Feature: Female characters stand out at Venice Film Festival

Female characters were given special attention at the ongoing Venice International Film Festival, where women seem to have more strength and resilience than men in many films.

Three of the films competing for the Golden Lion -- "Marguerite," "Looking for Grace" and "The Danish Girl" -- have titles dedicated to women.

"I hope people will want to laugh at Marguerite's adventures, but I also hope that between laughs, people will measure what is important in life: love and death," French director Xavier Giannoli told reporters.

Set in the beginning of the 1920s not far from Paris, this loose portrait of a person who really existed tells the story of a rich woman whole life is devoted to music. Marguerite sings wholeheartedly, but she sings terribly out of tune in front of a hypocrite audience, always coming in for a good laugh but acting as if she was the diva she believes she is.

Also set at the beginning of the last century, "The Danish Girl" is the real story of two women, Gerda Wegener and Lili Elbe, whose strength turns into a celebration of pure love. Gerda was happily married to Danish painter Einar Wegener, when one day she discovered that her husband felt like living his life as a woman. Thanks to Gerda's heroic understanding and support, Einar underwent a series of operations in the early 1930s to become Lili Elbe.

Several female viewers told Xinhua that they were impressed by Gerda's character.

"I was captured by the strength of a love that goes beyond everything. What I saw were just two persons deeply in love with each other," said Giovanna Calabro, a university professor of Spanish culture.

Au Kayee, a filmmaker, said: "I thought of what I would do if he (Einar) were my husband. I hoped I would have the capacity to behave the same."

Shifting to contemporary times, "Looking for Grace" by Australian director Sue Brooks is centered around a 16-year-old girl who runs away from home. In her journey, Grace experiences betrayal and loneliness, while learning that life is confusing and arbitrary, though wonderful.

In an interview with Xinhua, Brooks said she was interested in stories of ordinary people who seem to search something deep inside themselves. "I like when actors can do their best and when they can create the character by themselves," she said.

Andrea De Fabrizio, a cinema passionate, said: "For me it was a pleasure to see several female characters in the forefront at the festival. And actually there were not only outstanding female characters, but also female directors able to bring the diversity of voices out here."

Emerging Australian actress Odessa Young, who played Grace, said she loved Brooks' picture of the complexity of the world of teenagers as Grace is at such a point in her life where everything is new and exciting, and is struggling to discover herself and the people around her.

Another girl struggling for her dreams was the protagonist of Chinese director Peng Fei's "Underground Fragrance," included in the Out of Competition section. In Beijing, Xiao Yun does everything she can in order to break free from her job as a pole dancer at a nightclub. She interrupts her efforts for a boy, but after having been wounded and humiliated, she goes back to follow her path. Endi