62nd edition of for the Locarno International Film Festival, a familiar event in this Swiss town on the shores of Lake Maggiore with great films from throughout the world. For 11 consecutive days from 5th to 15th August 2009, Locarno will become the film capital offering film projection, encounters and viewing in the heart of the town.

The festival boasts seven sections, four international juries involved in selecting the awards for films, numerous names of artists and film makers taking part in the 2009 edition of the festival. In addition the great renaissance style town square in the centre of Locarno will have a giant screen (26xm14m) installed allowing over 8,000 people to watch films in the open air. Innovative, international and trendy, the festival will pay homage to the great names of cinema: the Pardo d'onore Swisscom Prize will be awarded to the American director William Friedkin, who will be present at the awards ceremony. The festival will pay tribute to him with the film To live and die in L.A., USA 1985.

The Raimondo Rezzonico prize for Best Independent Producer will be awarded to the French producer Martine, co-founder in 1987 of the Pierre Grise Productions Society (Paris) while the Moet &| Chandon 2009 Excellence Award will be given to Italian actor Toni Servillo.

The main stage for the the event will of course be Piazza Grande offering spectators 13 feature films, 10 of them World Exclusives. This year there will be more space dedicated to animation and to Japan, Manga Impact. The rest of the selection is heavily Europe orientated with three German productions, three Swiss and Two French among others.

The 2009 programme will be inaugurated in the square with American romantic comedy, 500 days of Summer by Marc Webb, with Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. An enthralling musical journey into Mongol culture, guided by well known singer Urna will close the programme with The Two Horses of Ghengis Khan by Byambasuren Davaa (The story of the weeping camel), closing film.

For further information: www.pardo.ch