Inside the Venice Film Festival: student interview and vlog

From world premieres and legendary directors to emerging voices shaping the future of cinema, the Venice International Film Festival remains one of the most influential film events in the world. For aspiring filmmakers, attending Venice is more than a chance to watch acclaimed films - it's an opportunity to gain firsthand insight into the film industry, discover global trends, and connect with the artistic and business realities behind modern filmmaking. Catalyst film production graduate Ian Busch Verni travelled to Venice to experience the festival as both a passionate cinephile and an emerging artist. In this interview, he reflects on unforgettable screenings, industry lessons, inspiring encounters with cinematic icons, and how his studies have helped prepare him for the next chapter of his creative journey.

There's a million festivals to go to, why did you choose this one? How does it tie into the practice you've been building during your studies?

Venice is one of the "big three” festivals, making it hugely competitive. As a filmmaker, that means a hard time getting your film through the door, but as a cinephile it means seeing the best that the industry has to offer. This time I went as a cinephile! Venice is not as accessible as TIFF or Berlinale, not as glamorous as Cannes, and not as boundary pushing as a festival like Rotterdam, but I do think it’s a good mix of everything. This edition specifically featured a few directors — like Werner Herzog and Lucrecia Martel — who I wouldn’t miss if I had the chance. A particularly valuable experience was seeing the behind-the-scenes of sales and distribution. Understanding how a movie is marketed in the age of streaming and social media is a big learning curve for those looking to have a crack at making a living in this field.

What did you learn? Is there something that surprised or inspired you?

Firstly, it was very easy to get accreditation! I had no idea. For a Student Cinema Accreditation they'll only need your enrolment letter at Catalyst. What I continue to learn is to what extent the cinema industry is like a colosseum full of voluntary gladiators, or like a giant casino where someone else takes most of your money when you win a hand or hit the jackpot. Bigwigs like Jeff Bezos and Ted Sarandos can leverage massive capital incentives to hamstring platforms like the Biennale into premiering their content, and using that artistic legitimacy to harvest ticket sales and engagement down the road. But alas, what continues to surprise me is that l’art pour l'art — art of art’s sake — somehow lives to see another day, and radical perspectives make a splash every now and then. Young and independent artists continue to punch above their weight, and auteurs like Jim Jarmusch can still win the top prizes and get their projects distributed. Gold glitters even in the mud... Even though there’s so much mud. That's inspiring!

What were the personal highlights?

I would say that getting to see any film for the first time in a packed theater and knowing nothing about it is beyond comparison as far as cinephilia goes. It's not an uncommon experience for all of us that go to the Berlinale every year, but it's something that never gets old for me. But to be more specific, there were two screenings in particular that I'll never forget. Firstly, getting to see Werner Herzog's Ghost Elephants, surrounded by his magical narration and sitting only a few rows in front of him. He's my hero! I also got to see Francis Ford Coppola and Lucrecia Martel, who are hugely important to me, but someone I didn't expect I'd ever see was Kim Novak. Since the year I was born, Vertigo has been somewhere in the top three of Sight and Sound's "The Greatest Films of All Time" list. It's the rightful heir to Citizen Kane's throne, and a cultural centerpiece. Kim Novak is Vertigo, and being in the same room as her was time travel. The only person I could ever talk with about Kim Novak was my grandpa, but I think times will soon change and her great work will be appreciated by the mainstream once again — especially the comedies!

Did you spot any trends or themes in the films you watched and conversations you had?

What really jumped at me was the quality of the documentary work that I got to see. I remember thinking that I enjoyed the documentaries much more than anything else. Nuestra Tierra, Ghost Elephants and Cover-Up were big highlights, and Gianfranco Rosi's Below the Clouds hit big in the main competition. Something I'd love to see in the future would be great documentaries finally getting the global theatrical releases they deserve. But alas, one of the biggest trends in mainstream cinema has been the final abandonment of Hays Code dogma in favor of more explicit cinema, in an effort to compete with the incessantly extremist and pornographic algorithms of the internet. In the war of engagement, documentaries aren't competing with narrative features anymore, but with the shocking and unbelievable things that happen every day in the world.

You've made this trip as an emerging artist finishing their studies. How are your learnings at Catalyst accompanying you in this new phase of your career?

Something I learned very early on at Catalyst is that the most personal is the most creative. It seems obvious, but in the face of huge financial and political influences, it can be so easy to get carried away in the inertia of it all. What I've come to find after dozens of these festivals is that there is always a little unfilled gap in the cultural tapestry that you can fit into, but only by leaving behind the armour you've put on to protect yourself from judgement. The tapestry that holds our culture together is made of all the people who were fearlessly and radically individual. And a final lesson... Being in cinema for the money is like being a barnacle on the hull of a big ship — it may take you very far, and if you're sticky enough you won't fall off and sink, but you can't choose where to go. Being in cinema because you love movies means you're a little fish in a big ocean, but you can swim forever... And you're not an ugly barnacle!