First Mobile Filmfest in AsPac set in Taiwan

Nokia is working jointly with Chunghwa Telecom (CHT), the leading operator in Taiwan, to organize the first Mobile Film Festival in the Asia-Pacific.

During the festival, Taiwan’s first-ever contest for creative self-directed "mobisodes" will be held. Mobisodes are brief videos specifically designed to be watched on a mobile phone.

The Mobile Film Festival will feature 10 newly directed films, including Confession at the Front Line by Chun-Chien Lien, BOY-9-7-6-5-2-0-GIRL by Hung-I Chen, A Traveler’s Odyssey by Po-Liang Lin, Sleepwalking by Mo!relax Team, G man by Hong-Bin Chen, and five other films by talented college students like De Flower by Chia-Jen Chen.

The concept for the mobisodes is based on how a phone is interpreted by the individual directors, inspiring new thinking and novelty.

During the festival, 3G subscribers in Taiwan can view the mobisodes at a promotional rate.

Mobile communications is being transformed from voice to multimedia, comprising messaging, Internet access, video and film. These changes are redefining people’s lifestyles and are opening up new frontiers also in filmmaking.

The 10 directors featured at the festival will discuss how the mobile phone, acting as the next-generation medium, will impact the creative sector, general audiences and the movie industry.

Directors may leverage the varying screen size and viewing direction to create mobisodes, photography and visual arts. A new set of rules can apply to the acting, subtitles, soundtrack and dialogue, expanding the creative space.

Some directors suggest that short mobile films will become the trend, which will attract more creative talents to mobile cinematography. Best of all, the public is free to choose when and where to view mobisodes.

Taiwan entered the 3G multimedia era earlier this year, giving the region’s telecoms industry the opportunity to offer rich and diversified services such as mobisodes.

"Nokia is promoting the ‘Life Goes Mobile’ concept with our state-of-the-art technology and products," says Mike Wang, Nokia’s regional general manager for networks.

"With the inauguration of our 3G-based Mobile Services Development Center in Taiwan, Nokia has the platform to turn mobility life into a reality. We will team up with operators and partners to create innovative, value-added mobile content that dovetails with Taiwan’s consumers’ needs."