It´s all action for Majorca´s macro film festival

By Humphrey Carter NEXT year Majorca will host one of Spain and Europe's largest international short film festivals. The new macro festival is the result of a fusion between the Fonart festival which hosts its fifth and final short film/video/music clip fest in Palma this weekend, and the MFA-Planet Europe Festival which was founded just two years ago by the Irish filmmaker Philip Rogan and the Mallorca Film Academy. With the full support of the Balearic government, in particular the Ministry for Culture and Education, Majorca will host the first MFA International Film Festival Illes Balears next March. This weekend's Fonart festival is being held at the Xesc Forteza Theatre and organiser Ana Espina said yesterday that the idea of merging the two festivals to create one giant platform for local and international short film-makers was a very attractive and exciting idea. Rogan said yesterday that an estimated 250 to 270 entries are being received for March's new international MFA festival from 23 different countries including India, Israel, Armenia and Argentina. “Next year, we're going to remain a short film festival,” he said yesterday “but, in 2007, the second phase of the festival will start and we will embark on expanding the event. The short term aim for the moment is 2008*s event which will be a truly international short and feature film festival. “However, we're not going to be catering for mainstream feature productions, but independent makers, film-makers who have had to scrape together every single penny for their film and are in desperate need of that final funding to market or distribute their work,” Rogan explained. “A film-maker who needs a lucky break,” he added. This weekend's Fonart festival opens tomorrow evening with a screening of video clips with the short films being shown on Saturday. The event will draw to a close with a concert by the American band The Posies who are currently on tour promoting their latest album “Every Kind of Light.” After breaking up in 1998, the band, described as “one of the most creative, resourceful and influential bands to have emerged from America over the past two decades”, has recently got back together for their latest album.