SKOPJE: The most successful Macedonian documentary Honeyland / Medena zemja will have an early television premiere on Telma TV on 18 April 2020, in time for the Orthodox Easter holiday. The first and exclusive television screening comes ahead of schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic, disrupting the 2-year TV holdback. The film was nominated for two Oscars.

SKOPJE: The North Macedonia Film Agency gave emergency financial support to 27 projects which are in the final stages of production from the annual budget in the last two days as a first urgent measure to assist independent filmmakers and production companies. Together with the Macedonian Film Professionals Association, the Agency has set up a commission to establish standards based on which filmmakers will receive further necessary assistance.

SKOPJE: All cinemas in North Macedonia are closed until 24 March 2020 as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus, with the only multiplex cinema Cineplexx also announcing the decision to close its doors on 11 March 2020. The 23rd edition of the Skopje Film Festival, due to take place in April, has been rescheduled for 9-17 September 2020.

SKOPJE: North Macedonia’s Oscar-nominated documentary Honeyland / Medena zemja by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubo Stefanov will be released by Umbrella Films in Australia and New Zealand from 5 March 2020.

SKOPJE: It was a truly exciting year for Macedonian cinematography with great box office results, international success for feature and documentary films, worldwide distribution for domestic titles and their participation in more than 200 film festival selections, and over 60 awards.

SKOPJE: Willow / Vrba, the sixth feature film by the Academy award nominated Macedonian helmer Milcho Manchevski, and documentary Honeyland / Medena zemja directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov, which has received two Oscar nominations, topped the local charts of domestic films in North Macedonia in 2019.

SKOPJE: Macedonian director Vardan Tozija is in postproduction with his second feature film M, a coproduction between North Macedonia, Croatia, Kosovo and Greece. The premiere is planned for the second half of 2020.

SKOPJE: The North Macedonia Film Agency distributed 2,470,719 EUR / 151.7 m MKD to 15 films within the second deadline in 2019 for production grants for feature, short, animated and documentary films. The Agency supported five feature films including four debuts, five minority coproductions, two majority long documentaries, one minority long documentary and two short films.

SKOPJE: Producers Vladimir Atanasovski and Angela Nestorovska from Sektor Film are in final postproduction with The Hardest Thing / Najteskoto nesto directed by acclaimed Turkish director Serdar Akar. This Macedonian/Turkish coproduction is the first Macedonian film in the Turkish language.

SKOPJE: The Austrian road film Lilian directed by Andreas Horvath scooped the best film award in the official selection of the 18th Festival of European Film Cinedays, which ended on 16 November 2019.