Canada; from Australia Nabil, and Joe Pease (now based in California); Russians Ilya Naishuller, and Gevorg Karensky (now based in Los Angeles); and Wong Ping from Hong Kong. Representing the USA are; Ian Cheng, Max Joseph and Jake Fried; and the British contingent features; Ben Liam Jones, One Pixel Wide, Ryan Hope and Justin Anderson.

The 19 directors selected for the New Directors' Showcase reel 2013 are listed below, with the title of the submitted work;

- Ben Liam Jones: ‘It Follows Me Around'
- Casper Balslev: ‘Han Kjobenhavn'
- Daito Manabe: Nosaj Thing - ‘Eclipse/Blue'
- Gevorg Karensky: ‘GTA Rise'
- Ian Cheng-Liars: ‘Brats'
- Ilya Naishuller: Biting Elbows - ‘Bad Motherfucker'
- Jake Fried: ‘Raw Data'
- Joe Pease: ‘Peter Brings the Shadow to Life'
- Justin Anderson: ‘Fleurs du Mal'
- Lucio Arese: Yu Miyashita - ‘Mimic'
- Max Joseph: ‘Follow the Frog'
- Miles Jay: ‘White Doves'
- Nabil: Antony & the Johnsons - ‘Cut the World'
- Ohji Inoue: Keys N Krates - ‘Treat Me Right'
- One Pixel Wide: Masters in France - ‘Flexin''
- Peter Atencio: ‘Pulled Over'
- Ryan Hope: Alpines - 'Lights'
- Vellas: Leica - ‘Soul'
- Wong Ping: ‘No-One Remains Virgin'

The cinematic version of the show is supported by sponsors the Moscow School of Cinema and the 35mm cinema theatre. Tickets may be purchased from the 35mm cinema theatre cash desks.

http://www.kino35mm.ru/en/show/3140