Bratislava, 1 March 2010 - IFF Bratislava will soon welcome in Slovakia two major European initiatives supporting emerging film talents: Torino Film Lab andScript&Pitch workshops.

These partnerships confirm the new priorities defined by the

refreshed artistic and managing teams of the festival: gaining international

recognition, discovering new talents, and being active all year long.

About 50 filmmakers of 25 nationalities from all over the world will be gathering in Bratislava

from 19 to 27 March 2010. During their stay in Slovakia, they will be working on their film

projects, whether it means focusing on the scriptwriting process or on the development, e.g.on production and financing strategies.

Slovak film professionals and students, but also the Bratislava audience, will be able to interact with our international guests, thanks to a tailored program including film lectures and short film screenings, in partnership with the Film and Television Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts (VŠMU).

Created in 2008, Torino Film Lab is a year-round, international laboratory that supports emerging talents from all over the world who are working on their first and second feature films, through training, development and funding activities. Torino Film Lab culminates at the Torino Film Festival in November, when projects are presented in front of about 120 film professionals (producers, sales agents, distributors, etc.). A purse of more than €600,000 then goes to the Production Awards winning projects.

The first residential workshop of the year will be held at the VŠMU's Film and Television Faculty between 19 and 22 March. 11 projects have been selected (couples of director/producers will be present), and include for example the second feature project by Bosnian director Aida Begic (Snow, Critics' Week Grand Prix in Cannes 2008); the second feature project by Malaysian director Liew Seng-Tat (Flower in the Pocket, Tiger Award in Rotterdam 2008); the first feature project by Bogdan Mustata from Romania (A Good Day for a Swim, Golden Bear in Berlin 2008); the first feature project by Swiss director Tobias Nolle (René, Golden Leopard in Locarno 2007); or the first feature project by Martin Turk from Slovenia (Stealing Corn, short films competition at IFF Bratislava 2009). Tutors of the workshop comprise Dutch sound designer Michel Schöpping, who recently worked on The Misfortunates (Felix van Groningen, Audience Award at IFF Bratislava 2009).

The very first feature supported by the Torino Film Lab that came to completion, Agua Fria del Mar (Paz Fabrega, Costa Rica), has just won the Tiger Award in Rotterdam Festival 2010. The film will be screened at the 12th IFF Bratislava in November 2010. For more information on the Torino Film Lab, please visit www.torinofilmlab.it.

Created in 2005, Script&Pitch workshops are an advanced development course for international scriptwriters and story editors, supported by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union. The first residential workshop of the year will be held in Bratislava from 21 to 27 March. 15 projects have been selected and include for example the second feature project by Romanian director Florin Serban (If I want to whistle, I whistle, Grand Prix and Alfred Bauer Prize in Berlin 2010); or the first feature project by Virgil Vernier from France (Police Station, documentary competition at IFF Bratislava 2009). In addition, for the first time Script&Pitch workshops will include a Slovak participant, scriptwriter Anita Obdržálková, who is well-known to IFF Bratislava since she worked for our program department in 2009! For more information on Script&Pitch, please visit www.scriptpitchworkshops.com.

Exchanges with Slovak professionals and audience alike have also been scheduled. Lectures given by international story-editors, taking place each day at 6 pm at the VŠMU from 21 to 26 March, will be one of the highlights of the program. These lectures will be open to both VŠMU students and the public (upon reservation). Last but not least, three free screenings of the participating filmmakers' previous works will take place at the VŠMU, inpresence of the directors. About 20 short films will be shown on 20 March at 6 pm, 23 March at 8.30 pm, and 25 March at 8.30 pm. 12nd International Film Festival Bratislava will take place in November 2010 (exact dates to be announced).

Further information:

Matthieu Darras / Tel.: +421 905 221 754

matthieu.darras@ba.sunnet.sk / matthieu.darras@torinofilmlab.it

www.iffbratislava.sk