We invite you to join the press conference with Andrei Konchalovsky, the Lifetime Achievement Award laureate of the 23rd Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, taking place in the Russian Cultural Center (Mere puiestee 5) on the 26th of November at 1 pm. 

The press conference will be held in English and Russian and moderated by Andrei Titov.

We'd also like to remind you that there will be the press screening of Andrei Konchalovsky's latest film Sin in the Coca-Cola Plaza, hall 8 at 10.15 am the same morning.

PRESS RELEASE

PRESS ACCREDITATION

Press accreditation for the 23rd Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival and Inudstry@Tallinn &; Baltic Event is in progress. Please apply by clicking on the link below.

APPLY FOR THE PRESS ACCREDITATION

PRESS OFFICE CONTACTS

The festival's press office gladly helps with any question regarding the accreditation, press screenings and conferences and helps to organise interviews with the festival's guests. 

Press accreditations and events: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Press hospitality matters: Anna-Liiza Izbaš - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
International communication: Hannes Aava - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. / +372 555 29 211.
Russian communication: Jaana Kalinistova - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Estonian communication: Tiit Tuumalu - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

This year Portugal’s documentary festival “Porto/Post/Doc”will pay special attention to Lithuanian documentary filmmaker Audrius Stonys. The festival goers will be able to watch director’s retrospective and other Lithuanian films that influenced his work. In total 14 Lithuanian films will be screened at the festival. Stonys will also attend the festival.  

Stonys is considered to be one of the most creative and productive Lithuanian directors.  His works belong to the genre of poetic documentaries. Stonys says that he uses films as a way of capturing fading dreams: “When I was a kid, I really didn’t like waking up. I desperately tried to capture dreams that were trying to escape me when I was waking up. I knew that even if I talk about them or if I write them down, it will only be a dim shadow the actual dream. From the moment when my teacher, film director Henrikas Šablevičius showed me how dreams can be recreated and saved, this is all what I am doing”. 

Retrospective program “Audrius Stonys Focus” consists of seven films and reveals director’s creative journey from the first to the latest film: “Open the Door to Him Who Comes” (lit. Atverti duris ateinančiam, 1989), “Baltic Way” (lit. Baltijos kelias, 1990; co-director Arūnas Matelis), “Earth of the Blind” (lit. Neregių žemė, 1992), “Antigravitation” (lit. Antigravitacija, 1995), “Alone” (lit. Viena, 2001), “Uku ukai” (lit. Ūkų ūkai, 2006) and his latest work “Woman and the Glacier” (lit. Moteris ir ledynas, 2016).

Stonys is also a curator of Lithuanian film heritagecollection “Landscapes of Forbidden Memory”. It is part of the retrospective documentary film program “Challenges of (In)Dependence”, which was screened at last year’s DOK Leipzig. The program consists of five films by filmmakers belonging to ‘Children of war’ generation:“The Old Man and the Land” (lit. Senis ir žemė, 1965) and “The Dreams of the Centenarians” (lit. Šimtamečių godos, 1969) by Robertas Verba,  “A Trip Across Misty Meadows” (lit. Kelionė ūkų lankomis, 1973) by Henrikas Šablevičius and two films by Edmundas Zubavičius: “We Fear No Enemy” (lit. Mums nebaisūs jokie priešai, 1978) and “Sensitivity as Bread” (lit. Jautrumo kaip duonos, 1979).

Two films by avant-garde film maker Jonas Mekas will also be screened at the program. “Lost, Lost, Lost”(lit. Prarastas, prarastas, prarastas, 1976) will give a glimpse into Mekas’ earliest works. Also, festival goers will be able to see “Zefiro Torna, or Scenes from the life of George Maciunas” (lit. Zefiro Torna, arba vaizdai iš Jurgio Mačiūno gyvenimo, 1992). The films were selected for the program by Stonys. 

Lithuanian participation in the festival is supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre.

Copyright enforcement

07/11: Strengthening cooperation in the fight against IP crime - EUIPO

The EU’s law enforcement agency Europol and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) have formally signed an agreement to further increase their cooperation in fighting infringements of intellectual property rights, both online and offline.

EU Digital Services Act 

31/10: Council of the European Union Working Paper: eCommerce/Digital Services Act presentation – Council of the EU

2020 EU budget

15/11: EU Budget 2020 conciliation talks suspended – European Parliament

After making every effort to reach a compromise on an adequate EU budget for 2020 during long hours on 15 November, Parliament and Council have suspended the talks without agreement.

EU Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027

/11: EP position – MFF Table – European Parliament

Association of Commercial Television in Europe (ACT)

18/11: A Blueprint for EU Media Policy 2019-2024 - ACT

ACT celebrates its 30 years as Europe embarks into a new political cycle. ACT’s Blueprint for media policy 2019-2024 sets out our guiding thoughts for what European policy-makers need to focus on if they wish to maintain media plurality, quality news and cultural diversity in Europe.

European Commission

14/11: Hearing of Commissioner-designate Thierry Breton – European Parliament

The Internal Market and the Industry committees questioned Thierry Breton, candidate for the Internal Market portfolio.

14/11: European Commission launches infringement proceedings against the UK following its failure to name a candidate for EU Commissioner – European Commission

As the Guardian of the Treaties, the European Commission has today sent a letter of formal notice to the United Kingdom for breaching its EU Treaty obligations by not suggesting a candidate for the post of EU Commissioner. The UK authorities have until Friday 22 November at the latest to provide their views.

Council of the EU

18/11: Future of the Single Market on the agenda of the European Economic Area Council – EU2019.FI

The European Economic Area (EEA) Council met in Brussels on 19 November to assess the overall functioning and progress of the EEA agreement and hold an orientation debate on the single market beyond 2019. The EU’s delegation was led by Pekka Haavisto, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

Events

21-22 November: Education, Youth, Culture and Sports Council, Brussels 

25 November: Third European Commission copyright Stakeholders’ Meeting, Brussels

25-28 November: European Parliament Plenary session, including presentation and (possible) election of the new European Commission, Strasbourg

27-28 November: EUIPO Observatory Working Group meetings, Brussels 

1 December: European Commission comes into office (TBC)

2-3 December: JURI Committee meeting, Brussels

4 December: IMCO Committee meeting, Brussels

4-5 December: CULT Committee meeting, Brussels

4-5 December: ITRE Committee meeting, Brussels

16 December:  Fourth European Commission copyright Stakeholders’ Meeting, Brussels

Cairo, 23 November 2019. EFP (European Film Promotion) and the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) proudly present the winner of the first Arab Critics’ Award for European Films God Exists, Her Name is Petrunya by Teona Strugar Mitevska. 42 film critics from 13 Arab countries selected the best European film out of 24 nominations submitted by national film promotion institutions from throughout Europe. The awards aims to promote European cinema to the Arab world and raise the interest of distributors and industry players for outstanding European films, while at the same time putting a spotlight on the distinguished film critics from so many Arab countries and their important role in opening up new perspectives and bridging cultural idiosyncrasies.

During a festive event at the Cairo International Film Festival, Sonja Heinen, Alaa Karkouti, Maher Diab and festival director Mohamed Hefzy presented the Arab Critics’ Award to Labina Mitevska, producer and one of the lead actresses of the winning film.

In a joint statement, the extremely creative sisters thank the jury: “We are thrilled and greatly honoured by this award! We come from a country, a region, a zone of in-between that has been turned into a state of in-between, always becoming, never defined. To us, winning this award means that we are actually the bridge, not a gap. This award shows that culture is universal and that cinema can speak across continents. We believe in the power of cinema to exchange ideas and change minds, but, most importantly, to dare to say the unspeakable and the undesirable and, by doing this, start many uneasy, but necessary conversations. We believe that cinema is a high art that can speak to wide audiences and we must cultivate and nourish it as a public good in these times of commercialization and commodisation. We need to defend the freedom of expression as a basic human right, a right to provoke and dare the accepted systems of injustices. We love our job, cinema!”

EFP’s President and Head of the Czech Filmcenter Markéta Santrochová is equally excited about the jury’s decision: “We are absolutely thrilled that the first Arab Critics' Award goes to a film by an outstanding female director, with an equally outstanding female cast. Its strong message demanding equal rights for women is universal. The film’s heroine, a level-headed everywoman, doesn't budge an inch to male dominancy and argues her case with clear-sighted common sense. Congratulations to Teona and Labina Mitevska for receiving this important award.“

Maher Diab and Alaa Karkouti, founders of the Arab Cinema Center (ACC), add: ”The diversity of the films nominated for the first edition of the Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films made it a tough competition. The votes were so close and it was hard to anticipate the winning film. We would like to thank the film critics who participated in this initiative and congratulate the Mitevska sisters on their achievement and the award.”

Mohamed Hefzy, President of the Cairo International Film Festival, says: “We are happy to host the awards ceremony of the Arab Critics’ Awards for European Films at the Cairo International Film Festival. I would like to congratulate the cast and crew of the winning film and I encourage everyone to watch it at the International Panorama section of the festival.”

As part of its promotional advance into the Arab world, EFP also organised in cooperation with the festival a panel discussion on Strategies for Making Foreign-Language Films Less Foreign to Audiences centring on the following questions: What can we do to improve the situation for foreign-language films at the theatrical box office worldwide? What are sales agents, film festivals, national film promotion institutes, distributors and exhibitors doing to enhance the visibility of films outside their countries of origin? Can these stakeholders work better together? Is it a question of finding engaging new strategies or simply a matter of increasing the budgets for marketing and communication? Speakers on the panel moderated by Sonja Heinen, EFP’s Managing Director, were: Alaa Karkouti, MAD – Solutions, Daniel Ziskind, Film Clinic Production, Agathe Valentin - Totem Films, Labina Mitevska - winner of the A no rab Critics’ Award, Verena von Stackelberg – selection commitee Berlin International Film Festival.

About the Arab Cinema Center

Organized by MAD Solutions, the Arab Cinema Center (ACC) is now celebrating the fifth year since its inception in 2015. A non-profit organization registered in Amsterdam, the ACC is an international promotional platform for Arab cinema as it provides the filmmaking industry with a professional window to connect with their counterparts from all over the world through a number of its organised events. The ACC also provides networking opportunities with representatives of companies and institutions specialized in co-production and international distribution, among others.

For more information please visit: www.acc.film 

About EFP

EFP (European Film Promotion) is an international network of film promotion institutes from countries from throughout Europe, each representing their national films and talent abroad. Under the EFP flag, these organisations come together to promote the diversity and spirit of European cinema and talent at key film festivals and markets, in particular outside of Europe. EFP is financially supported by the Creative Europe – MEDIA Programme of the European Union and by 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.

For more information please visit www.efp-online.com

Only 3 weeks left to apply to the European VoD Meetings in Sofia, Bulgaria, in partnership with the Sofia Meetings during the Sofia International Film Festival, from March 18-21 2020. The training for VoD Professionals will highlight case studies, roundtables, workshops on Marketing, Tech Innovation, Access to Finance, Distribution, Regulations, Public Policies, etc.

The European VoD Meetings is the only initiative truly focused on the VoD world to get updates on trends and key challenges of the sector. It's a great opportunity to network with other platforms, service providers, film institutes.

More info and Application Form

The Federation of European Film and TV Directors and the Society of Audiovisual Authors support the Croatian filmmakers’ campaign I’D LIKE TO WATCH THAT – HRT SAYS – NYET! initiated in July 2019. Public service broadcaster HRT has failed to fulfil its obligations regarding the promotion of European audiovisual works while effectively blocking the broadcast of 34 films representing the best of recent independent Croatian documentary production. FERA and SAA have added their voice to that of the Croatian audiovisual community protesting this failure.

Croatian filmmakers look upon this alarming and unprecedented situation as an attempt to silence the free voice of audiovisual creators. The lack of exploitation of their works undermines their professional position, it limits the exposure of their works to an important audience and affects the possibility of the filmmakers to generate income from exploitation rights, as well as their ability to build a sustainable career.

In accordance with the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (2010/13/EU), the Croatian Radio-Television Act states that HRT should reserve a majority proportion of their transmission time for European works, of which 40% should be Croatian language works. In addition, the Act sets out objectives to co-produce audiovisual works contributing to the development of Croatian culture, art and entertainment, and earmarks 15% of the programming budget for the acquisition of independent productions. 

Based on rights’ payments to its members, the Croatian Collective Rights Management Organization DHFR, representing audiovisual authors, reports that HRT has failed to meet these obligations over the last three years. 

This situation puts the entire national audiovisual community under significant pressure by hindering positive industry practices such as co-production, pre-sales, production of national audiovisual works and cultural programming. 

The AVMS Directive and its recent revision including new obligations on on-demand services to promote European works are essential to strengthen the European audiovisual industry competitiveness and promote cultural diversity in Europe. However, Croatian Directors and Producers question the ability of EU Member States to make the most of this new legal framework if they cannot ensure the compliance of national public service broadcasting with their own long-standing obligations. 

With the support of FERA and SAA, Croatian Audiovisual Authors are calling on European institutions to insist on a prompt intervention by Croatian authorities to uphold EU standards and national legislation promoting European audiovisual works.

Background note with more information available to download here: http://www.filmdirectors.eu/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Croatian-AV-Authors-resisting-censorship_Background-information.pdf

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Grand Prix of the New Asian Cinema competition was awarded to "Balloon" directed by Pema Tseden. Special Mention went to "And Your Bird Can Sing" by Sho Miyake.

People's Jury consisted of Robert Jarosz, Igor Kierkosz, Irena Kołtun, Basia Majchrowicz, Aleksander Młyński, Łukasz Mizerski, Paweł Mizgalewicz, Marta Pęcak, Maja Soś, Szymon Szeszuła, Jakub Zawodniak. 

Grand Prix awarded by People's Jury:

Balloon

Qi qiu

dir. Pema Tseden

China 2019

For a precisely constructed tale about the helplessness of an individual who faces multilevel oppression. For presentation of the universal tension between nature and culture in local colouring. For lightness and maturity in the approach to the complex theme. People’s Jury awards the Grand Prix to the film “BALOON” directed by Pema Tseden.

Special Mention awarded by People's Jury:

And Your Bird Can Sing

Kimi no tori wa utaeru

dir. Sho Miyake

Japan 2018

For memorable contemplation of small town spaces and capturing the ephemeral spirit of relations between young people. For a mesmerising atmosphere of the inevitable end of summer.

Five Flavours supports the programme “Witaj w domu” (“Welcome home”) run by Fundacja Ocalenie. We are supporting the collection of funds for the family of Sofia who raises 14-year-old Marina and 5-year-old Mikai in difficult conditions. We encourage our viewers to contribute to the collection of funds at our festival cinemas or support the family through the website of the campaign witajwdomu.org.pl. 

The 13th edition of the festival takes place in Warsaw on 13-20th November.

Organised by: Arteria Art Foundation

Sponsors: Asia Travel, Hong Kong Economics and Trade Office Berlin, HoReCa.

Partners: Capital City of Warsaw, Asian Film Awards Academy, Create HK, HK Film Development Fund, Japan Foundation, Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.

Media patrons: TOK FM, National Geographic Traveler, Pismo, Gazeta Wyborcza, Warszawa.wyborcza.pl, Co jest Grane 24, Papaya.Rocks, Ekrany, KINO, Japoniaonline.pl, Asian Movie Pulse, Eastern Kicks.

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Dear President of the European Council, 

Dear Member States representatives, 

We are writing as a group of (XXX- to be added at a later stage) organisations from across Europe’s cultural and creative sectors ahead of the European Council discussions on the future EU budget. 

At this key juncture of the negotiations on a future EU Multi-Financial Framework (2021-2027), we call on you to support the European Parliament’s proposed budget for the Creative Europe Programme 2021-2027^[2], the only EU framework Programme dedicated to cultural and creative sectors. 

Today, Creative Europe represents a mere 0,15% of the overall EU Budget. This is by no means proportionate to our sectors’ contribution to the EU economy, which stands at €509bn in value added to GDP and over 12 million full-time jobs (7.5 % of the EU’s work force)^[3]. 

Our culture and our talents support artistic freedom and media pluralism, which are crucial for maintaining open, inclusive and creative societies. 

Yet, culture is low on the EU’s political agenda, and these sectors remain structurally underfinanced. The financing gap for Europe’s cultural and creative SMEs alone is estimated to be somewhere between €8bn and €13bn^[4].

This is why we welcome the European Parliament's proposal to increase the Creative Europe budget to €2.8bn. We call on the Council to support this much-needed boost to the future of Europe’s arts, culture and heritage, and the values they promote. 

The contribution of Europe’s cultural and creative sectors to the social, economic and artistic development of Europe fully justifies the added value of EU investment in culture.

Our common values and our unique cultural diversity lie at the center of our collective European project and are the best ambassadors for the EU’s global influence in the world.

Investing in our culture is investing in our future. Let’s show a high level of ambition and shape a brighter future for Europe.

Full press release here.