This year's Venice selection includes films from 32 countries, a record, with a large number U.S. and Italian films, 17 and 22 entries respectively. For Mueller, one of his biggest coups was luring four films from India, a country with a huge internal market and foreign distribution determined by large Indian populations abroad.

If there is one criterion for selection to the Venice Film Festival, it's a film's ability to captivate, the festival director says.

That means no fidgeting in the audience.

"I think I never laughed or cried as much as I did for this year's selection," said festival director Marco Mueller, who raises the curtain Wednesday on the 66th Venice Film Festival, his sixth as director.

"It is quite a luxury to be told by filmmakers and producers: 'Never start a market in Venice, because it is the only place where we can meet people and see other people's films,'" he said.

Dealmaking in Venice happens in a much more informal way, Mueller said.

"When people meet, They may say, 'I have this new idea for a film.' Then all of a sudden on the terrace of the Hotel des Bains, a deal memo is signed for the production of a brand new film," he said.

Mueller, 56, is convinced that a festival showing can change the trajectory of a film's success and that Venice is high-profile enough to provide the ideal platform for middle-range budget Hollywood films.

During last year's festival, a founder of Sony Classic saw a man using a chronometer to measure the applause during the premiere of "Rachel Getting Married," which lasted nine or 10 minutes, Mueller said. The man was from a group of German film distributors, who widened the release of the film based on the applause from Venice's audience.

Likewise, Kathryn Bigelow's "Hurt Locker," received a 10-minute standing ovation, despite mixed critical reaction. "Still, the film traveled on the first impact, on the first response in Venice. It found a North American deal in Toronto and went on to become one of the box office hits of last season," Mueller said.

"I really try to prove we can prolong the life of a film — even though it may be just in the realm of a very long festival circulation — because of the very high visibility we create," Mueller said.

(Agencies September 3, 2009)