CINEMATOGRAPHY IN THE SPOTLIGHT AT EMIFF

Evolution Mallorca Film Festival – whose mission statement is “bridging cultures, bridging people” – is ready to solidify its seat among the echelons of well-respected small international film festivals around the world. We report from the 2022 edition of the event which marked the festival’s 11^th year in style. 

Taking place over a week in the beautiful island city of Palma de Mallorca, Spain, Evolution Mallorca Film Festival has attracted global names like Ana de Armas, Mads Mikkelson, Danny DeVito, Melissa Leo, and has made MovieMaker’s “Top 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry fee” five years in a row, along with The Guardian’s “10 Best European Film Festivals.” 

Over a week in late October, 250 filmmakers from dozens of countries landed on the island along with 8,000 audience members attending the galas, screenings, Producers Club panels, Film Talks, Masterclasses, Cafe con Cine events, Drive-In Cinema, networking parties, and a record-breaking number of views on their virtual screening platform FILMIN.  

“I’m a very spontaneous person and when I get an idea, I just go for it,” says EMIFF founder and director, Sandra Lipski, talking about the impetus for starting the festival. “But as we kept growing each year, there was always this question of do we keep going, keep growing, keep building. And the answer was always yes. I’ve had to really establish the film festival and become part of the cultural agenda, and now that we have really solidified that, we can work to be like Cannes or San Sebastian, where in every store you walk into, there’s our poster; where the whole town [becomes] a part of the festival.” 

In addition to the latest cinematography-focused section of the festival, EMIFF held intimate and enlightening discussions with filmmakers including Lone Scherfig, the Danish award-winning director and screenwriter (An Education, One Day), held panels on how to finance your indie film, how to sell in an international market, and talks with focuses on women in filmmaking, Spanish, and Balearic film. 

British Cinematographer was honoured to form a partnership with the festival this year as the event introduced the new cinematography strand. In line with this exciting collaboration, we hosted a panel session exploring indie filmmaking, featuring a stellar line-up of cinematographers – John de Borman BSC AFC, Ula Pontikos BSC, and Rainer Lipski (who is also EMIFF VP of Festival Development) – and moderated by British Cinematographer Editor, Zoe Mutter. 

Words of wisdom shared by the panellists included this insight from de Borman: “Good filmmaking is all about telling stories from the heart through the way you frame, shoot, and light the production…When shooting independent films, you have to be creative with the equipment you use…. You never want your film to look cheap, no matter what the budget. It’s all about framing, and working with the right camera, lenses, and lighting to make a film look big and find ways to give the film breadth.” 

In addition to a jam-packed schedule of networking events and seminars, the festival kicked off with a sparkling opening gala at Palma’s historic Teatro Principal, during which 2022 Palme d’Or winner, Triangle of Sadness (Dir. Ruben Östlund, Cin. Fredrik Wenzel FSF) was screened and awards were presented. Award recipients included Lone Sherfig who won the Evolution VISION award, and Ed Lachman ASC (Far From Heaven, Carol, The Virgin Suicides who won the inaugural Evolution Cinematography ICON Award. 

Attendees were also treated to a fascinating masterclass from Lachman. “Filmmaking is an adventure, and I thought it would be a good excuse to travel; not just a business venture,” said Lachman during the intimate and free-flowing session, held as part of the inaugural cinematography focus of the festival.  

Managing to span his entire career in the one-hour talk with Sandra Lipski, Lachman’s insights about his work, including his long-standing relationship with director Todd Haynes, felt poignant. “It takes many sentences in literature to tell where you are, but in cinema you’re there already,” said Lachman, musing on his work ethos. “So, I work hard with the director to tell the interior character story.” 

Lachman—who credited Haynes with not leaving him behind as Haynes’ cache grew and the projects became grander—also expressed his love of working with first-time directors, one of whom was Sofia Coppola on Virgin Suicides: “They take bigger risks. It takes a rare director to go in with a plan and shot list but be responsive to what’s on set or in the moment. It’s why I keep my foot in Europe to work on smaller productions.” 

Lachman echoed this sentiment when talking about his work on documentaries, saying that documentary work requires an immediacy in response and relies heavily on the DP to tell the audience since they’re the eyes of the camera. And to the point that many make about directors and DPs having a ‘good marriage,’ he argued that it’s more like a dance partner— “you’re listening to the same music.” 

The week of filmmaking celebration, inspiration, and education ended with the winners being revealed at the closing night gala, held at Palma’s magnificent Palau de Congressos de Palma. Triangle of Sadness triumphed, winning Best International Feature Film, while teenage pregnancy drama La Maternal scooped three awards – one apiece for director Pilar Palomero, actor Carla Quilez and cinematographer Julián Elizade. Other winners included coming-of-age tale Bulldog, which was awarded the Made in Baleares Best Feature Film. 

Submissions are now open for the 12th EMIFF edition, which returns to Palma de Mallorca in October. After assessing filmmakers needs, the festival team has created two new submission categories – Pitch Forum: TV Series and “Made In Baleares” Feature Film. British Cinematographer looks forward to continuing the flourishing partnership with the EMIFF team, joining forces to champion filmmaking and cinematographic creativity. 

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British Cinematographer is a proud media partner of EMIFF