The forthcoming International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR)will feature a special section - SEA Eyes - dedicated to films from South EastAsia.

Announcing the sidebar, IFFR chief Sandra Den Hamer said:'We don't often do geographic focuses, but this is a fascinatingregion with huge young talents who remain largely unknown, while the world hasgone on to discover the cinema of its neighbours in China, Japan andKorea.'

SEA Eyes, which will contain some 25 features and short-filmcompilations, will define its remit as the films from Indonesia, ThePhilippines, Thailand and Malaysia. It will not include the Mekong Delta.Rotterdam did a Mekong programme a few years ago, as did Locarno this summer.The section will be curated by Gert Jan Zuilhof who is currently travelling inthe region.

Den Hamer argues that some directors, such as NonzeeNimibutr, Apichatpong Weerasethakul and the Pang brothers from Thailand havebecome household names on the art-house and festival scene. They in turn haveinspired schools of talented followers who, through access to digitaltechnology, are now able to make their own pictures.

Weerasethakul, who this year appeared in competition inCannes with Tropical Malady, will alsobe providing the festival with a major art installation based on the theme ofThai horror films. Backed by the Hubert Bals Fund, he is understood to bere-shooting parts of his previous films for the project.