Jazz and cinema are the two great art forms of the twentieth century. Their styles and fashions have been marked by the century's events and, in turn, have helped shape it. But their relationship with each other has not always been an easy one. Jazz may have provided some of the most memorable scores for films, particularly the compositions of Duke Ellington (Anatomy of a Murder), Miles Davis (Ascenseur pour l'échafaud), Elmer Bernstein (The Man with the Golden Arm, Sweet Smell of Success and Some Came Running) and, more recently, Terence Blanchard (most of Spike Lee's films). However, as a subject it has not fared so well on the big screen.

Billy Wilder was born in Sucha Beskidzka, now a part of Poland. But in 1906 it was a thriving hub within the great Austro-Hungarian empire. Of his nation of birth Wilder commented, 'The Austrians are brilliant people. They made the world believe that Hitler was a German and Beethoven an Austrian'. It is one of many off-screen bon mots in a career that saw Wilder's sharp tongue and savage wit employed for numerous films that have become Hollywood classics.

US guerilla filmmaking is a phenomenon that fascinates European filmmakers and audiences. In a country that does not provide state funding for film, a grassroot movement of indie filmmakers, from time to time, manages to produce rough diamonds able to compete in big festivals with the slick European and Asian art-house films. The success stories of TARNATION, OLD JOY, PUTTY HILL and others really show that if the small US films are given a voice they can really make an impression on both critics and audiences outside USA. That's why it's key to allow the US indies to be seen by key buyers and programmers in Europe.

A friend once compared his being asked to be the Best Man at his brother's wedding to having sex with the Queen of England - you're honoured but you just don't want to do it. The same could be said of being asked to pick the highlights of a film festival. There are always the great titles I have yet to see and would have included, then there are those films that I should have seen but haven't, and most embarrassingly, the films I don't list, only to end up sitting next to their director at a screening. So, it is with trepidation that I write this.

The second edition of the American Film Festival opens with Dark Horse, the latest feature by acclaimed American director Todd Solondz. It also begins a retrospective of the filmmaker’s career, highlighting one of contemporary cinema’s great satirists, who has done more than most to challenge the conventions of the traditional family drama.