Some people believe that movies have the unique role of artistic charm and fashion through time and space, the vivid face of a nation, and the cultural business card of a country. The film festival is an important bridge and intermediary for the dissemination of culture, which is of strategic significance for the protection of cultural diversity and the promotion of economic development, and can be used as an effective way for the country to export culture and expand its international influence. According to incomplete statistics, there are currently nearly 1,000 film festivals around the world, and the number of film festivals is still increasing, of which there are 15 international A-category film festivals recognized by the International Federation of Film Producers (FIAPF) (1).

For filmmakers, the film festival is a cultural pilgrimage of films, a carnival feast of films. The film festival has deservedly become a powerful promoter of film art, and the world's famous film festivals have all contributed to the development and progress of world film art through their own influence. The reason why the Cannes International Film Festival is the temple of cinema that all filmmakers yearn for is because it has always adhered to and pursued the art of film. The festival was first held in 1946, and it was during this festival that the masterpiece of Italian realism, Rome, the Undefended City, was unveiled. People are shocked by the realism of the realism of the real-life shooting of the war and the performance of the non-professional actors in the film, and this realistic aesthetic style has had a great impact on the subsequent development of world film aesthetics. With a history of more than 70 years, the Cannes International Film Festival has gone through ups and downs, through glory and change, but what has remained unchanged is that it still adheres to the art of film. There are countless films that stand out at the Cannes International Film Festival and have had an important impact on the development of world cinema art and film history. These classic films have shown their unique artistic connotation and cultural charm, and the Cannes International Film Festival has become a bridge for these classic films to go to the world. As the world-renowned film theorist André Bazin said of the Cannes International Film Festival: "A two-week modern cinema monastery, where there are cheesy revelries and fireworks, but more than that, films that deserve to be appreciated by the heart." (4) Here, the Cannes International Film Festival has undoubtedly created a legend of pilgrimage film culture.

Not only the Cannes International Film Festival, but also many international film festivals such as the Venice International Film Festival, the Berlin International Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, the Sundance International Film Festival, the Rotterdam International Film Festival, the Florence International Film Festival and other very famous film festivals are acting as messengers to promote the progress of film art, and at the same time leaving a strong mark in the history of film development. As a platform, the film festival has become a space for people to show their cultural charm and unleash their imagination to a certain extent. Elite and popular, elegant and universal, frivolous and serious, and many other forms of culture are presented at the festival. The French poet Jean Cocteau once said of the festival: "It is a country that has nothing to do with politics and no one to govern." If people can communicate directly and speak the same language, then the festival is a microcosm of such a world. (5) With an open mind, the film festival attracts film works, filmmakers, institutions and media from different countries and regions, and people from all over the world gather together because of the film festival to communicate with each other and learn from each other's strengths. Almost every film festival promotes the collision between different cultures to varying degrees, and this is also the unique charm of the festival - a hundred schools of thought contend, a hundred flowers bloom. Due to the competitive nature of some film festivals, contestants want to stand out in the festival, and with this positive "incentive mechanism", it will inevitably lead to more film creation. Not only that, but it can also effectively motivate film creators to launch more excellent works with ideology, artistry and creativity, which is conducive to the progress of film art and the diversified production of films.

(b)

Provide a trading platform to regulate market supply and demand

Because of its strong market effect and social benefits, film festivals can effectively regulate the supply and demand of films, trigger industrial linkage, and effectively promote the process of market-oriented construction, which has become a very important link in the entire film industry. As a stage where the film industry is gathered, there are countless possibilities and opportunities, and the festival is therefore regarded as a kind of "encounter in competition" (6). Filmmakers and film organizations alike want to raise awareness by gathering the widest possible attention on the largest possible scale. The festival provides a platform for filmmakers and institutions to showcase themselves and promote their work, and to gain "attention" for the participating films and people, so as to obtain more cooperation and marketing opportunities from this platform. If a film work, filmmaker or film institution can be honored at the festival, it will become the object of media scramble, and it will gain the opportunity to form a strong social effect, which will directly drive the box office and other income of the work, and even enhance the image value of filmmakers and institutions in the industry in the future. For example, "Assassin Nie Yinniang", which won the Best Director Award at the 2015 Cannes International Film Festival, became a popular and popular film when it was released in China. Gathering popularity and topics through the festival platform is an effective means to increase the popularity of the film and achieve better marketing.

Not only that, but film festivals over the years have often become "selling places" for transactions in the film industry. Almost every film festival will have a trading market, and filmmakers and distributors can form a promotion mechanism that can support each other through the interactive platform of the film festival. In the whole operation process of the film festival, it will inevitably cause a series of industrial linkages, which will produce derivative benefits of the value of the industrial chain. At the same time, the festival itself is able to make a profit from it. For example, the three famous international film festivals profit from the development of services for film and economic development, such as the provision of exhibitions, cooperation with designated media outlets, and cooperation with jewelers. On the one hand, this profit model can ensure the sustainable development of the film festival, and at the same time, it can effectively promote the multi-dimensional cooperation between the film festival and different fields.

Therefore, the market efficiency of the festival has also become a key factor in judging the success of the festival. Known as the "father of international film festivals", the Venice International Film Festival seems to have been stolen by other film festivals in recent years, not least because of the late start and small size of the Venetian film market. The Marché du Film in Venice was not set up until 2011, when the new president, Aalto Barbera, took office, and it could accommodate only 2,300 booths. (7) Compared with the Venice International Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival, the Cannes International Film Festival, and the Berlin International Film Festival are very prosperous. These film festivals are not only places of pilgrimage for the art of cinema, but also become super film markets. Among them, the Cannes International Film Festival Film Market covers an area of 13,000 square meters, has 34 exhibition halls, (8) has a large transaction scale and complete service functions, and is currently the world's largest film trading market. In addition, the Toronto International Film Festival is known for its large number of film screenings and service market, and the film market is quite prosperous.

(c)

Tap film talents and promote the development of films

The film festival can discover talents, continuously inject fresh blood into the film industry, and promote the progress of the film industry. The Sundance International Film Festival, the Rotterdam International Film Festival, the New York Independent Film Festival, and the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival are all very famous independent film festivals set up for newcomers and films that are not well-known. Many unknown filmmakers have changed their fortunes by participating in such film festivals, such as famous directors Fassbinder, Wenders, Jim Jamuche, etc., who began to be noticed at the Rotterdam International Film Festival. The Rotterdam International Film Festival is also known as "the most important stage for the world's emerging directors". SUCH FESTIVALS ALSO SUPPORT NEWCOMERS THROUGH FUNDING CONDITIONS, SUCH AS CHINA'S WANG XIAOSHUAI AND LOU YE, BOTH OF WHOM WERE FUNDED BY THE ROTTERDAM INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL'S HUBERT BALSFUND (9).

These film festivals have almost become a "human resource pool" for the film industry, through which they tap and nurture potential film talents, thereby providing impetus for the film industry. In addition to the above-mentioned Sundance International Film Festival, Rotterdam International Film Festival, New York Independent Film Festival, etc., which are dedicated to discovering new talents, many film festivals that are not specifically aimed at new talents will also provide opportunities and strong support for new talents. For example, the Cannes International Film Festival's "Un Certain Regard" and "Caméra d'Or" sections for outstanding feature films, the Venice International Film Festival's "Best New Artist Award", and the Berlin International Film Festival's "Meteor Award" are awards that recognize and encourage new filmmakers, aiming to explore new talents and film possibilities. In China, such as the Shanghai International Film Festival, the "Asian Film Newcomer Award", the Beijing International Film Festival's "China New Filmmaker Fund Award" and the "Chinese Film New Focus" unit, are committed to discovering and supporting new film talents in Asia.

The film festival can carry out a strong promotion of the country and the city, highlight the cultural charm and show the face of the city. For example, the Cannes International Film Festival, the Berlin International Film Festival, and the Venice International Film Festival have become cultural labels of countries and cities. At the same time, the holding of film festivals and exhibitions can effectively promote the development of domestic films and related industries, promote cross-border and cross-regional exchanges and cooperation of domestic film culture, and effectively enhance the overall cultural height and image of the host country. For the host city of the film festival, it can not only give citizens a good opportunity to fully enjoy film culture, but also contribute to the economic development of the city and build the city's cultural brand.

The film festival seems to naturally combine tourism, image, and revenue through a special cultural agenda, and has always maintained the symbiosis between the film festival and the city's economy and culture. Some successful film festivals can often bring a lot of derivative benefits to the development of cities and countries, which makes film festivals always closely related to urban construction and national development, and become an important part of the city's economic and cultural map. By focusing the eyes of many people from all over the world on a city precisely in a certain period of time, the festival brings attention to the city with a "convergence effect". In terms of stimulating economic development, due to the large influx of people during the film festival, it will inevitably stimulate the income of local shopping, catering, accommodation and other industries, which is also a great positive social benefit for the city. During the festival, the festival and the city will make use of the rich tourism resources of the local city as much as possible, and attract more people to the city where the festival is located to appreciate the unique charm and brilliance of the city during this time. For example, the city of Cannes, where the Cannes International Film Festival is located, was originally just a small fishing village with an area of less than 20 square kilometers and a population of only 74,000, but because of the film festival and the careful management of the film festival, Cannes has become a world-famous city. For example, the city of Cannes has built the Palais des Festivals (the main venue of the festival) between the beach and the yachts, with a total of 25 cinemas and screening rooms, a large 1,000-seat cinema hall and 14 halls with 35 to 300 seats. Cannes takes the film festival as one of the city brands, and strives to build it, making the Cannes International Film Festival an internationally renowned film festival brand, and at the same time contributing to Cannes becoming a world-famous tourist city, and also making others remember the indissoluble bond between France, a romantic country, and movies through the film festival, showing the close connection between the film festival and the city. In the same way, the Berlin International Film Festival is to Berlin, the Venice International Film Festival is to Venice, etc., and the city and the film festival are integrated and mutually promoted.

It can be seen that the film festival plays a great role in shaping the city's brand and enhancing the country's cultural image. However, if the festival is not ideal, it may have a negative impact on the image of the city. The film festival should be based on urban culture, continuously improve the artistry and humanities, and create greater commercial value to feed the city and national construction. At the same time, the formation of a brand film festival is also inseparable from the accumulation and cultivation of urban and national culture. Only when the two sides establish a mutually beneficial and symbiotic relationship can they help each other build and form brands.