Flanders International Film Festival Ghent

Film Fest Gent, previously the Flanders International Film Festival Ghent (Dutch: Internationaal Film Festival van Vlaanderen – Gent) is an annual international film festival in Ghent. It was created in 1974 and is acknowledged by the FIAPF as a competitive festival specialized in the impact that music has on film. Parallel to the film competition are the World Soundtrack Awards which are being handed out to film composers since 2001.

The first festival edition was organized in 1974 and called 'Filmgebeuren van Gent' (Film Happening of Ghent). The cinema Studio Skoop and the Universitaire Film Club (university film club) wanted to program movies which did not make it to the regular cinemas because of their content and style. 18 provocative films were shown during the festival's first edition thereby shocking the establishment by breaking taboos and covering new topics. This initiative launched some new names and concepts thereby forming the base of a film festival that offers a wide range of world cinema.

The driving force behind the earliest editions of the festival was the erudite Ben Ter Elst, owner of the Studio Skoop at the square of St Anna. He often gave a verbal introduction to many noncommercial and unknown but brilliant films. As the festival got more and more successful, the organization was taken over by Jacques Dubrulle. Since then the name of Ben Ter Elst was not mentioned.

By 1978 the program had expanded to 50 films that were subdivided in several categories. The strictly cinephile programming gave way to a broader range of films and also to a focus on education. In 1978 the festival expanded so vastly that a more solid structure was required.

Financial and organizational problems and the changing international film landscape required substantial adjustments. Dubrulle, who was active in film production and communication, was asked to expand the festival's scope some more and develop an organisational structure.

A non-profit organization was founded in 1979 to support the festival as the governments (the city of Ghent, the county of Eastern Flanders and the national government) participated more in the event. The festival became an established event which enjoyed growing interest. Because of the structure, organized funding was made possible and helped the festival blossom. John Bultinck, also a renowned cinephile was the first president.

Due to internationalization, the program was further expanded from 1979 to 1983. Foreign producers were invited to Ghent. Among them were King Hu, Maximillian Schell and Bertrand Tavernier. The arrival of a new cinema complex in 1981 with spacious rooms, huge screens and state of the art sound systems enabled the festival to grow even more. The program contained up to 100 films. In 1983, the association was renamed the International Film Festival of Flanders - Ghent .

...
Wikipedia