This year’s EURIMAGES CO-PRODUCTION AWARD, an award acknowledging the decisive role of co-productions in fostering international exchange, pays tribute to a woman’s contribution to the success of film co-production

At the PÖFF Shorts award ceremony held on Saturday November 23 in Tallinn's Club Hollywood, the winners of the Black Night Film Festival's short film and animation sub-festival PÖFF Shorts were announced.

For the first time, the joint jury of PÖFF Shorts put forth a candidate to the European Film Awards 2020 in the short film category.

LIST OF WINNERS:

PÖFF SHORTS NATIONAL COMPETITION 
Presenter: Overall Pro Rent 
Jury: Eva Näripea, Marina D. Richter, Marija Milovanovic

BEST SHORT
"Toomas Beneath the Valley of the Wild Wolves" (Estonia, 2019)
Director: Chintis Lundgren

Jury statement: "It is a playful and smoothly developed script, wonderfully freed of cliches and rich in imagination. Political incorrectness is consciously used as an inclusion tool - male, female, cats and dogs. Empowerment belongs to everyone. The filmmaker shows how fragile the concept of an ideal family and morality is, but doesn’t turn it into a downfall of family bounds. A big howl for Toomas beneath the valley of the wild wolves!"

SPECIAL MENTION
"Bad Hair" (Estonia, 2019)
Director: Oskar Lehemaa

Jury statement: "It’s a film about midlife crisis that turns into a very clever genre piece that takes the fun out of obsession with perfect looks and beauty. It’s a well crafted and perfectly rounded contemporary tale that literally ends up in flames. The film doesn’t shy of black humour and even though it is not made to be didactic it is a perfect example of “may you get what you wish for.”

ANIMATION COMPETITION
Jury: Chiara Magri, Nicolas Khabbaz, Sander Joon

BEST SHORT ANIMATION
Presenters: A Film Eesti, Fork Film, Tolm
"Deep Love" (Ukraine, 2019)
Directors: Mykita Lyskov

Jury statement: "For the straightforward message reflected in a complex treatment, the crude style works very well to be  funny and bitter, light and deep."

SPECIAL MENTION
"Lola the Living Potato" (France, Russia, 2018)
Director: Leonid Shmelkov

Jury statement: "A film that overcomes the barrier to reach the inner child in us, in a beautiful depiction of loss and new beginning."

SHORTS NEW TALENTS COMPETITION: ANIMATION
Presenter: Eesti Kunstiakadeemia
Jury: Chiara Magri, Nicolas Khabbaz, Sander Joon

BEST SHORT ANIMATION
"Daughter" (Czechia, 2019)
Director: Daria Kashcheeva

Jury statement: "A mastered storytelling piece about a father and daughter relationship. Conveying powerful deep emotions from animated puppets. Using live action cinematic techniques and successfully crossing."

SPECIAL MENTION
"Zorg II" (Estonia, 2019)
Director: Auden Lincoln-Vogel

Jury statement: "For its exploding ideas and bravery in style."

LIVE ACTION COMPETITION
Jury: Martti Helde, Kathleen McInnis, Ingvar Sigurðsson

BEST SHORT FILM
Presenter: Nafta Films
"Holy Family" (Portugal, 2019)
Director: Margarida Lucas

Jury statement: "For its compelling freshness and originality in visual storytelling; where we can clearly see the unique handwriting of the director among all the characters and in particular a loving and strong mother figure unlike any we’ve seen before." "

SPECIAL MENTION
"FROM MATTI WITH LOVE" (Finland, 2019)
Director: Jarno Lindemark

Jury statement: "For its sensitive, intimate and emotionally revealing portrayals."

SHORTS NEW TALENTS COMPETITION: LIVE-ACTION
Jury: Martti Helde, Kathleen McInnis, Ingvar Sigurðsson
Presenter: Baltic Film, Media, Arts and Communication School of Tallinn University

BEST SHORT FILM
"My planet" (Belgium, 2018) 
Director: Valery Carnoy

Jury statement: "Unexpectedly delicate, egoless, visceral and above all humorous – as it turns the human condition on its head. It’s about simple love and everyday problems in relationships, and how we see ourselves when reflected through the eyes of someone we love."

SPECIAL MENTION
"Elephantbird" (Afganisthan, 2019)
Director: Masoud Soheili

Jury statement: "Sincere both in how it is made and in its message, the story feels at once ancient and yet deeply relevant as it traverses a landscape dotted with archetypes and multiple forks in the road around every corner."

EUROPEAN FILM AWARDS 2020
CANDIDATE FOR EUROPEAN SHORT FILM
Jury: Martti Helde, Kathleen McInnis, Ingvar Sigurðsson, Chiara Magri, Nicolas Khabbaz, Sander Joon, Eva Näripea, Marina D. Richter, Marija Milovanovic

“12 K Marx Street” (Georgia, 2019)
Director: Irine Jordania

Jury statement: “We put forward 12 K Marx Street for consideration of the EFA. We were struck by the filmmaker’s use of simple framing which yielded a deeply felt emotional connection to both story and character.”

The 2019 edition of PÖFF Shorts runs from 19-27 November 2019 at various venues around Tallinn, Estonia. It is a sub-festival of the Black Nights Film Festival which takes place 15th November – 1st December 2019.

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) is a unique event combining a feature film festival with the sub-festivals of animated films, short films and children/youth films. The festival aims to present Estonian audiences a comprehensive selection of world cinema in all its diversity, providing a friendly atmosphere for interaction between the audience and filmmakers from all around the world.

PÖFF Shorts Award Ceremony Gallery: 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/poffihunt/sets/72157711908257031/

PÖFF Shorts, http://shorts.poff.ee/
Facebook: http://facebook.com/poffshorts
Black Nights Film Festival, http://www.poff.ee
ShortEst Estonian Short Film Center, www.shortest.eu

PÖFF Shorts 2019 Award Ceremony. Photo: Aron Urb, Black Nights Film Festival

PÖFF Shorts 2019 Award Ceremoniy. Photo: Aron Urb, Black Nights Film Festival

Contact
Heinrich Sepp
PÖFF Shorts Communications and Marketing
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http://shorts.poff.ee/

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