GDYNIA: Urszula Antoniak’s drama Beyond Words will vie in the main competition of the 42nd Gdynia Film Festival (18-23 September 2017). The film premiered internationally at the Toronto International Film Festival 2017.
The Estonian Film Institute initiated the cash rebate project Film Estonia in 2016, offering foreign film productions a cash rebate of up to 30%. Experts deemed the first pilot year to have shown twice the expected result.
The film is a co-production between Russia, Latvia and Czech Republic with the support of Russian Ministry of Culture, National Film Centre of Latvia, Riga Film Fund and Eurimages.
SELECTING THE 2018 SLOVENIAN FOREIGN LANGUAGE ACADEMY AWARD CANDIDATE - SELECTION REPORT
Press releases 20-09-2017In accordance with the rules of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), the Directors Guild of Slovenia has called upon the professional associations in the field of cinematographic production to propose their candidates for the expert jury consisting of eight members.
Continuing a partnership established in 2007, Europa Distribution will host a distribution workshop in the scope of the San Sebastian International Film Festival in collaboration with the Industry Club. More than 30 independent distributors, all members of Europa Distribution, will participate in an open panel and closed Think-Tank session focusing on new approaches to public film funding.
The workshop will begin on Monday 25 September with an open panel entitled The Bigger Picture: A fresh approach to public film funding, taking place from 10.00-11.30 at the San Telmo. Whilst public film funding has been largely focused on production in Europe, there is now a growing consensus that public policy and funding could evolve and assist in negotiating the new challenges that face the industry by dedicating more funds to the marketing, distribution and screening of films. Experts from across the value chain, public funds, policy makers and industry stakeholders will debate the issues at hand and examine the possibilities for the industry to move forward across the board, from creation and production, to distribution and beyond.
Confirmed as panelists are Artemio Benki (Artcam Films/Sirena Film, CZ), Jeanne Brunfaut (Centre du Cinéma, Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles, BE), Bérénice Honold (FFA, DE), Lucia Recalde (European Commission, EU), Enrico Vannucci (Eurimages, EU) and Ilse Schooneknaep (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, BE). The panel will be moderated by Michael Gubbins (SampoMedia/Ffilm Cymru Wales, UK).
Attending Europa Distribution members will then have the opportunity to further the discussion during a closed Think-Tank session on Tuesday 26 September, as well as participate in meetings, screenings and professional activities such as Cine en Construcción and Glocal in Progress.
NOTE FOR THE EDITORS: Europa Distribution is the association of independent film distributors, created in 2006. With more than 120 leading independent distributors representing 29 countries in Europe and beyond, it serves as the voice of the sector and acts as a network and a think tank. Since its creation, Europa Distribution has accompanied and reinforced the integration and collaboration process between its members through information, brainstorming and training sessions. The network’s aim is to strengthen the existing ties to improve the curation, promotion and distribution of independent films.
CONTACT: For more information about the presence of Europa Distribution in San Sebastian, contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Czech cinematography will be represented at the Oscars by the film Ice Mother
Press releases 13-09-2017
The Czech Film and Television Academy (CFTA), which organizes the Czech Lion Awards every year, recommended that the film called Ice Mother directed by Bohdan Sláma should be the Czech candidate for the Oscars in the category of the Best Foreign Language Film. The academics were choosing from 13 Czech feature films, documentary features and animated films that had been enrolled by the producers of the individual films themselves. The film Ice Mother will get a chance to represent the Czech cinematography at the jubilee 90th awards of the American Academy of Motion picture Arts and Sciences, which will take place on 4th March 2018 in Los Angeles.
The voting in which the academics chose the film representing the Czech cinematography in the competition for the Oscars took place from 1st to 12th September 2017. The films Barefoot, Filthy, Garden Store: Deserter, The Oddsockeaters were also among the highly valued films.
The film Ice Mother directed by Bohdan Sláma, which the academics have recommended in the category of the Best Foreign Language Film, describes the relationships among three generations of people in a family. It tells the story of a fated meeting of the widow Hana (Zuzana Kronerová) and the cold water swimmer Broňa (Pavel Nový) and thanks to this meeting Hana is able to see her life from a different perspective a change it dramatically. The film Ice Mother was created in a Czech-Slovak-French co-production. “The film was premiered internationally in the competition of the prestigious festival TRIBECA in New York, where it got the award for the best screenplay. The positive reviews and encouraging reactions of the audience make us hopeful that our film could be successful on its further journey on the American continent,” adds Pavel Strnad for the production company Negativ.
The director Bohdan Sláma graduated from the Czech Technical University and in 1997 he also graduated from the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague where he studied film directing. His graduate film was called White Acacias (1996). His debut feature film Wild Bees (2001) picked up the threads of the poetics of the so-called Czechoslovak New Wave of the sixties and the film was awarded at many international film festivals (e.g. IFF Rotterdam – the Tiger Award, IFF San Francisco – the SKYY award). Representing the Czech Republic, this film was the candidate for the nomination for the Oscars and the European Film Awards. The film in the same tone called Something like Happiness (2005) was awarded seven Czech Lions and won the festival in San Sebastian. The following films were also successful – The Country Teacher (2008) got two Czech Lions and Four Suns (2012) took part in the competition at Sundance Film Festival. He also created several episodes of The Blaník Bureau series. At present he is the head of the direction department at the Film Academy of Performing Arts.
The awards of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are considered to be the most prestigious awards in the area of film. The nominations for the Oscars will be announced on 23rd January 2018 and the ceremony will take place on 4th March 2018 in Los Angeles.
About the Czech Film and Television Academy:
The Czech Film and Television Academy was founded in 1995 and in 2013 it was transformed into a registered association. Its main aim is to support and promote Czech cinematographic art in the Czech Republic as well as abroad and create conditions for the development of Czech film. It awards the most prestigious Czech film award – the Czech Lion and nominates Czech films or documentary features for the awards of the American Academy of Picture Arts and Sciences. The CFTA consists of 298 members at the moment.
PR and press service:
Nikola Lörinczová, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., phone: +420 605 560 277
Eliška Míkovcová, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., phone: +420 606 774 435
EFP showcases European films and talent at Busan International Film Festival 2017
EUROPE! Goes Busan will present 15 European filmmakers and actors who will meet with the industry and press and enjoy the very lively discussions with the Korean audience. The selection by the festival is strong on emerging directors: Belgium's Olivier Meys who will be joined by his producer Valérie Bournonville for the presentation of his feature film debut BITTER FLOWERS about an aspiring Chinese woman who is hoping for a better life in Paris, and Switzerland's promising new director Dominik Locher and his producers Rajko Jazbec and Dario Schoch who cast European Shooting Star Sven Schelker in GOLIATH. Both films will be presented in the Flash Forward Competition.
LITTLE CRUSADER, the second film by the Czech director Václav Kadrnka, who will be accompanied by the award-winning actor Karel Roden, tells the story of an aging crusader looking for his runaway son. Andreas Hartmann, who is also a well-known German DoP with a very distinctive style, was invited to the festival with his second documentary feature A FREE MAN.
The actor José Smith Vargas will be part of EFP's European delegation to represent the Portuguese feature debut THE NOTHING FACTORY which has received numerous awards, including the FIPRESCI Prize at the Directors' Fortnight in Cannes. Director Jens Assur's feature debut, the psychological drama RAVENS, comes fresh from its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, while the Spanish film SOMMER 1993 by Carla Simón was named Best First Feature at this year's Berlinale.
Rounding off the group are three experienced filmmakers. The multiple award-winning Austrian director Ruth Mader will travel to Busan for her futuristic thriller LIFE GUIDANCE which has just celebrated its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival, while the much lauded drama GOD'S OWN COUNTRY by actor-turned-director Francis Lee will be represented by the UK producer Jack Tarling. And the acclaimed Finnish director Dome Karukoski cast Jessica Grabowsky - who will be attending the festival - in his award-winning portrait of the legendary gay artist TOM OF FINLAND.
The interest of European world sales companies in the Asian Film Market (October 14 - 17) is unbroken. 34 companies travelling to Busan will participate in the prominent EUROPEAN UMBRELLA at Busan's BEXCO organized by EFP in cooperation with UniFrance. All of the companies will also be able to benefit from EFP FILM SALES SUPPORT (FSS) for their marketing campaigns. Detailed information about the EUROPEAN UMBRELLA and FSS granted will follow on September 28.
The following EFP members support EUROPE! Goes Busan:
AFC - Austrian Films, British Council, Czech Film Center, Finnish Film Foundation, German Films, Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales / ICAA (Spain), Instituto do Cinema e do Audiovisual I.P. / ICA (Portugal), Swedish Film Institute, Swiss Films and Wallonie Bruxelles Images.
>>> visit our website www.efp-online.com
EFP (European Film Promotion) is a unique network of 38 European member organisations who represent films and talent from their respective territories. Under the EFP flag, the members team up on joint initiatives to promote the diversity and the spirit of European cinema and talent at key international film festivals and markets. EFP is financially supported by the Creative Europe - MEDIA Programme of the European Union and its member organisations.
The Hamburg-based office is backed by the German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, the Film Fund Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein and the Ministry of Culture of the City of Hamburg.
Leadership Change at goEast: Heleen Gerritsen to Succeed Gaby Babić as Festival Director
Press releases 20-09-2017
Gaby Babić, director of goEast – Festival of Central and Eastern European Film since September 2010, will be stepping down from her position at Deutsches Filminstitut from October 2017. She will be succeeded as festival director by Dutch film producer and curator Heleen Gerritsen, who will take up her new appointment on October 1st.
“After seven years of leading goEast Film Festival, I am looking forward to a personal and professional change,” Babić stated. “As goEast is very firmly established at this point in its 17th year of existence, it is a good moment for a leadership transition. I would like to thank my team, with whom I had the pleasure of enthusiastically realising seven wonderful festival editions, and I look forward to experiencing goEast in the future as a guest under the direction of Heleen Gerritsen, who will bring new highlights to the festival with fresh ideas. I am already excited to see what she and her team will come up with.”
Gaby Babić played a substantial role in the evolution of the festival. In addition to the presentation of extraordinary auteur films, in particular she also placed socio-political issues and unusual retrospectives at the centre of her work as festival director. In the scope of goEast’s efforts to promote young filmmaking talent, she conceived the projects OPPOSE OTHERING!, Young Filmmakers for Peace and the East-West Talent Lab. Deutsches Filminstitut would like to thank Gaby Babić for her brilliant work and is very pleased that she will remain associated with the festival in the future as a freelance collaborator.
Dutch film producer and curator Heleen Gerritsen studied Slavistics, Eastern-European history and international economics in Amsterdam and St. Petersburg and previously served as director of the European documentary film festival dokumentART in Neubrandenburg. “For a film festival situated in Western Germany to place its focus on Central and Eastern Europe is as relevant and necessary as ever: in periods of upheaval, such as the one in which the European project has found itself for a number of years now, cinematic art, as an accessible medium, can play a significant role in breaking down prejudices and building bridges between cultures. goEast is a festival with a unique format that has been successfully showcasing the full range of Central and Eastern European filmmaking for many years. Films treating contemporary social issues find an audience in Wiesbaden right alongside film-historical retrospectives and special programs. With Deutsches Filminstitut, the festival also has a strong institutional partner behind it. In my view, this represents an optimal starting position for a further development of the festival focussed on the future.”
For more information, please contact:
Stefan Adrian
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
+49 - 0611 - 23684312
The seventh edition of the US in Progress will be held from the 25th till 28th of October 2017, as a part of the 8th American Film Festival in Wroclaw (October 24-29th).
Thanks to support of the Polish Film Institute we are happy to initiate the first edition of Polish-American Co-production Meetings, a networking opportunity for Polish producers seeking partners from the US. Panels will consist of producers and publicists working in the US or with collaboration with US and aim to foster transatlantic projects. Guest speakers will include George Rush, Adam Kersh, Mike Ryan, and others.
US in Progress is held twice yearly (June edition takes place in Paris during Champs-Elysees Film Festival). In Wroclaw, invite-only screenings will feature four projects selected from numerous submissions of independent American feature-length films in the final editing stages.
Congratulations to the 2017 US in Progress Wroclaw participants:
● Ghost Box Cowboy by John Maringouin
● Honky Kong by Stephen Gurewitz
● Jules of Light and Dark by Daniel Laabs
● One Man Dies a Million Times by Jessica Oreck
The filmmakers and their producers will attend the presentations as well as one-on-one meetings with top European buyers and festival programmers and listen to presentations from Polish film organizations dealing with film production and promotion.
Selected four Polish producers and filmmakers attending will pitch their ideas to the US producers and investors. Other local professionals are invited to network and learn more about the differences in European and American film production system in a less formal setting.
The 2017 US in Progress Wrocław partners who provide in-kind awards of post-production service packages of combined value amounting to $50,000 are the following leading Polish sound and image studios:
● Orka
● Fixafilm
● Soundflower Studio (a score composed by Maciej Zielinski)
● Aeroplan
There is also an up to 35% equity investment offer to a selected project (subject to mutually agreed upon conditions) as a partnership with Salem Street Entertainment and UnLtd Productions. Other awards include an acquisition offer from Ale Kino+ tv channel and a free pass to Cannes Producers' Network next year.
To learn more or contact US in Progress please email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
FNE Oscar Watch 2018: Estonian Minority Coproduction Selected as First Laos' Oscar Bid
FNE Oscar Watch 2018 19-09-2017TALLINN: Mattie Do’s Dearest Sister, a coproduction between Laos, France and Estonia, has been selected as Laos’ first entry to the Academy Awards in the best foreign language film category.
