Short Joy is a traditional competition section of Ji.hlava IDFF presenting the best short documentaries. This year, the decision-making authority is bestowed upon you, viewers, for the first time. Which film do you think is the best?

Before you head to the festival, try out the role of a juror and vote for the best film! Short Joy will be online at DAFilms.com until October 22 for free! The winning film will receive the DAFilms Audience Award to be presented during the opening ceremony of Ji.hlava IDFF on October 24, 2017. The award includes online distribution and promotion worth 3.000 EUR.

To watch the film, register at DAFilms and vote directly on the website. All voters also enter a competition for a yearly subscription to DAFilms, Ji.hlava IDFF’s shirt, catalogue and bag as well as an invitation for two to the Industry Party for film professionals and the festival’s closing ceremony in Jihlava, Czech Republic.

Please mind that the vote ends on Sunday, October 22 at 12:00 noon Central European Summer Time.

 

 

Everything you always wanted to know about Distribution but were afraid to ask: PIRACY

Europa Distribution and MIA continue their joint venture to raise awareness of the role of film distributors, and present the 4th edition of the successful panels on “Everything you always wanted to know about Distribution but were afraid to ask”. This new chapter is dedicated to a topical issue affecting all parts of the film industry value chain: Piracy.
 
How has Piracy evolved in recent years and in what ways is it affecting the different European markets? How much are independent films specifically affected by it? What are the strategies put in place by the Public Institutions and by the different players in the market to fight it? What can be learnt from analysing Piracy trends?
 
To answer these questions, on Saturday 21 October 10:00-12:00 at the Auditorium NCTM (Via delle Quattro Fontane, 161) Europa Distribution and MIA have invited experts from anti-piracy organisations and representatives from across the value chain to join the discussion and share their experience and expertise to analyse the situation and identify potential solutions. 

The round-table, moderated by Paolo Marzano, President of the Permanent Advisory Committee for Copyright at the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, will look on one side at the “big picture”, showing data and research and discussing the legal framework currently proposed by the European Commission; on the other, industry professionals will bring their experience to the table, discussing their specific roles and the situation of the markets they operate in.
 
Speakers:
Daniel Goroshko, distributor (Head of Acquisitions – CEO, A-One Films, Russia)
Carotta Calori, producer (Indigo, Italy)
Nikolas Moschakis (Secretary General, FIAD - Federation of Film Distributors' Associations, Belgium)
Chris Anderson, anti-piracy expert (Head of TV & Film; UK and Europe, MUSO, UK)
Federico Bagnoli Rossi, anti-piracy expert (General Secretary Fapav – Federazione per la tutela dei contenuti audiovisivi e multimediali, Italy)

Moderator: 
Paolo Marzano (President of the Permanent Advisory Committee for Copyright at the Ministry of Cultural Heritage Italy) 

NOTE FOR THE EDITORS: Europa Distribution is the association of independent film distributors, created in 2006.  With more than 120 leading independent distributors representing 29 countries in Europe and beyond, it serves as the voice of the sector and acts as a network and a think tank. Since its creation, Europa Distribution has accompanied and reinforced the integration and collaboration process between its members through information, brainstorming and training sessions. The network’s aim is to strengthen the existing ties to improve the curation, promotion and distribution of independent films. 

CONTACT: For information about the presence of Europa Distribution in Rome, contact:  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Piracy 
28/09: Security Union: Commission steps up efforts to tackle illegal content online – European Commission
The Commission has presented guidelines and principles for online platforms to increase the proactive prevention, detection and removal of illegal content inciting hatred, violence and terrorism online.

Digital Single Market
29/09: Key messages of European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to heads of state or government in Tallinn on the state of play of the digital single market – eu2017.ee
‘Since the beginning of the mandate, the Commission has put forward 43 initiatives to complete the digital single market, of which 24 legislative proposals. Over the same period, the need to achieve a digital single market was repeatedly discussed amongst ourselves and in 10 different Summits we have agreed to complete the digital single market’ stated President Juncker. 

Creative Europe Programme 
30/09: Registrations open for the European Culture Forum 2017 – European Commission
The European Culture Forum takes place every two years with prestigious speakers and lively discussions on the hottest topics in culture.

EU Budget
10/10: Next MFF must match EU ambitions – EPP website
The MFF lays down the maximum annual amounts which the EU may spend in different political fields over a period of at least five years.

Events 

• TBC: EP JURI vote on the Broadcast Regulation
• TBC: Vote on the Contracts for the Supply of Digital Content Directive
• 19/10: The Impact of Brexit on the UK Copyright Regime panel discussion - London - more information here
• 6/11: UNIC Film Screening of 'Borg McEnroe' - Brussels - email to reserve
• 27-28/11: Estonian Presidency conference on audiovisual content, technology and policy – Tallinn – more information here 

 

WEMW Coproduction Forum
DEADLINE: October 31, 2017
The upcoming edition of WEMW (January 21-23, 2018) will launch a new East & West double focus and will bring together over 400 film professionals from more than 30 countries and, in particular, from the 2018 spotlight regions: the Nordic Countries* and South East Europe**.
Producers from Europe, Canada, USA and Latin America are eligible to apply and WEMW will select 20 projects in development with co-production or co-financing potential either with the Nordic Countries, South East Europe or Italy. Projects can be long feature fiction films or documentaries, with preferably 15% of the total budget already in place.
Along with the EAVE scholarship, the Flow Postproduction Award, the EWA – European Women’s Audiovisual Network Award (cash prize for the best female director) and the PRODUCERS NETWORK Prize, all selected projects will compete for the brand new FILM CENTER SERBIA Development Award, a 3.000 EUR grant for the best project.
 
* Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden
** Albania, Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia
 
More information on the submission process and the event are available at www.wemw.it
 
WEMW is organized by the FVG Audiovisual Fund and the Trieste Film Festival in collaboration withEAVE, Maia Workshops, Creative Europe Desk Italy, EURIMAGES, and the support of Creative Europe/MEDIA Programme, MiBACT - Direzione Generale per il Cinema, CEI - Central European Initiative and the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia.

 

 

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival adds ten films to the previously announced eight that will compete in the Official Selection (formerly called the Main Competition) for the festival’s Grand Prix and one film that will be screened out of competition. 

Ten of the films in the competition line-up will have their world, seven their international and one its European premiere. Eight films are from Europe, seven from Asia, two have been made in the US and one in South America.

Festival director and head of programme Tiina Lokk says, ‘What we have on our hands is quite a kaleidoscope of genres, ranging from drama to thriller and horror to comedy. It is likely to generate disputes on the quality and spark debate - and this is what I feel cinema should do - generating discussion, both about the art of film and the world in general.’  

‘We are especially excited about the selection of countries and it is nice to have both, an Estonian and Finnish film in the competition for the first time since we were accredited by FIAPF to hold the international competition two years ago.’

Adding to the eight films that were announced on the XXX of September the selection will include the world premiere of The Ball by Italian director Pasquale Scimeca whose previous films have been screened at Venice, Toronto, Locarno and Busan. The Ball is his take on the refugee crisis, telling the tale of a brother and sister, forced to leave their home village in search of a better life, thus becoming a statistic in the phenomenon that defines our era.

Marc Recha, the renowned Spanish director who was nominated for the Palme d’Or with his film Pau and His Brother, presents the world premiere of La Vida Lliure, a visual poem to the island of Menorca, experienced through the eyes of two children sent there during the First World War.

Swiss director Christine Repond’s second feature film Vacuum is a psychological drama with a disturbing, yet a shockingly realistic premise: right before her 35th wedding anniversary, Meredith, happy with her life and marriage, discovers that she is HIV positive.

Boldly blending social satire and drama with mythology and sci fi, Ukrainian director Volodymyr Tykhyy dissects in his second feature film The Gateway the ruptures caused by the Chernobyl disaster and the radiation, socio-economical turmoil and legends it left behind.

Turkish director Pelin Esmer who has previously won awards at festivals such as Tribeca, Istanbul and Fribourg, studies the complex question of euthanasia through a lush visual style and a playful narrative involving a poetess and a young nurse, in her third feature film Something Useful.

Having been nominated for the Nika award with his first two films, Kyrgyzstani director Temirbek Birnazarov presents his third film Night Accident, a minimalist yet poetical tale of an old man regaining meaning in his life after hitting a mysterious young woman with his motorcycle one night.

While being a slasher horror film in form, Israeli genre film director Eitan Gafny comments on some disturbing tendencies in Israeli society with his third feature film Children of the Fall. A young American goes to discover her jewish roots and becomes a volunteer at a kibbutz, only to have a terrifying encounter with xenophobic locals.

A two-time nominee of the Hollywood Film Awards, Adam Christian Clark presents his third feature film Newly Single. Having written the script and acted the lead part, Clark has created a portrait of a broken hero of our time, a filmmaker in his 30’s facing a professional crisis and experiencing the destructiveness of trying to comply with the norms of contemporary masculinity.

Having formerly worked for years as the DOP on projects such as Monster (2003), director Steven Bernstein presents his second feature Dominion, a vivid portrait of a true rockstar of poetry, the welshman Dylan Thomas, whose problem with alcohol was as notorious as his talent. Thomas is brilliantly portrayed by Rhys Ifans, while John Malkovich offers strong support in the role of Thomas’ physician.

Offering a shrewd portrait into the effects of poverty on consumer culture in Colombia, director Carlos Osuna studies in The Contestant the devastating effects of consumer campaigns on financially insecure groups in society. We follow Christobal, an aimless young man, as he spends the day in a queue alongside thousands of others waiting for the free pressure cookers that a company has promised.

Screening out of competition is the Korean historical drama Anarchist from the Colony, by Lee Joon-ik, the veteran director whose film The Throne won the Grand Prix at the festival two years ago. The film, set in 1923 in Tokyo, is a biopic of the Korean anarchist and political activist Park Yeol and his lover Kaneko Fumiko who stand trial after the anti-Korean crackdown by the Japanese empire that was organised in the wake of a devastating earthquake that killed thousands.

Films that were announced on 20 September:

The Manslayer / The Virgin / The Shadow
The Estonian auteur Sulev Keedus returns with a three-part tale of love and the shift of women’s societal positions across three different time periods and contexts of Estonia’s history: 19th century farm life, the working class of the postwar Stalinist era and the present day. 

The Eternal Road
Finnish-Estonian-Swedish co-produced film by AJ Annila is set during the Great Depression years of the 1930’s and based on a true story, this adaptation of Antti Tuuri’s novel of the same name follows a Finnish emigrant who unwillingly enters the Soviet Union and is forced to join a Finnish-American colony of settlers who have followed Stalin’s call to come and build up the socialist state.

Excavator
The second film by director Lee Ju-Hyoung, written and produced by Kim Ki-duk opens a painful chapter in Korean history studying the post-traumatic stress of soldiers involved in the Gwangju student uprising in 1980. One of the low-ranking soldiers seeks out his former comrades and supervisors to try and make peace with the painful memories.

Little Tito
The second feature film of director Paola Randi is a playful and heartfelt study of an introverted astronomer forced to raise the son and daughter of his deceased brother, while trying to prove that it is possible to contact with deceased loved ones through space.

Asphyxia
Presenting a rare case in the blooming Iranian cinema, this ‘love noir’ by veteran director Fereydoun Jeyrani tells a story of a mental hospital nurse who is drawn into a potential murder plan. She is forced to choose sides between a wealthy woman pretending madness and her husband who she claims is planning to murder her for the inheritance.

A Thought of Ecstasy
Inspired by the writings of Georges Bataille and Jean Baudrillard, this art house title is a haunting study of a man’s journey to find a lost love in the US in the year 2019. Director RP Kahl obscures the viewer with a chronologically broken timeline and blends memories, sexual desires and fears with a distorted sense of ‘reality’ to present a story of a person psychologically succumbing to illusions and self destruction.

Bangzi Melody
Depicting the tumultuous years of post-Mao China with witty allegory, Zheng Dasheng’s latest feature is set in Northern China in 1982, right after the Cultural Revolution has ended and brought about the mass privatisation of land in China. 

Granny
After her granddaughter gets raped by a local politician’s son, Granny sets out on a dark odyssey of retribution, coming across corrupt law enforcement and public servants in the process. For his second feature film director-scriptwriter Devashish Makhija has created a haunting and claustrophobic depiction of India’s systemic social injustice with memorable visual imagery.

Official Selection - In Competition

Asphyxia (Khafegi), dir Fereydoun Jeyrani, Iran, 2017 - International premiere
A Thought of Ecstasy (A Thought of Ecstasy) - dir RP Kahl, Germany-USA-Switzerland, 2017 - International premiere
Bangzi Melody (Cun xi), dir Dasheng Zheng, China, 2017 - International premiere
Children of the Fall (Yaldey HaStav), dir Eitan Gafny, Israel, 2016 -  World premiere
Dominion (Dominion), dir Steven Bernstein, USA, 2016 - World premiere
Excavator (Poclain), dir Lee Ju-Hyoung, South Korea, 2017 - International premiere
Granny (Ajji), dir Devashish Makhija, India, 2017  - European premiere
La Vida Lliure (La Vida Lliure), dir Marc Recha, Spain - France, 2017 - World premiere
Little Tito (Tito il Piccolo), dir Paola Randi, Italy, 2017 - International premiere
Newly Single (Newly Single), dir Adam Christian Clark, USA, 2017 - World premiere
Night Accident (Tunku kyrsyk), dir Temirbek Birnazarov, Kyrgyzstan, 2017  - World premiere
Something Useful (Ise Yarar Bir Sey), dir Pelin Esmer, Turkey-France-Netherlands-Germany - International premiere
The Ball (Balon), dir Pasquale Scimeca, Italy, 2017 - World premiere
The Contestant (El Concursante), dir Carlos Osuna, Colombia, 2017 -  World premiere
The Gateway (Brama), dir Volodymyr Tykhyy, Ukraine, 2017 - World premiere
The Eternal Road (Ikitie), dir Antti-Jussi Annila, Finland-Estonia-Sweden, 2017 - International premiere
The Manslayer/ The Virgin/ The Shadow (Mehetapja. Süütu. Vari), dir Sulev Keedus, Estonia, 2017 - World premiere
Vacuum (Vakuum), dir Christine Repond, Switzerland, 2017 - World premiere

Out of Competition

Anarchist from the Colony (Park Yeol), dir Lee Joon-ik , South Korea, 2017 - Estonian premiere

The tickets for the first screenings of all the films will go on sale on the 17th October. The premieres of the Official Selection will be screened between the 23rd of November and the 1st of December.

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival will take place between the17th of November and the 3rd of December. 

 

 

KATOWICE: Demand for high quality regional VR content, the potential of social media driven audience building, and  the need to focus on metrics to attract private investment were highlighted at the Film New Europe CEI AV Innovation Days at International Co-production Forum Regiofund 5-7 October 2017.

Audience and distributor demand for high-production value virtual reality (VR) content in central European languages,  the increasing prevalence of Facebook and Youtube in determining a film’s outreach and success, new opportunities of co-production with Ukraine, and the pressing need for the film industry to focus on key metrics in attracting private investors, emerged as key topics at the Film New Europe CEI AV Innovation Days, held October 5-6 during the first International Co-production Forum Regiofund 5-7 October 2017.

The FNE CEI Innovation Days, organised in partnership by Film New Europe the number one networking platform for film professionals in Central and Eastern Europe and the Baltics, and the International Co-production Forum Regiofund presented a two day format of panels, case studies and industry networking to explore how innovation and technologies are impactingthe  audiovisual industry in the region and Europe at large.

The panel discussions and case studies day held on October 5th at the cinema “Rialto” featured two panels and two case studies ranging from an overview of Polish immersive content ecosystem, analysis of Slovenian blockbuster At Hostar, new developments in Ukrainian co-production structure, and similarities and differences between content and technology investments in Europe.

At session one, “Taking Poland immersive. Exploring new trends in virtual reality and 360 video storytelling & production”, producer Marcin Łunkiewicz of  Zielony Pomidor Studios / Mimoo, who pioneered the first successful 360 degree video series in Poland, outlined the difficulties of inventing a new cinematic language and monetisation opportunities for filmmakers who wish to cross over to virtual reality productions. “The market will be growing together with technology, and we need more local high quality content and that is currently missing”, Łunkiewicz commented in explaining plans to launch a network of regional VR cinemas. Producer Maria Pułaska-Białkowska from HRZ3D Studios which focuses on high quality 3D animation and visualisation seconded that the regional industry is still on its way to appreciate the potential of animated content, although new markets are opening in real estate and commercial visualisation.

Lastly, Marcin Marczyk from Storycode Conference, presented a range of events aimed at bringing filmmakers, digital media specialists and immersive format storytellers together to explore collaboration opportunities and overcome challenges set by new formats.

Session 2, “How to make a million? Case study of Slovenian web series that became the national blockbuster At Hostar”  explored the success of Slovenian surprise blockbuster At Hostar, originally a series of comedy driven Youtube video sketches which were developed into a record breaking feature. Director Luka Marčetić and producer Goran Hrvačanin attributed the unexpected success of the ultra-low budget yet record breaking film to two criteria - knowing and cultivating fan audiences through digital platforms such as Youtube and Facebook, and the increasing need of local audiences for domestic commercial content, often overlooked by national financiers.

At Session 3, Renowned producer Andrey Yermak, with Karlovy Vary premiered Slovak Ukrainian coproduction The Line, which was the Slovak submission of the Oscars, explained new trends and opportunities in co-producing with Ukraine. With increased budgets, and expanded eligibility for television productions, Ukraine is set to become an attractive destination for both indie and major productions.

The last session, “Where’s the money and what’s the interest?  Mapping public and venture capital financing for film and co-productions” explored the similarities and differences between the structure and expectations between film and the currently booming startup sector in Europe. Acclaimed French producer Ilann Girard (March of the Penguins, Lebanon) presented the Online Film Financing platform (OLFFI) that incorporates the historically fragmented public financing landscape by providing a one stop online shop  access to more than 750 public funds. Ian Collins, serial entrepreneur and managing partner at UK’s Radium Services, highlighted that whilst venture capital money is available it comes with high costs. Ian Collins from UK’s Radium Services – a business development agency in the tech/digital space - highlighted that whilst venture capital money is available it comes with high demands. “Both in US and Europe the trend amongst technology investors is to expect a minimum return of three times the invested capital and a solid IRR of 20%+”, Collins remarked. He said that the film sector might learn from the technology industry by focusing on clear metrics, building the business case by evidencing existing or past data points to de-risk the investment and make it make attractive to investors - such as the profile/personas of the target audience, the marketing strategy and routes to market, the pricing models and how much they are willing to pay for it.

The second day, October 6th of the Film New Europe CEI AV Innovation Days focused on networking between the attending experts and participants with the calls for frequent meet ups and discussions on new platforms and regional monetisation possibilities during 2018.

The programme of the FNE CEI AV Innovation Days was curated by Sten-Kristian Saluveer, the former Head of Industry at Tallinn’s Black Nights Film Festival, and the founder of Storytek Accelerator - a unique business development accelerator that helps audiovisual creatives, producers and early stage companies to develop business, fast track their content, products and services to the global markets and access finance.

FNE CEI AV Innovations Days was supported by the Central European Initiative and the Silesia Film Commission.

 

About Regiofund

 The International Co-production Forum Regiofund was created out of the success of numerous industry events organised for seven previous editions of the International Festival of Film Producers Regiofun.

By changing from the film festival formula to an event for industry professionals the Forum aims to become a platform of co-operation within the film industry, and all of its potential partners and investors.

About Central European Initiative

The Central European Initiative (CEI)  is a regional intergovernmental forum committed to supporting European integration through cooperation among its Member States. It combines multilateral diplomacy and project management, both as donor and recipient, while bridging European macro-regions.

About Film New Europe

The Film New Europe is the largest and most important networking platform for film professionals in Central and Eastern Europe and the Baltics.  The FNE Daily newswire is the voice of the region with a focus on cultural diversity and promoting the visibility of the region’s AV industry globally.  FNE has the only dedicated AV INNOVATION team and provides a platform for sharing models that can cross borders and attract audiences.

For more information: http://www.filmneweurope.com/fne-innovation

Contact: Sten-Kristian Saluveer
Curator
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