The last year of the decade marks a great turn-around for Polish cinema, which overcame an initial fall in production in 2000-2004 and maintained a constant growth despite the international economic crisis. Since joining the European Union in 2004, Poland has noticed major economic developments that greatly influenced the film industry sector. European integration made Polish filmmakers more open to international projects resulting in over 35 coproductions created in 2010.

Polish cinema began its steady increase in production and cinema attendance in 2005, when a new cinematography bill led to the establishment of the Polish Film Institute (PFI, www.pisf.pl/). As the main public investor, PFI co-finances new film productions, supports distribution and international promotion, and shapes the education of Polish filmmakers and their viewers. The other public sources of funding for cinema in Poland are the Television Agency of the Polish public broadcaster Telewizja Polska (www.tvp.pl/), The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage (www.mk.gov.pl), and several other public institutions including the new system of Regional Film Funds. An important part of the Polish film market are big film studios such as KADR (www.kadr.com.pl/), OKO (www.sfoko.com.pl/), PERSPEKTYWA (www.studioperspektywa.pl/), TOR (www.tor.com.pl/), ZEBRA (www.zebrafilm.pl/) and Documentary and Feature Film Production Company (WFDiF, www.wfdif.com.pl/).

Poland has several hundred private production companies, which are the main source of new titles. The Polish Filmmakers Association (www.sfp.org.pl/) reports that the majority of independent producers has an average of 1-2 films per year, while the leaders in the market such as Opus Film (www.opusfilm.pl), Akson Studio (www.akson-studio.pl/) and Apple Film (www.applefilm.pl/) produce 4-6 each year. Apart from the natural division between companies specializing in feature and documentary film, some producers such as Ozumi Films (www.ozumifilms.com/) and MS Films (www.msfilms.pl/) are more engaged in international co-production and others such as Van Worden (www.vanworden.pl/) and MTL Max Film (www.mtlmaxfilm.pl/) excel in big commercial titles.

Since the creation of PFI, the Polish film market has produced an average of over 40 feature movies per year. In 2010 the Institute granted 128.3 million PLN (32.3 million EUR) to support projects in production and development stages as well as script development. PFI supported 138 titles in the "Film Production" Operational Program including 77 feature productions in the "Author cinema" category, 38 in the "History topic films" category, 11 in the "Films for youth and family audience" category and 12 in the "Films with a big attendance potential" category. Not all of them will enter the production stage in 2010.

The financed titles include 35 international co-productions including features such as Blind Watching directed by Andrzej Jakimowski internationally recognized for his film Tricks, produced by Zjednoczenie Artystów i Rzemieślników (www.zair.eu); Futurogical Congress, a new film from Bashir's Waltz director Ari Folman produced by Opus Film (www.opusfilm.pl/); Salvation by one of the most significant modern Russian filmmakers

Ivan Wyrypajew produced by Baltmedia (www.baltmedia.pl); and 13 documentaries and 3 animated films including the new film from Brothers Quay titled The Hour-glass Sanatorium based on the novel by Bruno Schulz produced by Opus Film.

The most significant Polish films of 2010 include titles that gained international recognition such as Essential Killing by Jerzy Skolimowski produced by Prasa & Film (www.prasaifilm.pl/), a title that won the special jury prize at the 2010 IFF Venice (www.labiennale.org/) and is currently competing for an Oscar nomination, as well as Venice directed by Jan Jakub Kolski and produced by Akson Studio, awarded for the best artistic contribution at the 34th Montreal World Film Festival (www.fmm-montreal.org/). The Polish Oscar candidate All That I Love, directed by Jacek Borcuch and produced by Prasa & Film, also gained both local and international recognition, finishing in 4th place in the Polish film box office for 2010. This year the Polish Film Festival in Gdynia (www.fpff.pl/) moved its dates to May, instead of its traditional fall schedule, with the Golden Lion prize given to the historic drama Little Rose directed by Jan Kidawa-Bloński and produced by WFDiF, while the critically acclaimed drama Christening directed by Marcin Wrona and produced by ODEON Film Studio (www.odeon.com.pl/) won the Silver Lion prize. Best directing debut went to Marek Lechki for his drama titled Erratum, produced by his company Harmony Film Production in co-operation with Heliograf (www.heliograf.pl) and Voiceland (www.voiceland.pl/).

2009 was a record year for Polish cinema attendance reaching 32.9 million viewers. In 2010 the record will be hard to beat mainly because the decreased cinema attendance in the first half of the year following the April plane crash which resulted in the death o the President and many leading Polish figures and the morning period that followed. The results of the first six months of 2010 were 18.4 million viewers, which is a significant decline from the same period in 2009. However, a notable increase in attendance can be observed in the second half of the year, when a record opening weekend attendances occurred with six films. One of these was the premiere of the comedy Cake directed by Patryk Vega and produced by Magic Hour Film Studio, reaching third place in the overall Polish box office for 2010. Another recent success is Maiden Vows (War of Love) directed by Filip Bajon and produced by Studio Filmowe Kalejdoskop (www.kalejdoskop.art.pl/), an adaptation of a Polish classic comedy written by Aleksander Fredro which was released on 8 October 2010 and already been seen by 500,000 viewers.

OFFER FOR PRESS INTERVIEWS WITH OUR STAR GUESTS

1ST MALATYA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (MIFF)

November 26th - December 2nd, 2010

October 28, 2010 | Press Release 8

Five Slovak films to premiere at IFF Bratislava

The Made in Slovakia section focuses on domestic film production will present well-known and new names of Slovak film, recent film school graduates will screen their films alongside experienced professionals. In Made in Slovakia IFF Bratislava will offer five world premieres and an overview of Slovak film production in 2010. New in this section is the addition of two non-Slovak productions that are connected to Slovakia. First being the independent film Modra by Canadian director Ingrid Veninger. The second film is Anna Hoffmann’s documentary Housemaid.

Please find attached more information on the section

You can still register for press accreditation here: http://www.iffbratislava.sk/index.php?id=451&L=1

Ondrej Starinsky
PR & Media

12th International Film Festival Bratislava
(5 - 11 November 2010)
Lovinskeho 18
811 04 Bratislava
Slovak Republic
Cell: +421 907 475 986
Tel.: +421 2 5441 0673
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.iffbratislava.sk

Georgian National Film Center starts to cooperate with a literary competition “Gala”. A nomination of the "Best Screenplay" will be added to the 6 nominations of the literary competition”.

20th FILMFESTIVAL COTTBUS - COMPETITION FILMS AND JURY MEMBERS

On the occasion of the anniversary edition of the 20th FilmFestival Cottbus, this year's feature film competition will include ten German premieres. Among them are new discoveries alongside productions that have already
enthused audiences in Cannes, Locarno, Karlovy Vary and elsewhere. They will compete for the first prize, which is endowed for the first time with 20,000 euros. The short film competition features eleven contributions from
nine nations, including one world premiere and several international and German premieres. For this year's International Festival Jury we were able to win the Brazilian filmmaker Sandra Kogut, the Indian
director Shahant Shah, as well as Fernanda Silva, president of the FESTROIA association, member of the administrative board of CICAE (Confédération Internationale des Cinémas D´Art et D´Essay) and member of the
European Film Academy. Further jury members are the German actress Anjorka Strechel and the Serbian director Vladimir Perišic, whose debut film "Ordinary People" won the prize for the best film and the best actor in
Cottbus in 2009. The members of the Short Film Competition Jury this year are the Israeli filmmaker and director of the Sam Spiegel Film & Television School, Renen Schorr, actor and producer Arben Zharku, as well as Lenky Tyrpakowa, member of the selection committee of the Film Festival Karlovy Vary and also responsible for the programme of the Short Film Festival Prague. There is a wide variety of themes for spectators to discover in the Feature Film Competition: from a weird catlover to the departure from childhood, the search for a new and better life, and the dream of more light in the Kirghiz steppe. The styles used range from breathtaking close-ups to black-and-white landscapes. Young Piroska risks setting off to a new life in ADRIENN PAL. This year's FIPRESCI award-winner in Cannes immerses in the world of the overweight nurse who takes care of the dead in a hospital and suppresses her loneliness by eating. One day she starts searching for her childhood friend and for happier days. Ali, the shepherd in EIN ANDERER HIMMEL (A DIFFERENT HEAVEN), and his son wind up in Moscow - also hoping for a better life. Looking for the woman who abandoned them years ago, they turn into hounded souls who never arrive. Matilda, the day release prisoner in the Romanian debut OUTBOUND, is also dreaming of a new start. She has 24 hours to reorder her life, but the past catches up with her. The film is based on a story by Cristian Mungiu, the director of 4 MONATE, 3 WOCHEN UND 2 TAGE (4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS).
One of the most impressive Russian debuts this year is RÜCKWÄRTSGANG (REVERSE GEAR), directed by Andrey Stempkovsky. Based on the story of a mother and her missing son, the film tentatively relates the societal
impact of war, which permeates families like a cancerous growth. It additionally addresses the situation of guest workers in the CIS, a problem also taken up by the second Russian competition film, EIN ANDERER HIMMEL (A DIFFERENT HEAVEN). One can also discover many things in common in the Serbian productions TILVA ROŠ and WHITE, WHITE WORLD. Both have chosen the mining town of Bor as the location for their entirely different stories. The Estonian director Veiko Öunpuu surprises the viewer in terms of style with his first full-length feature film. In DIE VERSUCHUNG DES HL. TONY (THE TEMPTATION OF ST TONY), he tells of a bizarre journey to the depths of the soul using breathtaking black-and-white landscape images and a lot of black humour. In this year's Short Film Competition, cinematic highlights from Hungary, Poland, Russia, Estonia, and other
countries await the audience. The themes range from the first love to the departure from home or a talisman that brings no luck. Among the German premieres is the Romanian contribution by the dffb graduate Alexandru
Mavrodineanu. MUSIK IM BLUT (MUSIC IN THE BLOOD) is about a musical test with an unexpected outcome. The film won the Best Film Award in Grenoble. The Russian production MEER DER WÜNSCHE by the Georgian
director Shota Gamisonia will celebrate its world premiere in Cottbus. In 27 minutes, the film narrates the longing of two friends for the sea in the style of Beckett with a Russian touch.
For further information please feel free to contact Diana Kluge, Aurica Bloom and Dana Slink of the Press Office via email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or phone under 0355/ 43107 13.

Diana Kluge
Presse, PR und Marketing
FilmFestival Cottbus
Fon: +49 (355) 4310713
Fax: +49 (355) 4310720
Mobil: +49 1773508133
Mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.filmfestivalcottbus.de

20. FilmFestival Cottbus - Festival des osteuropäischen Films
20. Festival of East European Cinema
02.-07.11.2010

12th ANIMATED DREAMS ANIMATION FILM FESTIVAL TO OPEN WITH WORLD PREMIERE OF MATI KÜTT’S SKY SONG ON 19TH NOVEMBER IN TALLINN, ESTONIA

"Vodka Factory" by Jerzy Śladkowski, a co-production of TVP1, ARTE and SVT got the Golden Dove Prize for the Best Documentary Film at the 53rd DOKLeipzig (October 18 - 24), the one of the most prestigious world festivals of documentary films.

On the occasion of the anniversary edition of the 20th FilmFestival Cottbus, this year's feature film competition will include ten German premieres. Among them are new discoveries alongside productions that have already enthused audiences in Cannes, Locarno, Karlovy Vary and elsewhere.