Monaco Government Tourist Bureau Asia held their first-ever Monaco Film Festival in Singapore from 14 to 22 October 2017. Led by Asia Director Benoit Badufle, Zhi Heng Yew and Crystal Tok, the Monaco Film Festival managed to attract a total audience of 60,000 in terms of ticket sales, media (traditional and social) reach and word-of-mouth.
Monaco Film Festival was held in partnership with Alliance Francaise de Singapour – the main venue of the movie screenings, Singapore Film Society – advisor to the organisation of film festivals in Singapore, Capitol Theatre – venue of the gala event and Bomanbridge Media – providing assistance in negotiations and rights acquisition for the films.
Providing a holistic experience for the film festival, Monaco Tourism organised a few events alongside the festival. At the Alliance Française of Singapore, there was an exclusive film and photo exhibition featuring vintage movie posters and Asian superstar Lin Chi-ling for the August issue of Vogue Taiwan.
The festival also kicked-off with an exclusive cocktail gala reception at the Capitol Theatre that attracted Singapore’s local & regional media, cultural and business elites. Attendees were encouraged to wear their best 50’s glamour fashion, alluding to Grace Kelly’s style in the iconic “To Catch a Thief” which was screened on the gala night alongside “Monaco: Back to the Future”. The festival was graced by Christine Oberdorff – the film’s producer and director, Zhang Zhang – violinist of the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra and founder of Zhangomusiq who performed with guitarist Leopoldo Giannola and hosted the event, and finally, Monaco Tourist Authority’s Press and Communications Director Corinne Kiabski, who flew specially from France and Monaco for this occasion.
“We are very pleased with this year’s turnout and how we reached out to the audience. We introduced Monaco through so many media, from classic films, exhibits of the original movie posters to musical performances. We are already in talks with neighbouring countries to host next year’s edition to build on our success,” says Benoit Badufle.
Monaco Film Festival is organised by Monaco Government Tourist Bureau Asia, in partnership with Alliance Française de Singapour, Singapore Film Society, Capitol Theatre, Bomanbridge Media and Air France, with the support of Creme Simon, APM Monaco, Bottles XO, L’Orangerie Liqueur de Monaco and Capella Singapore.