MARKET ANALYSIS 2020

VILNIUS: The Coronavirus pandemic was challenging for the Lithuanian film industry as limitations were imposed upon all culture and film events in the whole country.

Still, Lithuanian films of all kinds (feature, documentary, animated and short films) had their world premieres at internationally acclaimed festivals, including Cannes, Karlovy Vary, Leipzig, Venice, San Sebastian, Warsaw, DOC NYC, Tallinn, with the support from the Lithuanian Film Centre.

Total production expenses in Lithuania were 37,911,134 EUR, making 2020 the most profitable year for the tax incentive scheme since its launch. Lithuania saw the infection rate increase over October and November, but film production didn't come to a standstill and international projects arrived from Finland, Norway, Sweden, the UK and France starting August 2020. They include Netfix’s crime drama series Clark, and the Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT) series Max Anger.

It was a successful year for Karolis Kaupinis's debut feature Nova Lituania, which triumphed at the Lithuanian Film Awards Silver Crane with six awards. The film was also chosen as Lithuania‘s entry for an Academy Award nomination in the Best International Feature Film category.

In 2020 the Lithuanian Film Centre appointed a new director, Laimonas Ubavičius.

PRODUCTION

Ernestas Jankauskas shot his new feature film I Am Fine, Thanks / Man viskas gerai, produced by Dansu, in 2020.

Fralita Films produced two films simultaneously - A Butterfly‘s Heart / Drugelio širdis directed by Inesa Kurklietyte and Family / Šeima directed by Austėja Urbaitė.

Kristijonas Vildžiūnas finished his fifth feature film Songs For a Fox / Dainos lapei, which was produced by Lithuania's Studio Uljana Kim in coproduction with Latvian Locomotive Productions and Estonian Eesti Joonisfilm.

Andrius Blaževičius shot his sophomore feature Runner / Bėgikė, produced by Lithuania’s M-films. 

Ukrainian director Sergei Loznitsa's new film was also in production in 2020. The archive documentary project The Natural History of Destruction / Natūrali naikinimo istorija is produced by Germany‘s LOOKS Filmproduktionen GmbH in coproduction with Lithuania‘s Studio Uljana Kim and Atoms & Void from the Netherlands.

A total of 25 new films of various lengths and genres were finished in 2020, including 11 feature films, 13 documentaries and one animated film.

The list of international productions which used the increased 30% tax incentive scheme in 2020 includes: the 4th season of the Netflix series Stranger Things, created by the Duffer Brothers and serviced by Virtus Mediae; the Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT) series Max Anger - With One Eye Open /  Neprarask budrumo, made in coproduction with UK-based Twelve Town, directed by Lisa Farzaneh and Jesper W. Nielsen and serviced by Paprika Filmai; the 2nd season of the Swedish crime drama The Truth Will Come Out / Tiesa vis tiek išaiškės directed by Hans Jörnlind and Aron Levander, produced by Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT Group), coproduced by Discovery Networks Sweden and serviced by Ahil; the sci-fi Skylines / Horizontai directed by Liam O'Donnell and produced by M45 Productions, Hydraulx, Gifflar Films Limited Lipsync Productions, Fasten Films, and serviced by Cobaltas; the Swedish six-part Netflix series Clark directed by Jonas Åkerlund and serviced by Dansu; the war film The Forgotten Battle / Pamirštas mūšis directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr., produced by Levitate Film and Caviar Films, and serviced by Artbox, the Finnish comedy Potato / Bulvė directed by Joona Tena, produced by Yellow Film & TV and serviced by Filmai LT; and the French film Kompromat directed by Jérôme Salle, produced by Super 8 Production, SND Groupe M6 and serviced by Virtus Mediae.

In 2020 foreign productions got incentives totalling 8,059,073 EUR.

COVID GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

In an attempt to compensate the issues created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the film sector was provided with 6.2 m EUR funding by the Lithuanian Film Centre, which made Lithuania the only Baltic country to receive such a multifaceted support for the film sector.

Additionally, 475,080 EUR went for supporting 28 film projects in production, while 2,717,850 EUR were distributed to 63 new film and TV projects. After an evaluation of film events and festivals set to take place in 2020, further 88,270 EUR were provided to cover the expenses of 21 such events.

Part of the additional funding was dedicated to individual creators for writing and developing new screenplays, preparing publications and research on cinema works. A total of 118,800 EUR were granted to 48 authors.

In an attempt to reduce the losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to cinemas and film distributors, one-off grants totalling 2.8 m EUR were also issued. The support reached 18 cinemas, which received 2.24 m EUR, while 12 film distribution companies received 560,000 EUR.

The Lithuanian Film Centre has also initiated the inclusion of film producers and film distributors in the list of companies compiled by the STI (State Tax Inspectorate Under the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Lithuania). The listed companies are released from interest on arrears and tax recovery, and will be able to pay the taxes at the end of the state of emergency or to create a tax loan agreement.

DISTRIBUTION

A total of 272 films were screened in Lithuanian cinemas in 2020, compared to 383 in 2019.

A total of 13 new Lithuanian films were released in 2020, including Karolis Kaupinis's debut feature Nova Lituania, produced by M-films; Romas Zabarauskas gay romantic drama The Lawyer / Advokatas, produced by Naratyvas, and Lina Lužytė’s The Castle / Pilis, produced by Artbox in coproduction with Irish Samson Films.

The year 2020 was very good for Lithuanian films in festivals.

The Flood Won't Come / Tvano nebus directed by Marat Sargsyan and produced by Tremora, competed in the Film Critics’ Week at the Venice FF, while the short film Places / Miegamasis rajonas directed by Vytautas Katkus and produced by Afterschool was selected for the short film competition of the same festival.

Sharunas Bartas' In the Dusk / Sutemose was selected for the Official Selection of the 73rd Cannes Film Festival, but it was actually screened at the San Sebastian FF, which took 17 titles from the Cannes' selection. The film was produced by Lithuania‘s Studio Kinema in coproduction with France‘s Kino Elektron, Serbia‘s Biberche Productions, Latvia‘s Mistrus Media, Sirena Film from the Czech Republic and Portugal‘s Terratreme Filmes. In the Dusk was also selected for the Baltic Competition of the 24th Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF).

The Spanish/Icelandic/Lithuanian coproduction Lobster Soup / Omarų sriuba directed by Pepe Andreu and Rafa Molé, and produced by Suica Films in coproduction with Rec Grabaketa Estudioa, Axfilms, and Studio Nominum, also had its world premiere at the San Sebastian FF.

A thematic retrospective organised within the San Sebastian FF, Eastern Promises. Portrait of Eastern Europe in 50 films, featured two Lithuanian films - Šarūnas Bartas’ Eastern Drift / Eurazijos aborigenas (2010), produced by Studio Kinema, and Kristina Buožytė‘s drama Vanishing Waves / Aurora (2013), produced by Tremora.

Motherland by Tomas Vengris won the Audience Award of the 2020 edition of ArteKino. It was produced by Lithuania's Studio Uljana Kim in coproduction with Latvia's Locomotive Productions, Germany's Heimat Hafen Films, and Greece's Faliro House.

The Camel by Laurynas Bareiša (2016), After Rave by Kamilė Milašiūtė (2014) and Youngblood by Marija Kavtaradzė (2013) were selected for the student film programme of the same festival, while the Lithuanian actress Aistė Diržiūtė was invited to the New Directors competition jury.

Laurynas Bareiša‘s Dummy / Atkūrimas, produced by Afterschool, became the first Lithuanian film that had its world premiere in the Berlinale Shorts programme.

Giedrė Žickytė's documentary The Jump / Šuolis, produced by Moonmakers and coproduced by Latvia‘s VFS Films, premiered at the Warsaw Film Festival, where it won the Best Documentary award.

Three Lithuanian projects participated in the Eastern Promises Industry Days of the virtual edition of the Karlovy Vary IFF. The Lithuanian/Norwegian project Burial directed by Emilija Škarnulyte and produced by Just a Moment, competed for the Eurimages Lab Project Award, while I Am Fine, Thanks / Man viskas gerai by Ernestas Jankauskas and Runner / Bėgikė by Andrius Blaževičius participated in the First Cut+ programme.

Roman’s Childhood / Romano vaikystė directed and produced by Linas Mikuta had its world premiere at the 63rd DOK Leipzig, where it competed for the Golden Dove.

After winning Best Documentary at the Warsaw FF, Giedrė Žickytė's The Jump / Šuolis, produced by Moonmakers and coproduced by Latvia‘s VFS Films and France‘s Faites un voeu, became the first Lithuanian film invited to the official selection of the Roma FF. The film had its North American premiere at the DOC NYC, where it won the Audience Award. The Jump was also selected for the Baltic Film Competition at the Black Nights Film Festival.

Lithuania featured as guest at the International Film Festival for Young Audiences Filem‘On in Brussels, where Lina Lužytė’s The Castle competed for the ECFA Feature Award and the Filem’On Teen Screen Award. Another six animated short films were in the programme: Ilja Bereznickas’s The Goat Luck, Bad Luck / Ne ožkoje laimė (2017) produced by Vilaminos Film Studio, Gediminas Šiaulys’s Running Lights / Kaukai (2014) produced by PetPunk, Rasa Joni’s The Tail / Uodega (2006) produced by Rasa Joni Art, Ignas Meilūnas’s Mr Night Has a Day Off / Pono Nakties laisvadienis (2016) produced by Ignas Meilūnas, Mainardas Valkevičius’s Look / Oo. (2017) produced by MeinArt, and Darius Jaruševičius’s Stop. The Kiss (2009) produced by the Vilnius Academy of Fine Arts.

The restored Lithuanian classic The Girl and the Echo / Paskutinė atostogų diena by Arūnas Žebriūnas (1964, produced by the Lithuanian Film Studio) ran across French cinemas in 2020. The story of a girl and dreamy summer holidays screened in 16 cinemas in Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux, Marseille, Grenoble, Toulouse and other cities. The Lithuanian Film Centre has extended the cooperation with French ED Distribution for the distribution of the film in all the French-speaking territories in Europe. In 2018, the company successfully presented another Žebriūnas’ film, The Beauty / Gražuolė (1969, produced by the Lithuanian Film Studio), which was released on DVD with French subtitles.

Five Lithuanian cinema classics were presented on the newly launched platform Heritage Online by the Locarno FF in 2020: March! March! Tra-ta-ta / Marš ! Marš! Tra-ta-ta! (1964) directed by Raimondas Vabalas and produced by the Lithuanian Film Studio, The Girl and The Echo /  Paskutinė atostogų diena (1964) and The Beauty / Gražuolė (1969), both directed by Arūnas Žebriūnas and produced by the Lithuanian Film Studio; Woman and Her Four Men / Moteris ir keturi jos vyrai (1983) directed by Algimantas Puipa and produced by the Lithuanian Film Studio, and I No Longer Remember Your Face / Neprisimenu tavo veido (1988) directed by Raimundas Banionis and produced by the Lithuanian Film Studio.

VOD PLATFORMS AND ONLINE DISTRIBUTION

Film festivals and film industry meetings, as well as film industry awards moved to the virtual space and TV screens in 2020, while many Lithuanian film premieres were postponed for 2021.

The Vilnius IFF became one of the first film festivals to switch to a digital format. The decision gave a boost to local VOD platforms, which streamed films 56,000 times. According to the research company Kantar, each screening was most often watched by two people, thus the number of viewers goes up to approximately 112,000. In comparison, the 2019 festival was attended by 126,000 filmgoers.

“Despite these numbers, we lost over half of our target ticket revenue, which is a significant financial blow“, said the executive director of the Vilnius IFF Algirdas Ramaška. A total of 69 percent of the programme, representing 118 films, made it onto streaming sites and on-demand TV.

Together with TV3, the Vilnius IFF launched the Aerocinema experiment, at the first drive-in cinema held at the Vilnius Airport, in the spring of 2020. The screenings, which used the largest outdoor LED screen in the Baltics, soon became a sensation in Lithuania and around the world, with over 400 stories in the media. Aerocinema later traveled to 20 Lithuanian cities, and 118 drive-in screenings were attended by approximately 13,839 cars in over three months.

The European Film Forum Scanorama opened in cinemas in Vilnius on 4 November 2020 and moved online to the Scanorama cinema platform three days later.

The number of Netflix users grew in Lithuania in the first half of 2020. According to a research conducted by the Lithuanian Radio and Television Commission (LRTK), Netflix ended the first half of 2020 with approximately 40,000 users in Lithuania, which was double than 12 months earlier. There were 7,000 Netflix subscribers in 2018.

EXHIBITION AND BOX OFFICE

There are 80 screens in Lithuania, which is still too small a number, according to the Film Centre, in order to provide access to films in smaller cities and given the total number of productions released.

The pan-Scandinavian Forum Cinemas, owner of the largest chain of film theatres in the country (76% of the market share), has six multiplexes with 40 screens, all fully digitalised since 2012. In 2016, Forum Cinemas joined the NCG group, which became a part of the global AMC/Odeon organisation belonging to the Wanda Group since 2017.

The Polish-owned multiplex Multikino, which opened in Vilnius in 2010, has seven screens with 1,673 seats. Baltic Multiplex Ventures, which is the owner of the Cinamon multiplex in Kaunas, invested 1.6 m EUR in its five screening rooms with over 1,000 seats.

Kino Pasaka, which was founded in 2009 as an art house film theatre in Vilnius, is still the only private art house cinema in Lithuania. In September 2020, the Pasaka cinema was opened in the new Paupis district of Vilnius.

Cinemas in Lithuania were closed from 16 March to 5 June 2020 due do the Coronavirus pandemic. They closed again starting 7 November 2020 until 31 January 2021. A few attempts to organise alternative film screenings did not replace the usual activities or the economic model of the sector.

Furthermore, local cinema operators are also dependent on the global market changes during the economic crisis. The film premieres called off in the USA and Europe greatly influenced the planning of cinemas’ activities.

Based on the data provided by cinema operators, the market experienced losses greater than 14 m EUR during the year 2020. Part of the losses was compensated by Lithuanian and European Union institutions, but the grants couldn’t offset all the losses.

Cinema attendance decreased between two and six times in different cinemas in Lithuania.

According to official statistics, total admissions in 2020 were 1.5 m and the total gross 8,473,000 m EUR, compared to 4.1 m total admissions and 22,495,000 EUR total gross in 2019.

The average ticket price in 2020 was 5.45 EUR.

The most profitable Lithuanian film at the box office in 2020 was the romantic comedy The Perfect Date / Tobulas pasimatymas directed by Robertas Razma, produced and distributed by Nord Play. The film was released on 3 January 2020 and had more than 146,815 admissions and 874,111 EUR gross.

Imported Groom / Importinis jaunikis directed by Simonas Aškelavičius, produced and released by Acme Film, had 115,283 admissions and 698,797 EUR gross since its premiere on 31 January 2020.

GRANTS AND NEW LEGISLATION

The Lithuanian audiovisual industry relies on funds from the Lithuanian Film Centre, private funds, coproducing with foreign companies, and pan-European film support initiatives such as the MEDIA Programme and Eurimages.

In 2020 the Lithuanian Film Centre appointed a new director, Laimonas Ubavičius. He was selected from the two candidates who received the highest scores in a competition organised by the Civil Service Department under the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Lithuania. Starting November 2020 Laimonas Ubavičius replaced Rolandas Kvietkauskas, who had managed the Lithuanian Film Centre since its launch in 2012.

The Lithuanian Film Centre was set up after an extensive lobbying by the Independent Producers Association of Lithuania and the Lithuanian Filmmakers Union. It has had a huge impact on the local industry, which previously lacked a central body to represent it.

The Lithuanian Film Centre primarily finances film development, production, promotion and distribution in Lithuania.

In 2020 the Lithuanian Film Centre became a patron of the European Women’s Audiovisual Network (EWA). With this new partnership, the LFC supports both the presence of its local members in the network and the initiatives organised by the EWA in Lithuania.

In 2018 the Lithuanian parliament approved a boost to the country’s film production tax incentive, increasing it from 20% to 30%. The new level took effect from 1 January 2019 and the legislation was renewed for a next five-year period.

The updated tax incentive is available for fiction films, TV films, documentaries and animated films. At least 80% of eligible film production costs must be incurred in Lithuania and the total amount of eligible spend in Lithuania has to be no less than 43,000 EUR. The incentives scheme is administered by the Lithuanian Film Centre.

In 2020 the Lithuanian Film Centre issued 154 Investment Certificates, representing a total amount of 11,288,347 EUR financial aid for filmmaking in Lithuania. A total of 58 films used the scheme: 12 foreign films, nine coproductions and 37 domestic films.

In 2019 the Lithuanian Film Centre issued 98 Investment Certificates, representing a total amount of 6,834,286 EUR financial aid for filmmaking in Lithuania, and 36 films used the scheme: eight foreign films, eight coproductions and 20 domestic films.

The total production expenses in Lithuania were 37,911,134 EUR in 2020, compared to 22,909,399 EUR in 2019, making 2020 the most profitable year for the tax incentive scheme since its launch in 2014.

In 2020, foreign productions got incentives totalling 8,059,073 EUR.

The Vilnius Film Office was established at the end of 2011. A public non-profit entity, the Kaunas Film Office was established in 2012 as a result of a joint effort between the Kaunas municipality and the Kaunas Cinema Studio. The Vilnius Film Office and the Kaunas Film Office are members of the European Film Commissions Network.

The seaport Klaipėda, located on the Baltic Sea coast in Western Lithuania, as well its region, offer a wide range of filming locations. More at: www.klaipeda-locations.com.

TV

Lithuania’s public broadcaster, the Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT), operates three national television channels, three radio channels and an internet portal. It also provides satellite and live internet broadcasts, radio and television podcasts.

The Act amending the Law on the Lithuanian National Radio and Television came into force on 1 January 2015. This act bans commercial advertising on all LRT radio and TV channels, but provides more sustainable funding from the state budget. The assigned funding is based on the state budget revenues from the income tax and the excise revenues received in two previous years. Its operations are overseen by the LRT Council. LRT joined the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in 1993. LRT provides assistance to foreign broadcasting companies covering events in Lithuania.

TV3 is a television channel owned by Modern Times Group (MTG, Sweden) and targeted at Lithuanian-speaking audience. It was launched in April 1993 as Tele-3, before becoming TV3 in June 1997. Now TV3 is the biggest commercial TV channel in Lithuania and brings entertainment for the whole family, offering locally produced shows, well-known international formats and the most popular sport events.

The TV6 channel was launched in 2002. It focuses on entertainment and high-profile sports events – the UEFA Champions league, comedy, horror, action films and exclusive content shows. TV6 is a Lithuanian terrestrial, satellite and cable television channel owned by the Nordic television company Viasat.

The TV8 channel, launched in 2011, is dedicated to women who want to enjoy their leisure time. It broadcasts cooking and lifestyle shows, fashion and female talk shows, romance films and series, as well as positive animation for children.

LNK TV, also known as Laisvas ir Nepriklausomas Kanalas (Free and Independent Channel), is one of the major commercial TV channels in Lithuania. It was founded in 1995 as part of MG Baltic Media. It has four sister channels: TV1, Info TV, Liuks! and BTV.

Lietuvos rytas TV is a Lithuanian entertainment channel founded in 2008 and airing approximately 55% international programmes.

In 2020 TV3 aired the 13th season of the most popular Lithuanian TV series Women Lie Better / Moterys meluoja geriau directed by Mykolas Vildžiūnas and Andrius Žiurauskas, and produced by Videometra. Women Lie Better is the most popular Lithuanian drama of all time and it is based on a novel by Daiva Vaitkevičiūtė. The series follows four young women and their love interests.

Also in 2020 LNK TV aired the third season of the criminal drama series Serious Deal / Rimti reikalai directed by Džiugas Siaurusaitis and produced by Urbs TV.

CONTACTS:

LITHUANIAN FILM CENTRE
Zigmanto Sierakausko g. 15, LT-03105 Vilnius
Phone: +370 5 213 0547
Director: Laimonas Ubavičius
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VILNIUS FILM OFFICE
Director: Jūratė Pazikaitė
Konstitucijos pr. 3-313
Vilnius, LT-09601
Phone: 85 211 2620
Mobile:. 8 614 04 696
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www.filmvilnius.com

KAUNAS FILM OFFICE
Darius Baltušis
Laisves av. 54, Kaunas, 44246
Phone: +37069837732
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www.kaunasfilmoffice.eu

KLAIPĖDA LOCATIONS
Anelija Juškevičiūtė
Phone:  +370 687 16001
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Report by Auksė Kancerevičiūtė (2021)
Source: Lithuanian Film Centre

MARKET ANALYSIS 2021

ZAGREB: The total gross of Croatian cinemas surged from 5.9 m EUR in 2020 to 11.7 m EUR in 2021, mainly due to cinemas reopening after the lockdowns. Box office for Croatian films jumped from only 77,600 EUR in 2020 to 840,164 EUR in 2021, which is close to 1 m EUR in the pre-pandemic year 2019. The number of domestic releases in 2021 was 17, compared to 19 releases in 2020.

The amount spent by international productions filming in Croatia was 25.8 m EUR / 195.8 m HRK, with 16 international projects spending a total of 413 days in the country. This is seen as a big recovery after the troublesome COVID-19 year, when nine projects filmed for 161 days and spent only 11,6 m EUR / 87,3 m HRK in the country.

PRODUCTION

Sixteen Croatian feature films were shot in 2021 with the support of the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC). Two TV series by Dalibor Matanić were also filmed.

Director Dubravka Turić, winner of the Venice Horizons Award for the short film Belladona in 2015, shot the second half of her debut feature Traces / Tragovi. The first part of the film was filmed in September 2020. Produced by Kinorama and coproduced by Romania’s MicroFILM, the film is a drama with mystical elements that encompasses the four seasons of a single year, following middle-aged Ana (Marija Škaričić), who is struggling to understand  the connections in her life.

The directorial duo Andrija Mardešić and David Kapac filmed their debut feature The Uncle / Stric. This is also the first feature film produced by the renowned short film production company Eclectica, in collaboration with Serbia’s SENSE Production. The story seems to be set in Yugoslavia in the late 1980s, when a family welcomes their beloved uncle, who has returned home for the holidays from Germany. All is well until a smartphone starts ringing, a sign that it is not the 80s and not even Christmas.

Vanja Juranić filmed her sophomore feature Closed to the Public / Zatvoreno za javnost, produced by Croatia’s Maxima Film in coproduction with Serbia’s Biberche. The film follows 28-year-old Tina, who expresses the desire to continue the studies she interrupted due to her pregnancy, but her husband begins a quiet but persistent rebellion that leads to his tragic end.

In 2021, Juraj Lerotić filmed his debut feature Safe Place / Sigur nomjesto produced by PIPSER. In the early stages of development, the project won the Eurimages Co-production Development Award at 2018 Cinelink. Safe Place is an intimate family drama set within 24 hours. The events triggered by a sudden suicide attempt of Damir reveal the shortcomings of the health system, but also a deep inability to deal with crisis within his family.

Radislav Jovanov Gonzo, a famous Croatian music video director, also filmed his debut feature in 2021. Punim plućima produced by Fade In is set in early 2000s, when a death of an old school friend reunites a crew of “eternal students”, whose youth was disturbed by war in the 1990s. The reunion becomes a Pandora's box that slowly opens the most difficult questions of life.

Goran Dević, known mostly for his documentaries, filmed the feature drama What's to Be Done? / Što da se radi? Produced by Petnaesta umjetnost, the film follows a personal struggle of the head of the union at the Gredelj railway car factory. He is torn between the guilt he feels because of his deputy’s suicide and the workers’ expectation that he’ll lead a strike that should thwart the government’s plans, ordered by the EU, to send the company to bankruptcy.

Simon Bogojević Narath, known for his animation and CGI work, filmed his first feature film llyricvm. Set in 36 BC, the film follows a young Illyrian shepherd Volsus, who takes up service with a unit of Roman legionaries passing through his village, in exchange for a goat for his poor family. The film is produced by Kinorama in coproduction with Slovenia’s Forum Ljubljana, Italy’s La Sarraz Pictures, Kosovo’s Buka Production and Bosnian SCCA/Pro.ba.

Vlatka Vorkapić filmed Holy Family / Sveta Obitelj, a feature drama set in the agricultural region of Slavonia in 1960s. Developed for 13 years, the film is coproduced by Croatia’s Interfilm and Serbia’s Zillion film. It introduces the famous Serbian actor Nikola Đuričko to Croatian film, following a story of a wealthy villager who decides to marry off his son, in a story that digs deep in the underbelly of the mid-20th century patriarchy.

Filip Heraković filmed his debut feature The Pelican / Pelikan, produced by Wolfgang& Dolly. The film follows Josip, a goalkeeper recovering after a career-ending injury. Faced with a major life change, Josip goes through an identity crisis and decides to introduce himself as someone else, after being confused for a sales representative of robotic vacuum cleaners. The main role is played by Edi Ćelić, actor of the Croatian National Theatre in Rijeka.

Andrej Korovljev, also known for his documentary work, filmed his debut feature Pula, produced by Kinematograf. Bosnian actor Ermin Bravo took the lead role of Mahir, a refugee from the 1990s war who develops a romantic affair with a much younger Croatian girl. The film is set in wartime Pula, the coastal Croatian city that served as a safe haven for thousands of people displaced during the ex-Yugoslav war.

Pavo Marinković, the artistic director of the Pula Film Festival, shot his new feature film The Miljacka Vampires / Vampiri s Miljacke. The immigrant comedy explores the relationship between the "civilised" West and the "temperamental" Balkans through the story of a Sarajevo man who, after 20 years of living abroad, is desperate to extend his residence permit in Austria. The film is produced by Croatia’s Telefilm in coproduction with Austria’s Nanook Film.

Jasna Nanut, known for her TV reporting work and successful short films, filmed her debut feature Seventh Heaven / Sedmo nebo. Produced by Petnaesta umjetnost, the film explores the funny side of a midlife crisis. At the heart of the story is a man torn between his wife, mistress, children, weight, work, a dog, and high blood pressure, and who becomes increasingly entangled in a web of his own high expectations.

Goran Kulenović filmed his new feature film The Death of the Little Match Girl / Smrt djevojčice sa šibicama, based on a novel by famous Croatian writer Zoran Ferić and produced by LivadaProdukcija. The story follows a pathologist who gets involved in the investigation of a mysterious murder of a Romanian prostitute in a small-town microcosm.

Lukas Nola filmed Escort produced by Kinorama in coproduction with North Macedonia’s Skopje Film Studio and Kosovo’s Buka Production. Escort is a modern blend of black comedy drama and crime thriller, following the story of a commercial producer who ends up in trouble after spending a night with a sex worker. The premiere is expected for mid-2022, in time for the Pula Film Festival.

Arsen Oremović, known as a film critic and documentary director, filmed his debut feature The Head of a Big Fish / Glavavelikeribe, produced by Izazov 365. Based on the motifs of Ognjen Sviličić's book of the same name, the screenwriting was mentored by Romanian screenwriter Răzvan Rădulescu. Following the story of a war veteran and his business-savy brother, the film paints a picture of today's Croatia crucified between war and peace, idealism and consumerism.

Kristijan Milić filmed his new feature film Anger of God / Božji gnjev, produced by Eurofilm. The film is a continuation of a fruitful collaboration between the Croatian director, famous for his war films, and the Bosnian writer Josip Mlakić, who has co-written three scripts with Milić so far. Anger of God is based on his bestselling book about Croatian soldiers in shady undercover operations in Bosnia during the 1990s war.

The filming of foreign productions in Croatia has returned to pre-pandemic levels, with 16 projects filming for a total of 413 days and spending 26.1 m EUR / 195.8 m HRK in the country.

The two biggest projects were the British series The Ipcress File by James Watkins, produced by Altitude Television and ITV Studios, and serviced by MP-film production, which filmed in Zagreb, Opatija, Lovran, Rijeka, Split, Brela and Krk in April - June 2021, and the period drama Hotel Portofino by Adam Wimpenny, produced by Eagle Eye in association with Beta Film, which was serviced by Drugi plan and was filmed in Opatija, Lovran, Rovinj, Pula and Bale in June - July 2021.

Crossing by Jacqueline Van Vugt, a coproduction between the Netherlands, Belgium and Croatia (Nukleus film), was also filmed in May 2021, as part of the incentive programme.

In July 2021, the German TV film The Summer in Istria / Ein Sommer in Istrien by Tomasz E. Rudzik, produced by Moviepool GmbH and serviced by PAKT Media, was shot in Istria, while the American Netflix film The Weekend Away directed by Kim Farrant was filmed in Split with the help of Croatian PAKT Media.

The shooting of the German feature film Over & Out directed by Julie Becker started in Istria at the end of August 2021, again serviced by PAKT Media.

The end of the summer saw the start of the shooting of the British series Conversations with Friends directed by Leanne Welham and Lenny Abrahamson (produced by Element Pictures and serviced by Embassy Films), the German feature film Faraway directed by Vanessa Jopp (produced by Olga film and serviced by PAKT Media), the Swedish/British Netflix series Spotify directed by Per-Olav Sørensen and serviced by MP-film production, and Infinity Pool, a coproduction between Canada’s Film Forge and Elevation Pictures, directed by Brandon Cronenberg and coproduced by Croatian 4film, Hungarian Herosquared and France’s Celluloid Films.

As of July 2018, the cash rebate for filming in Croatia was raised from 20% to 25%, and up to 30% in underdeveloped regions.

The total amount spent by foreign productions using cash rebates since the start of implementing the Incentive Measures Programme exceeded 173.8 m EUR / 1.3 billion HRK by the end of 2021, with a total of 95 applications submitted by foreign production companies.

DISTRIBUTION

A total of 235 films were released in regular distribution in 2021, compared to 179 in 2020. Out of 173 new releases in 2021, 17 were domestic, compared to 19 in 2020.

The biggest domestic distributor is Blitz, with more than 70% of the Croatian box office, followed by Editus, Continental Film and Discovery. The domestic distribution network includes 104 cinemas with 200 screens, of which 18 miniplexes and multiplexes, and 86 traditional cinemas.

Seen from the perspective of festival placement, 2021 is certainly among the most successful in the history of Croatian cinema, despite the obstacles related to the COVID-19 pandemic. During 2021, Croatian films were selected for over 300 international festivals, including Berlin, Cannes and Venice, and won dozens of awards.

The most trophy-winning title in 2021 is Marko Dješka's short animated film All Those Sensations in My Belly, which was screened at 88 festivals, including the Annecy International Animated FF, and which won 16 awards. The film was produced by Adriatic Animation in coproduction with Portugal’s BAP animation studio, and it is distributed by Bonobostudio.

The year was also marked by the stellar performance of Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović's debut feature Murina,which had its world premiere in the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs section in Cannes, where it won the Camera d’Or for best debut, after which it screened at another 38 festivals, winning additional 10 awards. Murina was produced by Croatia’s Antitalent and Brazil’s RT Features, and coproduced by Croatia’s Spiritus Movens, Sikelia Prods from the USA and Slovenia’s SPOK Films and Staragara. KBMO released the film in France, and Modern Films secured theatrical releases in the UK and Ireland.

For the first time, one Croatian TV series was awarded at Series Mania in Lille, France. The honour went to The Last Socialist Artefact / Područje bez signal by Dalibor Matanić, produced by Croatia’s Kinorama and coproduced by Serbia’s Sense Production, Slovenia’s Perfo Production and Finland's Citizen Jane.

The Croatian minority coproduction Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn / Babardeală cu bucluc sau porno balamuc directed by Radu Jude won the Golden Bear at the 71st edition of the Berlin IFF. The film was produced by Romania’s microFILM in coproduction with Luxembourg's Paul Thiltges Distributions, Czech Republic's endorfilm and Croatia's Kinorama.

As part of the Sofia IFF, Dalibor Matanic's feature film Dawn / Zora, produced by Kinorama, was screened as part of a competition for films from the region, and later got released on HBO. Zrinko Ogresta's film Blue Flower / Plavi cvijet had its world premiere in the main competition programme of the 43rd Moscow IFF, and later won the Grand Golden Arena at the Pula Film Festival.

After a long time, a Croatian film was part of the main competition of the Karlovy Vary IFF. The debut feature film by Sonja Tarokić, Staffroom / Zbornica produced by Kinorama, won the Special Award from the main jury of the Crystal Globe Competition, as well as the Ecumenical Jury Award.

The joint project of the Croatian State Archives - Croatian Cinematheque and HAVC, a restored version of one of the best Croatian films of all time by Nikola Tanhofer, the drama H-8 produced by Jadranfilm in 1958, has been selected for the Venice Classics programme of the 78th Venice IFF. Screenings from this section were supposed to take place during the festival in September 2021, but due to the pandemic they were postponed to February 2022.

The long documentary Museum of the Revolution / Muzejrevolucije by Srđan Keča, produced by Croatia’s Restart and Serbia’s Uzrok, and coproduced by Czech Nutprodukce, the Croatian Radiotelevision, Al Jazeera Documentary Channel and Germany’s GEO Television, had its world premiere at the 34th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival in Amsterdam - IDFA.

EXHIBITION AND BOX OFFICE

A total of 235 films, including 173 new releases, were distributed in regular distribution in 2021, compared to 179 in 2020.

The total admissions were 2,458,853 compared to 1,388,742 in 2020. Total gross reached 11.7 m EUR / 88.3 m HRK, compared to 5.9 m EUR / 44.6 m HRK in 2020.

The biggest exhibitor is Blitz Cinestar, followed by Cineplexx. Additionally, films are independently distributed through the Croatian Independent Cinemas Network, which includes 48 with 72 screens in 55 cities and on the islands. Eight new independent cinemas were digitalised and opened in 2021, all located in community-owned venues: cinema Kalnik in Križevci, Centar za kulturu in Mrkopalj, cinema Pitomača in Pitomača, Dječjakuća in Rijeka, cinema Slunj in Slunj, art-cinema Arsen in Šibenik, cinema Velilošinj in VeliLošinj and cinema Mladost in Županja.

Additionally, a new digitalised open air venue opened in Sutivan and a new mobile cinema Kino Istra was launched by the Motovun Film Festival.

The Ministry of Culture and Media invested 396,900 EUR / 3 m HRK in new digital equipment for independent cinemas.

The 10 most watched films in Croatian cinemas in 2021, according to BoxOffice.hr, were: No Time to Die (with 125,183 admissions), South Wind 2: Speed Up (with 114,216 admissions), Spider-Man: No Way Home (with 107,571 admissions), Dune (with 70,429 admissions), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (with 67,169 admissions), Fast & Furious 9 (with 65,569 admissions), Luca (with 61,654 admissions), Toma (with 60,744 admissions), Paw Patrol: The Movie (with 58,808 admissions) and House of Gucci (with 53,778 admissions).

The most viewed Croatian title of the year, according to the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC), was the minority coproduction South Wind 2: Speed Up / Južnivetar 2: Ubrzanje produced by Serbia’s Režim doo and coproduced by Serbia’s Telekom Srbija, hArchangel Digital Studios, Archangel Studios, Film District and Croatia’s Telefilm, with 114,216 admissions and 629,231 EUR / 4.7 m HRK gross.

The second place belongs to the documentary Love Around the World / Ljubav oko svijeta by Anđela and Davor Rostuhar, produced by KEK, Drugi plan and Autentic, which turned out to be a surprise hit with 16,917 admissions and 58,252 EUR / 438,061 HRK gross.

The international festival hit Murina directed by Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović holds the third place with 11,209 viewers and 38,385 EUR / 291,343 HRK gross.

Another debut feature, The Staffroom / Zbornica by Sonja Tarokić managed to get in the top five. The film about the lives of school teachers had 6,416 admissions and earned 27,275 EUR / 207,028 HRK in domestic cinemas.

Fifth place is held by experienced Croatian helmer Branko Schmidt with his feature film Once We Were Good to You / A bili smo vam dobri, produced by Telefilm. The war veteran drama had 4,986 admissions and earned 20,053 EUR / 152,199 HRK.

Other high-grossing Croatian films include Zrinko Ogresta's Blue Flower / Plavicvijet (produced by Inter Film) with 4,678 admissions, followed by Tune Up / Po tamburi, directed by Stanislav Tomić and produced by Kaos with 3,087 admissions, The Age of Uskoks / Doba Uskoka, directed by Božidar Domagoj Burić and produced by the Croatian Radiotelevision, with 2,978 admissions, The Dawn / Zora by Dalibor Matanić with 2,601 admissions, and Tereza37 directed by Danilo Šerbedžija and produced by Focus Media, with 1,646 admissions.

VOD PLATFORMS AND ONLINE DISTRIBUTION

In addition to international streaming services such as Netflix, HBO GO and Amazon Prime, the local streaming service Pickbox.hr, founded in 2014, remains a popular choice among the Croatian internet users.

Leading internet providers T-Com, Bnet and Iskon Internet provide IPTV services with VOD packages including international and domestic feature films, animated and documentary films, as well as TV series.

The Croatian Radiotelevision offers its own VOD service HRTi, free for all TV subscribers, offering a wide range of domestic and foreign productions. The broadcasters with a national concession, Nova TV and RTL, also offer VOD services with TV series, films and TV shows.

The Restart association pioneered independent VOD platforms in Croatia with their project Volim Dokumentarce, which offers a wide catalogue of Croatian and international documentary films, but also masterclasses by renowned documentary filmmakers. The films can be rented for 0.95 to 2.85 EUR or downloaded for 5.69 EUR.

The free of charge VOD platform Croatian.film, dedicated to the promotion of Croatian short films, and Kino Europa Online, dedicated to independent feature films, are managed by Propeler Film. Streaming on the Kino Europa Online platform ranges from free of charge to 1.90 EUR per film.

The SVOD platform Svevid presents Croatian and regional cinematography with titles from former Yugoslavia from the 1940s until the present day. Yearly membership fee is 48 EUR / 360 HRK, with the possibility to subscribe on a monthly or bi-yearly basis.

Kino Mediteran od doma is the VOD platform set up by the Kino Mediteran project, founded by the organisers of the Mediterranean Film Festival Split. The platform offers a variety of Croatian and international independent feature films, for a fee of 3 EUR / 20 HRK per film.

The independent cinemas Duga Resa, Lič, Plaški and Vrbovsko united their offers in the Kino.hr platform, maintained by the Radar distribution company.

In 2021 Croatia saw the launch of two VOD platforms, one from Croatia and one from Russia. Croatian distribution companyDiscovery film launched its new VOD platform MovieMix, offering a wide range of independent and classic films. Subscription fees range from 5 to 9 EUR per month.

In November 2021, the Russian VOD platform START opened its large catalogue from the former Soviet Bloc territories for Croatian viewers for 5 EUR per month.

GRANTS AND NEW LEGISLATION

The most important film institution is the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC) founded in January 2008 and led by Christopher Peter Marcich since 2019. HAVC provides public funding for the development, production, promotion and sales of Croatian film abroad, festivals, schemes and programmes aimed at widening audience choice, supporting film education, culture and archives, as well as skills and training initiatives.

The total budget of the HAVC in 2021 was 19.9 m EUR / 150 m HRK, according to the Ministry of Culture.

HAVC operated with a total budget of 9.11 m EUR in 2012, a total budget of 11.64 m EUR in 2013, of 10.975 m EUR in 2014 and 11.15 m EUR in 2015. HAVC’s total budget for 2016 was 10.8 m EUR, in 2017 it was 15.5 m EUR, followed by 11.1 m EUR (without cash rebate) in 2018. The total budget in 2019 was 19.9 m EUR, followed by the same amount in 2020.

In March 2021, HAVC awarded 277,200 EUR / 2.1m HRK to five minority coproductions, including the animated short film Real Cindarella / Prava pepeljuga by Sara Božanić, produced by Croatia’s Minya film i animacija and coproduced by Portugal’s Sparkle Animation and Montenegro’s Institute for Transmedia Design; the debut feature Sirin by Senad Šahmanović, coproduced by Montenegro's Cut-Up, Croatia's Sekvenca, Albania's On Film Production, Kosovo's Buka and Bosnia's Dokument; the feature film Kajmak by Milčo Mančevski, produced by Macedonia’s Banana Film and UK’s Scala Productions, and coproduced by Croatia’s Nukleus Film, Denmark’s Meta Film, the Netherlands’ N279 Entertainment and Bulgaria’s Dare Films; the feature film Pukotina u ledu by Maja Miloš, produced by Serbia’s Baš Čelik and coproduced by Croatia’s Propeler Film, the Netherlands’ Volya Films, Italy’s Nightswim, Slovenia’s Zavod Spok and Vertigo Ljubljana, and Montenegro’s Quadrifolium Films; and the long documentary Taj zvuk u visini by Srđan Keča, produced by Serbia’s Non-Aligned Films, Croatia’s Restart and France’s Bocalupo Films.

In addition, a request for support was approved for the additional costs of shooting of the short fiction film The Boy by Hrvoje Mabić, produced by Croatia’s Studio Dim, due to extraordinary circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The film received 5,150 EUR / 39,000 HRK of additional support.

On 14 June 2021, the Croatian Audiovisual Centre distributed 2.1m EUR / 15.8 m HRK for the production of 20 feature, documentary and animated films. A total of 247,000 EUR / 1.85m HRK was awarded to five minority coproductions. God Will Not Help / Bog nećepomoći by Hana Jušić, produced by Kinorama, got the highest support of 641,000 EUR / 4.8 m HRK, out of 32 feature projects that applied. The artistic advisors also decided to support two debut features: Koke by Igor Jelinović, produced by Eclectica, and Blok 62 by Vanja Vascarac, produced by Antitalent. HAVC also supported the script development for 21 feature, animated and documentary films with a total of 78,666 EUR / 590,000 HRK, while 120,100 EUR / 900,000 HRK was awarded for the project development of nine feature films.

On 15 June 2021, HAVC additionally supported four feature films and two short films whose production had been affected by the Coronavirus pandemic, with a total amount of 126,434 EUR / 946,838 HRK. The supported features included Uncle / Stric by Andrija Mardešić and David Kapac, produced by Eclectica, the debut feature Closed to the Public / Zatvoreno za javnost by Vanja Juranić, produced by Maxima film, the feature film Safe Place / Sigurnomjesto by Juraj Lerotić, produced by Pipser, and debut feature Illyricvm by Simon Bogojević Narath, produced by Kinorama.

HAVC also distributed 133,533 EUR / 1 m HRK for the production of three short fiction films, 114,838 EUR / 860,000 HRK for the production of seven experimental films and 80,119 EUR / 600,000 HRK for the development of eight TV series.

Click HERE to see all the grants results in 2021.  

On 29 December 2021, HAVC supported the production of three feature films with 1.2 m EUR / 9 m HRK. The supported projects included Žene, luđaci I malo dobrih pedera by Ivan Salaj, produced by Plavi mjesec, Prijeljeta by DanisTanović, produced by Propeler film, and 4:2 by Anđelo Jurkas, produced by DOP produkcija. Additionally, 13 documentary projects were supported with 400,350 EUR / 3m HRK in total, five animated films got a total of 468,200 EUR / 3.5m HRK, five experimental films got 740,000 EUR / 5.56m HRK in total, and short films received 186,250 EUR / 1.4 m HRK.

Under the Croatian cash rebate scheme, projects can claim back 25% of their qualifying expenditure, which is based on the cost of the Croatian cast and crew working in Croatia, as well as goods and services purchased in Croatia, with a cap of around 2.6 m EUR per project (exceptions allowed).  Additional 5% is awarded to productions filming in regions of below average development.

Filming in Croatia, a department within the HAVC, ensures that Croatia remains a film-friendly location for both local and visiting filmmakers.

Zagreb Film Office was launched in 2019, with a goal of assisting both local and international film crews in their work in the Croatian capital. The Zagreb Film Office works under Zagreb Film, a city-funded institution known for its animation production, led by Vinko Brešan. The office is led by the local producer Mia Pećina Drašković.

The Istria Film Commission was launched in July 2015, following the example of the Zadar Film Commission in helping filming crews in location scouting, communication with public authorities and domestic producers and crew, obtaining filming permits and accessing databases. The Kvarner Film Commission opened in Rijeka in 2017.

Additional public support bodies are the Zagreb City Office for Education, Culture and Sport and the Rijeka City Office for Culture.

At the beginning of 2021, the Ordinance on the Categorisation of Audiovisual Works was followed, mid-year, by the Ordinance on the Procedure, Criteria and Deadlines for the Implementation of the National Programme for the Promotion of Audiovisual Creativity.

At the end of 2021, the following ordinances were adopted: Rules on the Register of Producers, Rules on the Distributor Register, and Rules on the Register of Exibitors, as well as Regulations on Maintaining Official Records on Filming.

Other important laws for the audiovisual sector that were approved in 2021 are the Electronic Media Act (harmonisation with the AVMSD - Audiovisual Media Services Directive) and the Copyright and Related Rights Act (OG 111/21) implementing harmonisation with the Digital Single Market Copyright Directive, Digital Market and amending Directives, as well as the Sat Cab 2 Directive, which lays down rules on the exercise of copyright and related rights applicable to Internet broadcasts and retransmission.

TV

As stipulated by the 2007 Croatian Film Act, the Croatian public broadcaster Croatian Radiotelevision (HRT), as well as all other Croatian broadcasters with a national concession (Nova TV, RTL), are obliged to contribute towards the funding of the HAVC.

As a public broadcaster, the Croatian Radiotelevision plays an important role in the promotion of national cinema through its two terrestrial and two digital channels, and it is legally obliged to invest a minimum of 15% of its programming budget in works by independent producers.

The hyper-productive director Dalibor Matanić filmed two new TV series in 2021. Both of them premiered at the end of the year and managed to gain wider international attention. The Silence / Šutnja is produced by Drugi Plan and the Croatian Radiotelevision in coproduction with Germany’s Beta Film, Ukraine’s StarMedia, OLL.TV and with the support of ZDF/ARTE. Based on the trilogy of novels by investigative journalist Drago Hedl, the six-episode series follows the interlinked stories of human trafficking in Kiyv and the Croatian town of Osijek, where the true story that inspired the novels happened in the late 1990s.

The Last Socialist Artefact / Područje bez signala by Dalibor Matanić is produced by the Croatian National Television and Kinorama, and coproduced by Serbia’s Sense Production, Slovenia’s Perfo Production and Finland’s Citizen Jane. The project also benefitted from the cash rebate programme. The six-episode series follows Oleg and Nikola, two “urban survivors” who are brought to a remote town in the Balkans when a mysterious Colonel places an order for a specific type of turbine. To deliver it, they need to renovate a long-abandoned factory in a town sunken into despair.

The private broadcasting company Nova TV premiered its new TV series Best Men / Kumovi directed by Darko Drinovac, Robert Orhel, Tomislav Rukavina and Zoran Margetić. Created by Dea Matas and Nataša Buljan, the 52-episode dramedy follows the complicated relationship of three interconnected families fighting over money and influence.

According to the Croatian Television Ratings Measurement Association (UMTG), Nova TV was the most popular TV channel in 2021, amounting to 22% of the viewership share. It was followed by HTV1 (18.6%), RTL (12.8%), Doma TV (8%) HTV2 (7.7%), RTL2 (5%), HTV4 (3.1%), RTL kockica (1.7%), HTV3 (1.6%) and N1 (1.1%).

CONTACTS:

CROATIAN AUDIOVISUAL CENTRE (HAVC)
Trg J. J. Strossmayera 410 000 Zagreb, Croatia
Phone: +385 (0)1 6041 080
www.havc.hr
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MEDIA DESK CROATIA
Ulica KraljaZvonimira 20
10 000 Zagreb, Croatia
Phone: +385 (0)1 4655 434
www.mediadesk.hr
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MINISTRY OF CULTURE AND MEDIA - DIRECTORATE FOR PERFORMING ARTS AND AUDIOVISUAL AFFAIRS
Runjaninova 2
10 000 Zagreb, Croatia
Phone: +385 (0)1 4866 200
www.min-kulture.gov.hr

FILMMAKERS ASSOCIATION OF CROATIA
Britanskitrg 12
10 000 Zagreb, Croatia
Phone: +385 1 48 47 024
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.hdfd.hr

CROATIAN PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION
Ilica 159
10 000 Zagreb, Croatia
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.hrup.hr

CROATIAN FILM DIRECTOR’S GUILD
Boškovićeva 23
10 000 Zagreb, Croatia
Phone: +385 1 484 6852
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www.dhfr.hr

Report by Milena Zajović (2022)
Sources: Croatian Audiovisual Centre, Cityof Zagreb, Boxoffice.hr, theMinistry of Culture and Media, MEDIA Desk Croatia, Croatian Television Ratings Measurement Association

MARKET ANALYSIS 2020

In 2020, the Cyprus Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth (MECSY) made great efforts to maintain and support the country’s cinematic activities and industry facing the severe impediments caused by the Coronavirus pandemic to film production, film distribution, film education and film festivals.

PRODUCTION

The pandemic and the strict measures imposed against COVID-19 negatively affected the course of the Cypriot productions that would have started shooting or been completed during 2020. The shooting of the feature film The Valley of Roses by Christoforos Roditis produced by Transvideo Ltd was interrupted in April 2020 and continued in July 2020 after the lifting of the restrictive measures of the first lockdown. The shooting of the feature film Detached House by Ioakeim Mylonas, produced by Yiannis Economides Films Ltd in coproduction with Argonauts Films (Greece), was postponed for May 2021, while the shooting of the feature film Embryo, Larva, Butterfly by Kyros Papavassiliou, produced by AMP Filmworks Ltd in coproduction with Graal S.A. from Greece, was postponed for March/April 2021. Short and feature films in final stages of postproduction were delayed due to the suspension of work at video and audio labs. 

The feature film Ballad for a Pierced Heard / Balanda tis tripias kardias by Yiannis Economides, a minority coproduction between Cyprus, Greece, Germany and France, as well as the feature film Senior Citizen by Marinos Kartikkis (Independent Production Scheme – Sekin) were completed during 2020.

The following short films were also finished in 2020: Betrayal by Katiana Zachariou, The Lighthouse / O Faros by Costas Chrysanthou, Bleeding by Anna Fotiadou, The Hunt by Sholeh Zahraei and Kamil Saldun, Beautiful Day by Christos Nikolaos, You’ve Asked Me / Zitate na sas po by Paris Prokopiou, as well as the short animated film The Parrot Lady by Michalis Kalopedis.

The following short films were either in the shooting or postproduction stage in 2020 through the beginning of February 2021: Little Hunter by Dinos Grigoriou, TAXI by Konstantinos Nikiforou, A Summer Place by Alexandra Mattheou, ΙD by Paris El Sait, and the animated film Lychnafis by Georges Tsangaris.

Three documentaries were in progress in 2020: Miss Asia Cyprus by Kaiti Papadima, The Vessel by Sofia Anastasiou and Bubble a Squeak by Orestis Lambrou.

Three feature films were in final postproduction in February 2021 and are expected to start their festival tour in 2021: .DOG by Yianna Americanou, The Man with the Answers by Stelios Kammitsis, Patchwork by Petros Charalambous and The Valley of Roses by Christoforos Roditis, produced by Cypriot Transvideo in coproduction with Cypriot Roll Out Services and Cypriot Film Blades.

Three feature films are scheduled to start shooting in 2021: Monokatoikia directed by Ioakim Milonas and produced by Cypriot Yannis Economides Films in coproduction with Greek Argonauts, IMAN directed by Kyriakos Tofarides and Korina Avramidou, and produced by Cypriot Α. Β. Seahorse Film Productions, as well as Embryo, Larva, Butterfly by Kyros Papavassiliou, produced AMP Filmworks Ltd in coproduction with Graal S.A. from Greece.

Six feature films were in development in February 2020: Asulum Seakers by Michael Hapeshis, produced by Acanthus Productions, Iris by Myrsini Aristeidou, The Cliff by Stelana Kliris, produced by Meraki Films, Africa Star by Adonis Floridis, produced by AMP Filmworks, Common Good / Kino Kalo by Spyros Charalambous, produced by AMP Filmworks, and the documentary O Iliakos mas… by Panikos Chrysanthou, produced by Art Images

All the above-mentioned short films where financially supported by the Cyprus Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth through its Cinema Advisory Committee.

COVID-19 GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

In order to support the film industry which, together with the whole artistic field, has faced the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic, the Minister of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth announced a series of support measures for producers and film directors. The measures concerned:

- An invitation to submit proposals of Digital Audiovisual Works of COVID-19 Films with a duration from one to three minutes, on the subject of life in confinement due to the pandemic. From 84 films submitted, 50 were selected and their directors received 1,000 EUR each. The films were posted online on YouTube and were also broadcast on the public televion CyBC.

- Following the prolonged closure of cinemas, theatres whose titles held 60% of the screenings of Cypriot and European films received 60% of their average losses or an amount of 1,500 EUR per month (whichever was in their best interest), for March-June 2020.

- All contracts / agreements signed with the Ministry were extended to six months for short films and 12 months for feature films.

- Film productions halted by the pandemic received extra financial support according to their losses and needs for restarting shooting. 

The Cyprus film incentive scheme run by Invest Cyprus – CIPA (Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency) with an annual budget of 25 m EUR continued during 2020 its efforts to attract foreign productions aiming to shoot in Cyprus. The scheme provides Cypriot and foreign producers cash rebates and/or tax credits of up to 35% on qualifying production expenditures and it also provides tax allowances of 20% for investment in infrastructure and equipment on the Island.

Many Hollywood, Bollywood and European producers expressed a vivid interest in filming in Cyprus. Nevertheless, the pre-certified film production The Man of War, which was due to start shooting in 2020, was postponed for 2021 due to the pandemic.

DISTRIBUTION

Due to the pandemic, many festivals were either postponed or held online, thus the low presence of Cypriot films in these festivals. Only two Cypriot titles circulated in 2020: the animated film of Michalis Kalopedis The Parrot Lady, a coproduction of Zedem Media and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport & Youth (Cyprus Cinema Consultative Committee/CyCC), and the feature film Senior Citizen by Marinos Kartikkis (Independent Producers Programme produced by Seahorse Productions). The Parrot Lady was selected for over 28 international festivals, including: Drama International Short FF (Greece), Raindance FF (England), Vancouver IFF, Shorts Mexico, San Francisco Independent FF, Rome Independent FF, AniMate Australia Animation FF, TiSFF, Thessaloniki International Short FF. It won the 1st Prize in the Humanitarian category at the Los Angeles Animation Film Festival, as well as an Honourable Mention at the Animasyros International Animation FF (Greece). Senior Citizen participated in the 1st Lima Alterna IFF of China, the 61st Thessaloniki IFF, the 14th Lublin FF, the 6th Cine de Bayamón IFF among others, and received Best Feature Film and the September Award at the 3rd Rome Prisma Independent Film Awards, Best Director at the 6th Bangkok Thai IFF, Best Film and 2nd best prize at the 33rd Panorama of European Cinema, Athens, and Best Feature Film in the Spiritual Film Section at the 19th Dhaka IFF.

To promote Cyprus as a filming destination, as well as to promote Cypriot productions and coproductions, the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth in Cyprus held a booth at the Drama International Short FF (Greece). The pavilions at the Thessaloniki, Cannes and Berlin film festivals, and also at the Clermont-Ferrand International Short FF and Annecy International Animated FF were either replaced by an online presence or postponed for 2021.

Due to the pandemic, the Cyprus Film Days 2020 – 18th International Film Festival, organised by the Cultural Services of the the Cyprus Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth and the Rialto Theatre, which would have taken place in April 2020, was canceled. Despite the cancellation, the 1st edition of the Dot.on.the.map Market was a real success and it will be continued in the years to come.

For the first time, Cyprus participated in the Young Audience Award, organised by the European Film Academy.

The 10th Cyprus International Short Film Festival (ISFFC), the main international competition for short films in Cyprus, took place at the Rialto Theatre from 10 to 16 October 2020. The programme included 49 films in the International Competition Section, 11 films in the National Competition Section, as well as seven parallel programmes.

Other festivals that took place in Cyprus in 2020 were: Drama Festival Travels to Cyprus, the 12th Short Matters! - Cyprus, Images & Views of Alternative Cinema Festival, Summer Screening Marathon 2020, the 15th Limassol International Documentary Festival, the 19th Aspects of the World International Outdoor Animation Festival, the Cyprus Archaeological, Ethnographic and Historical Documentary Festival.

EXHIBITION AND BOX OFFICE

The main exhibitor in Cyprus is K Cineplex, with two cinemas in Nicosia, one in Larnaca, one in Limassol and one in Paphos.

There is also the Rio Cinema in Limassol and Nicosia, and also the Pantheon cinema in Nicosia.

Other small cinemas in the countryside screen various foreign and Cypriot films.

In the main towns there are also various associations that function more like film clubs, generally showing European films, such as the Friends of Cinema Society in Nicosia, Limassol Cinema Society and Larnaca Cinema Society.

In 2020 all the above-mentioned cinema theatres were either functioning with 50% of their audience or were completely shut down due to the pandemic security measures. Governmental support was put in place to comfort losses.

Admissions decreased from 842,038 in 2019 to 173,873 in 2020, while box office decreased from 6,761,624 EUR in 2019 to 1,387,319 EUR in 2020, according to the Cyprus Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth.

The distribution company Feelgood Tanweer- D.J. had the best results, with 67,989 admissions, 538,320 EUR gross and 39.10% market share, followed by Four Star Films with 42,929 admissions, 333,068 EUR gross and 24.69% market share, and Odeon Cyprus with 37,922 admissions, 307,358 EUR gross and 21.81 % market share.

The 2020 chart is topped by Jumanji: The Next Level with 24,107 admissions and 192,265 EUR gross, followed by Bad Boys for Life with 18,391 admissions and 155,275 EUR gross, Eftyxia with 17,646 admissions and 147,345 EUR gross, Sonic with 9348 admissions and 66,826 EUR gross, Dolittle with 9,147 admissions and 65,599 EUR gross, 1917 with 8,178 admissions and 67,784 EUR gross, Frozen II with 7,500 admissions and 51,092 EUR gross, Birds of Prey with 7,461 admissions and 64,490 EUR gross, After We Collided with 6,571 admissions and  59,168 EUR gross, and Spies in Disguise with 4,878 admissions and  33,432

GRANTS AND NEW LEGISLATION

Due to the special circumstances of the pandemic, but also to the limited annual budget for film production, the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth did not proceed with the announcement of a Call for the submission of New Cinematographic Proposals in 2020.

The South Eastern European Cinema Network (SEE) launched a contest for short fiction films in 2020. Exclusively national productions of SEE CINEMA member-states (Cyprus, Greece, Serbia, Albania, the Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Romania and Bulgaria) applied. The amount of funding rose up to 8,000-10,000 EUR per project.

TV

There are more than ten studios located in Cyprus and specialised in TV production. Local TV channels usually produce original comic and drama series, and also local sketches.

The local TV channels are: Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC 1,2, HD and Sat), Sigma TV,  Omega TV, Ant1, Plus TV, Capital and Alpha TV.

There are no local channels broadcasting only films.

CONTACTS:

REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS – MINISTRY OF EDUCATION, CULTURE, SPORT AND YOUTH
Cultural Services
27 Ifigenias Street
2007 Strovolos – Nicosia, Cyprus
Phone: +357 22 809811/809812
Fax: +357 22 809 873
http://filmingincyprus.gov.cy/
http://www.moec.gov.cy/en/

Report by Antigoni Tasiou (2020)
Sources: the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sport and Youth