BUDAPEST: The biopic Semmelweis, Lajos Koltai’s return to directing after over 15 years, has become the domestic film with best admissions in Hungarian cinemas in the past five years. Since its release on 30 November 2023, the film has attracted over 280,000 spectators.

NICOSIA: The Ministry of Finance of Cyprus has approved a support of 479,000 EUR for the British mini-series The Love Rat, which was shot entirely in Cyprus in November - December 2022.

BUCHAREST: Writer/director Ioana Mischie (Fulbright Alumna, Berlinale Talents Alumna, Sundance Capalbio Alumna) is currently in postproduction with Government of Children II, a pioneering transmedia documentary inviting children to redesign their societies for the long-term.

BUDAPEST: SPI International launched a new version of the FilmBox channel in Hungary in January 2024. The endeavour will be further strengthened through a partnership with RTL Saleshouse, facilitating advertising sales and viewership measurement.

SOFIA: The Balkan Documentary Center has launched a new initiative: Balkan Watchers – Media Programme for Documentary Films and Podcasts. Submission deadline is 1 March 2024.

BUDAPEST: Renowned Hungarian film director and producer László Vitézy died at the age of 83. He had received the Grand Prize of the Mannheim-Heidelberg Film Festival for Peacetime / Békeidö (1980).

BERLIN: The online market for short films T-Port has announced that the lauded film curator and distribution expert Nikolaj Nikitin is joining their team as Head of Finance & Operations.

WARSAW: In a significant move, the Polish Filmmakers Association (SFP) has reported a suspected crime related to Mateusz Morawiecki's government's failure to adopt the EU directive on internet royalties. This makes Poland the last EU country yet to implement the copyright directive, impacting filmmakers and their rightful remuneration.