BRUSSELS: The LUX FILM PRIZE of the European Parliament is once again partnering up with ARTE and ARTEKino to promote over the next three months one LUX PRIZE film monthly as the Film of the Month. Each film will be online for free and with subtitles in 24 languages for one month, from March till May 2019.
TALLINN: Tanel Toom’s debut feature Truth and Justice has become Estonia's most watched film since the country regained its independence in 1991, with 205,595 admissions in four weeks. The record had previously been held by James Cameron's Avatar, with 194,327 admissions.
SKOPJE: Macedonian project The North Pole by Marija Apcevska was awarded at the European Short Pitch – NISI MASA, within the Festival International du Film d’Aubagne (18-23 March 2019).
BUCHAREST: The Board of Management of the Council of Europe's Eurimages Fund, at its 154th meeting held in Bucharest from 12 to 15 March 2019, agreed to support 15 fiction films, two documentaries and one animation project with a total amount of 4,397,000 EUR. Seven of these projects are produced or coproduced by CEE countries.
Vilnius Airport cinema hall presents a new short film program for families
Press releases 19-03-2019Film Spot LT – a unique cinema hall at Vilnius Airport presents an updated film program for families. Starting today, two new film programs will be screened at Film Spot LT, which is the first and only airport cinema hall in the Central and Eastern Europe. The cinema hall, which is located next to the Gate 2, operates free of charge and welcomes all passengers of Vilnius Airport to spend time before their flight watching Lithuanian films.
The new repertoire consists of two programs, presenting 9 animated and short films by the most prominent Lithuanian filmmakers of the new generation. Among other films, viewers will be able to enjoy short animated films that have been awarded at international and national film festivals, including Running Lights (lit. “Kaukai”) by Gediminas Šiaulys, Mr Night Has a Day Off (lit. “Pono nakties laisvadienis”) and Woods (lit. “Miškas”) by Ignas Meiliūnas, Noroutine (lit. “Nerutina“) by Jūratė Samulionytė, Saga by Ieva Miškinytė, Junction (lit. “Virsmas“) by Nathan Jureviciaus. Also, short films The Last Day (lit. “Paskutinė diena“) by Klaudija Matvejevaitė, Not lucky today (lit. “Nesiseka šiandien’) by Dovilė Šarutytė and The Mother’s Day (lit. “Motinos diena”) by Kamilė Milašiūtė.
“The idea of having cinema halls in the airports is increasing in popularity among the biggest airports. We are glad to note that Film Spot LT cinema hall was one of the first ones not only in the Eastern and Central Europe but in the whole world. It is one more platform for promoting Lithuanian films and gives us a chance to reach both, Lithuanian and foreign cinema lovers. Together with our partners Lithuanian Short Film Agency we regularly updated the program. The new program is aimed at families, parents and the little passengers for whom the waiting time before the flight can be a great challenge. The length of the program is less than an hour to lessen the odds of missing the flight”, – says Dovilė Butnoriūtė, the Head of Lithuanian Film Centre’s Film Promotion, Information and Heritage Department.
The Film Spot LT was initiated by the Lithuanian Film Centre in 2015. The film program was created and is regularly updated in co-operation with the Lithuanian Shorts Agency that has been part of Film Spot LT since its inception. “Very often we are praised by our foreign colleagues for this unique platform that gives an opportunity to present Lithuanian shorts for wider audiences. Every year when updating the program, we want to make it interesting and relevant to both, Lithuanian travelers and foreign visitors. We also seek to introduce Lithuanian filmmakers of different generations, promote their work and our country's cinema culture in general,” – says Rimantė Daugėlaitė, the Head of Lithuanian Shorts Agency.
The Film Spot LT cinema hall has 50 seats and is in the departure area of Vilnius Airport next to the Gate A2. Its working hours are adapted to the flight schedule – films are shown from the first to the last flight of the day.
TREBON: Most of the 33 projects selected for the 7th edition of the CEE Animation Forum (6-8 May 2019) are from CEE countries. The CEE Animation Forum will be held within the Anifilm International Festival of Animated Films set to take place from 7 to 12 May 2019.
Riga International Film Festival Calls For Entries
The Riga International Film Festival (RIGA IFF) announces calls for submissions to its three competition programmes: the Feature Film Competition, the SHORT RIGA International Competition, and the SHORT RIGA Baltic Music Video Competition (BMV). The sixth edition of RIGA IFF will take place from October 17 to 27, 2019.
RIGA IFF Feature Film Competition seeks innovative cinematic language and auteur expression being created within the Baltic Sea region (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Sweden). This programme reflects transitions and recent trends in cinema. There are no genre restrictions – films may fall into documentary, fiction, animation, or any cross-genre category. The 10 films that are ultimately selected exhibit present-day contemplation about the cinema of tomorrow.
SHORT RIGA International Competition looks for distinct expression in short format film – whether it’s animation, fiction, documentary, or experimental production. The festival's curators select 35 of the most interesting submissions from around the world.
SHORT RIGA Baltic Music Video Competition (BMV) endeavors to uphold the belief that music video is an independent and powerful short format. BMV appreciates videos that both challenge the audience and push the boundaries of accepted format, content, and artistry. The screening of this programme is designed as a special event: a lively meeting between music video-makers, musicians and composers, curators, the international jury members, and the audience.
Calls for entries open on March 19. More detailed information about the rules, regulations, closing dates, and awards can be found at rigaiff.lv.
The festival consists of three competition programmes, various special sections, diverse industry events, and thought-provoking public discussions. RIGA IFF is organised with the support of the State Culture Capital Foundation, the European Commission’s programme ‘Creative Europe – MEDIA’, the National Film Centre of Latvia, and the Riga City Council.
BUCHAREST: Icon production, the company behind Andrei Ujică’s The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceaușescu, is in early postproduction with Eugen Jebeleanu’s debut feature Inside / Înăuntru (working title), a drama exploring gay life in contemporary Romania.
ZAGREB: Zagreb stands for a German city in the Netflix series Medical Police, a spin-off from the series Children’s Hospital, which is currently filming in Croatia. The series has already applied to the incentives scheme.
The shooting of the feature Once Were Humans by the director Goran Vojnović begins
Press releases 18-03-2019The shooting of the feature Once Were Humans by the director Goran Vojnović begins
On Friday, 15 March, the shooting of the live-action feature Once Were Humans by the writer and director Goran Vojnović, began in Visoko, on Kurešček hill. The third feature by Vojnović focuses on the pressing issue of migrants. Leo is an Italian who lives in Slovenia. Vučko is a Bosnian who arrived to Slovenia as a child refugee. Leo continues to stay in Slovenia because of his ex-wife Tanja and his son Luka, hoping that they can become a family again. When the bank refuses to grant a loan they need to renovate their restaurant, Leo and Vučko have no choice but to accept an offer from the swindler Gianni. They are tasked with stealing Gianni's truck so that he can collect the insurance money. However, instead of Gianni's truck, Leo and Vučko mistakenly steal a truck full of refugees. Vučko the refugee and Leo the migrant thus inadvertently become responsible for the destiny of people similarly unfortunate as they have been. In order to solve their financial problems, they decide to sell them. At first it seems that they are not indifferent towards these people, but with each passing day there is less and less humanity left in Leo and Vučko.
Goran Vojnović had the following to say about his new project: "The film Once Were Humans is becoming more and more topical from day to day –not because the problem of refugees and migrants in Europe is more pressing today than it used to be years ago, but because we are becoming less and less human as time goes by.«
Starring Francesco Borchi, Moamer Kasumović, Maruša Majer, Jaka Jakopič, Emir Hadžihafizbegović, Boris Cavazza, Jasna Žalica, Vlado Novak, Gregor Baković, Gianluca Gobbi, Aljaž Jovanović and Benjamin Krnetić.
The film is produced by Boštjan Ikovic from the Arsmedia production house. At the beginning of the shooting, Ikovic stated that the production of this very demanding and important film started very energetically, which would ensure solid foundations for it.
The film is co-produced by MB Grip, 100, and Nuframe.
The following artists are taking part in the production as well: screenwriter Tommaso Santi, director of photography Miloš Srdić, editor Ivor Ivezić, sound recordist Igor Iskra, sound designer Julij Zornik, production designer Marco Juratovec, costumes designer Jelena Proković, and makeup designer Anja Rančić Godina.
The film is being made with the financial support of the Slovenian Film Centre and with the assistance of the Viba Film Studio.
Goran Vojnović is a director and writer, born in 1980 in Ljubljana. He graduated in film and TV directing from the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television in Ljubljana. In 2009, he received the prestigious Prešeren's Fund Award and the Kresnik Award for the best novel of the year for Southern Scum Go Home, his debut. In the same year, a successful theatre performance was made after the novel, while in 2013 Vojnović also directed a film based on it, for which Dino Hajderović, Ivan Pašalić and Jernej Kogovšek received the Vesna Awards for Best Supporting Actors at the 16th Festival of Slovenian Film. Chefurs Raus! is Vojnović's second feature, as in 2010 he had also shot the film Piran - Pirano, based on his own screenplay, as well as several shorts over the years. In 2012, Vojnović published his second novel Yugoslavia, My Fatherland, for which he received his second Kresnik Award. He received the third Kresnik Award for his third novel The Fig Tree, published in 2016.