The following grants were announced by the Estonian Film Institute in various sessions throughout 2023 and also at the beginning of 2024, following a call for projects launched in 2023.

Europa Distribution Workshop SOFIA MEETINGS – March 20-24th

What goes into the making of a film? What are the trends in contemporary cinematography? These and other questions will be addressed by world-renowned filmmakers who have worked on such cult classics as American Beauty, The King’s Speech, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. On 13 March, the Visegrad Film Forum will open its gates at the Film and Television School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava and in the auditoria of the Kino Lumiére film theatre.

SMART7 in its second year: the bravest European cinema is on tour in seven film festivals across Europe

The Riga International Film Festival (RIGA IFF, 17–27 October), a prominent cinema event in the Baltics, has opened the application process for its four competitions. The RIGA IFF Feature Film Competition, the Short Film National Competition, and the Baltic Music Video Competition will be open for submissions until 30 June. Meanwhile the deadline for the Short Film International Competition is 31 May. Submission until 25 March is without a fee. You can access the competition rules and submit applications starting today by visiting the websites enter.rigaiff.lv and filmfreeway.com/rigaiff.

A world Premiere! Wild Urge (81 min') is based on true events. The film tells the story of a successful lawyer suspected of drugging a young woman who claims he had sexually assaulted her.

Transilvania International Film Festival (June 14 - 23, 2024) opens the registration for Transilvania Pitch Stop (TPS). Starting today, filmmakers from Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Serbia, Moldova, Greece, Turkey and Georgia can submit their projects to the 11th edition of the international co-production program. Applications can be submitted online until April 20, 2024, through the Eventival.eu platform - https://vp.eventival.com/tiff/2024/film-form/tps_coproduction_2024

Under the TPS program, the jury will select up to 10 projects in development, belonging to filmmakers on their debut or second feature film. The program will include the presentation of projects to potential partners and funders (producers, distributors, sales agents, film fund representatives, etc.), individual meetings, project discussions but also awards consisting in cash prizes and production services. The event will take place in Cluj-Napoca, on June 20-21.

Projects may be in various stages of development, but a first draft script must be available for selection. To be eligible, each project must be conceived, from the outset, as a European co-production. At the same time, at least 20% of the film's budget must already be secured. The program will be conducted in English.

Baltic Sea Forum for Documentaries (Baltic Sea Docs) is the most important documentary co-financing pitching event in the Baltic countries, taking place in Riga, Latvia. The 28th edition is scheduled to take place onsite from 1 – 8 September 2024 (industry dates 1 – 6 September). The call for projects for all sections is open now and will close on 10 May.

The Arthouse Cinema Training returns to Berlin this summer for its 21st edition. Please save the date and join us for an unforgettable week of creativity, learning, and forming lasting conections!

Film directors and scriptwriters from Baltic countries are invited to submit short film scripts to the script development program "Baltic Shorts Residency", organized by the Lithuanian Short Film Agency "Lithuanian Shorts". After a successful five-year span, the Residency has emerged as a pivotal programme in the Baltic region for refining and elevating script quality to resonate on an international scale.