01-12-2020

Film O’Clock International Festival proudly announces its first edition (February 27 - March 3) featuring an innovative concept

    Film O’Clock International Festival aims to expand the love for cinema and for humankind beyond any borders, and welcomes everyone to its first edition, that will take place between the 27th of February and the 3rd of March 2021. The film selection and the agenda of the festival will soon be announced on the official website:  http://foc-iff.com/, and on the Film O'Clock International Festival Facebook page.

    The organizers propose an event that aims to be more than a film festival – a real cultural movement that uses the meridian and the time zones as its means to transform the Earth into a cinematic citadel. Lithuania, Romania, Greece, Egypt, and South Africa are the countries on the meridian of 25 degrees east longitude that are participating in the first edition of the festival in 2021. From the Baltic Sea to the southernmost point of Africa, Film O’Clock brings the northern and the southern hemispheres together.

    By simultaneously watching the movies, both in cinemas located thousands of kilometers apart, but also on Video on Demand platforms, as well as through discussions with special guests following each screening, which will be broadcast simultaneously in all festival venues in participating countries and online on the festival platform (www.FoC-IFF.com) – the audience, although situated in different cities, countries or even continents, will spend valuable time together and share stories and emotions, across physical and cultural borders.

    Film O’Clock is a part of my soul. 

    It's a love born project, built with respect and awe for myself, cinema, and humanity. I put a lot of energy and made countless preparations to see it done. It's a festival I wish to watch as it grows, a festival with long life - separated from its initiator, as I believe in its impact upon this world. 

    I believe and I wish that it'd become more than just a film festival. I see it as a cultural movement, based on cinema and global socialization. We need Film O’Clock. We need a platform where we can empathize with our peers through art, no matter in what corner of this world we are, no matter how different we think the others are. I believe that, on a deeper level, we are similar, and our differences are actually enriching our life. It would be a pity not to look at the bright side of these differences, and not to have a dialogue in this respect.

    We need a support platform when we are searching for meaning, for people with whom we share a love for cinema. We need an international rampart of all people interested in film, from the North of Europe to the most southern part of Africa, in a world where we keep looking for beacons, and values seem harder and harder to shape.”, says Mirona Radu, director of the Film O'Clock International Festival.

    Curated by representatives from each country, the festival selection will reflect the contemporary issues faced by each country, will focus on the discovery of new voices, and will highlight each culture’s storytelling trends.

    Apart from the screenings, the festival will host two other events fully dedicated to the film industries of the five participating countries, that will also be organized online. These events have as a primary purpose to broaden the cultural and cinematographic horizon, to facilitate future cooperation between the film professionals, to restore and enhance the film heritage.

    FoC IFF aims to make the film festival experience more accessible by eliminating expensive travel fees and the “by invitation-only” custom. Films can be used as a vehicle to share emotions and ideas and, thereby, enrich the audience’s understanding of themselves and others. By connecting different audiences through the same time zone principle, the interchange of films and discussions aim to instill empathy and broaden one country’s awareness of another.

    As a result, Film O’Clock International Festival cultivates a love, not only for cinema, but also for our time zone neighbors, that remind us of our world heritage, of cultural diversity that enriches mutual understanding.

    This event is initiated by Mirona Radu, a professional in the film industry, with almost 10 years of experience in film production and distribution, as well as in international film festivals, and is organized by Creatrix Fama and Culture Reality.

    Project co-financed by AFCN.

    Parteners: Muzeul Național al Țăranului Român, Cinema Muzeul Țăranului, Artinii Production SRO, Skalvijos Kino Centras, Stranger Film, Lithuanian Short Film Agency, Next Wave DFFB, TIFF Unlimited, Asociația Informală a Vocilor pentru Incluziune.

    Media Parteners: Music Channel, Hotnews, Agerpres, National Geographic, Spotmedia, Iqads, Romania Journal, Suplimentul de Cultură, Liternet, Observator Cultural, Zile și Nopți, The Institute, Cinemap, AARC, filme-carti.ro, SMARK.