Influencers and media moguls: highlights of the Monaco Streaming Film Festival
Modern realms dictate their own rules: empty cinemas and theatres, shorter office hours and a lack of social life pushed us to go online over the past few months. During the lockdown period, we were able to thoroughly study all the streaming platforms and find out exact release dates of our favourite TV series. We also transferred our work meetings and friendly get-togethers to Zoom, enjoyed cooking with celebrity chefs and even did our yoga using a popular app. Online platforms and streaming apps have become incredibly popular during the pandemic. It is now obvious that the world will never be quite the same after this kind of a technological leap.
Streaming Festival organizers thus decided to make a premiere of the latest innovations, bringing together the industry professionals: directors, producers, media business owners and developers.
The Principality goes Online
Over the last four days, Monaco’s internet network seemed to be busy like never before. All the festival conferences, premieres and official ceremonies were broadcast online, available to viewers all around the world. On the gala evening of July the 4th, more than 30,000 people at a time joined the streaming!
Among the nominees were influencers, actors, directors and composers. The films “Borat” and “Borat-2” were recognized for the best soundtrack. The prize went to the main actor’s brother, Erran Baron Cohen. The composer permanently lives in London. That night his talent got double recognition.
“I am delighted that the track is now recognizable worldwide and that the film is multiplying its awards,” mentioned the winner to HelloMonaco.
The provocative Borat was recognized as the best film by the Streaming Festival.
Mitch Lowe, co-founder of the Netflix platform, got an award for his outstanding contribution to the film and distribution industry. The English “Bai Bai Barnet” – a story of a little boy who escaped from the suburbs of London, – was voted the best short film. The award for the Best Documentary went to “Eating Up Easter”, relating the experience of the past and the present.
Influencers of the past and the future
Jordyn and Jodie Woods have taken over the net like a hurricane. A real competition to the Kardashians, the sisters have won the love of millions of followers. That night, the younger Jordie was recognized the Influencer of the Year. The award, a golden silhouette of Grace Kelly, was created by the German artist and festival organizer, Carmen Franko.
The event also featured Reg Grundy, an Australian entrepreneur and media mogul who revolutionized the entertainment industry. He was the one to come up with the famous Wheel of Fortune TV show, the likes of which are still popular around the world. A special award was established in his honour. Joe Cullen-Cronshaw, the Festival’s director, specially commented on it from the stage. The Reg Grundy Innovation Statuette went to the American actor and director, Jon Favreau.
The ceremony was celebrated at the legendary Grimaldi Forum of Monaco. This time, it was not quite as crammed full of official speeches. Rather the event was marked by improvisations, short and memorable films, video messages from those who were not able to attend due to restrictive measures and, of course, live broadcasts from the red carpet and the audience. The guests then carried on with the gala dinner.
In addition to a remarkable ceremony, guests and participants were invited to daily premieres, presentations, conferences and cocktails. The most significant industry players shared their experience. The organizers are now confident that their festival, just like streaming as such, will go far beyond the city or country borders. They are currently planning to hold it all over the world most notably after Monaco will likely come Miami, Moscow and Dubai.
