16-05-2017

EFP Producer on the Move: Katarína Krnáčová, Slovakia

By
    EFP Producer on the Move: Katarína Krnáčová, Slovakia European Film Promotion

    BRATISLAVA: Slovakia’s European Film Promotion Producer on the Move Katarína Krnáčová is a graduate of Ex Oriente 2009 and EAVE 2015. She had worked on such films as Mátyás Prikler's short Thanks, Fine, which premiered at the Cinéfondation of Cannes IFF 2010, followed by the 2013 feature version of the film Fine, Thanks (MPhilms) as well as Mira Fornay's IFF Rotterdam 2013 award-winning My Dog Killer (MIRAFOX) and the omnibus film Slovakia 2.0 (MPhilms).

    She produced Iveta Grófová's Crystal Bear-winning Little Harbour, recently having its Asian premiere in South Korea and Japan. In her production company Silverart she is currently developing Martina Saková's children's comedy Summer with Bernard, Juraj Bohuš' road movie Stand Up and a TV drama series.

    Asked about what she can offer as a coproduction partner, she responded, "I can surely offer previous experiences and my network of partners and colleagues, that I have built throughout the years. Also, I tend to find new unexplored ways of producing and/or distributing films. For international coproductions, I’m sure Slovakia has a lot to offer in terms of film crew of high quality, as well as attractive 20% cash rebate system, which is now being updated into a more efficient form. We have beautiful locations as well as modern postproduction facilities and VFX studios. The Slovak Audiovisual Fund systematically supports minority coproductions and the national TV broadcaster RTVS also offers a significant support for productions."

    In terms of private financing, Krnáčová said, "Due to the small market in Slovakia and it’s revenues potential, it’s hard to get a private funding here. However, it has become possible to raise substantial income on the local box office in recent years. Depending largely on what kind of project we are talking about, it would be much easier to convince private financiers to invest in the case of a well-known cast or attractive genre, such as comedy or thriller. I’m hoping also private TV broadcasters will enlarge their coproducing ambitions on a national level, as we all should try to keep track with the big changes we are now experiencing within the industry."

    When asked about the reality of the Slovak distribution market, she replied, "Again, this depends on the type of the film. Two of Slovakia‘s recent films have delivered a record in Slovak box office in the last years of Slovak cinema with admissions of over 600,000 viewers, topping even US productions, which have been bringing the biggest numbers for a long time. So there is optimism when it comes to comedies or thrillers. However, I wouldn’t be too sceptical about other genres either. I find it important that the producer makes a great effort in marketing and PR of the film, which in combination with teaming up with a strong distributor can make for interesting results. I do believe that making a good film with good reviews and making a strong box office are not necessarily two separate things, only the process to reach them both is more and more demanding for all people involved."

    Contact:
    +421.905.384.615
    This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

    Selected filmography:
    Little Harbour – directed by Iveta Grófová, 2016, fiction
    Slovakia 2.0 – ten stories directed by ten directors including Martin Šulík, Juraj Herz, Peter Kerekes or Zuzana Liová, 2014, fiction
    My Dog Killer - directed by Mira Fornay, 2013, fiction
    Fine, Thanks - directed by Mátyás Prikler, 2013, fiction
    Summer with Bernard - directed by Martina Saková, in preproduction, fiction
    Stand Up - directed by Juraj Bohuš, in development, fiction
    1989, TV mini series, in development, fiction