COTTBUS: The 27th edition of connecting cottbus (coco) revealed this year’s winners in its cocoPITCH and cocoWIP sections.
COTTBUS: The 27th edition of connecting cottbus cocoPITCH opened with a slate of bold works in progress exploring identity, resilience, and transformation. From Kazakhstan to Kyrgyzstan, Astana Internet Stars, Attention Whores, Beginners, and Bekki introduce striking new voices shaping the future of European and Central Asian cinema.
COTTBUS: The second part of this year’s cocoPITCH selection ventures into bolder, more surreal territory, where love, exile, and identity collide with the uncanny. From Belarusian sci-fi satire and Polish neo-noir to supernatural romance and psychological horror, Exactly What It Seems, Helmet, I’ll Wait for You Last Summer, Lava Love, and Purgatory reveal the depth and daring of Europe’s new storytelling voices.
COTTBUS: The final part of this year’s cocoPITCH (5 -7 November 2025) lineup turns its gaze inward, exploring memory, belief, and renewal through distinctly human stories. From late-life reinvention in Radioamateur and buried secrets on Turkey’s coast in Saros, to the surreal faith and folly of Some Good News, these projects reflect the emotional range and imagination driving contemporary European cinema, where humour and heartbreak often share the same frame.
COTTBUS: Ivona Juka’s Beautiful Evening, Beautiful Day won the main award in the Feature Film Competition of the 35th FilmFestival Cottbus (FFC, 4 - 9 November 2025). This coproduction between Croatia, Canada, Poland, Cyprus, and Bosnia and Herzegovina also won the Award for an Outstanding Individual Performance, and the Audience Award.
COTTBUS: The 27th edition of coco - connecting cottbus (5 – 7 November 2025) showcased a strong slate of works in progress seeking postproduction and festival support. This year’s cocoWIP spotlighted stories of identity and transformation, from the Balkan ensemble Is the Sky Blue? to the Romanian drama Monarch, and the North Macedonian project Swaps, confirming coco’s role as a key platform for emerging European voices.
COTTBUS: The Cypriot majority coproduction The Lion at My Back by Tonia Mishiali and the Czech The Champions by Bohdan Karásek are among the WIP projects showcased at the 27th coco - connecting cottbus (5 – 7 November 2025).
GDYNIA: The Altar Boys by Piotr Domalewski won the Golden Lion as well as the Audience Award at the 50th Polish Film Festival (PFF) in Gdynia, which closed on 27 September 2025. The golden jubilee edition of Poland’s most important film festival confirmed Domalewski as one of the leading voices in contemporary Polish cinema.
WARSAW: On 24 April 2025, Warsaw’s Mazovia Institute of Culture turned into a vibrant meeting point for the literary and film industries. The 8th edition of Film the Book, an initiative dedicated to promoting the adaptation potential of Polish literature, brought together publishers, authors, producers and filmmakers for a full day of inspiring discussions, dynamic pitching sessions, and one-on-one meetings.
WARSAW: The Polish Film Awards aka The Eagles celebrated their annual gala on 10 March 2025 in Warsaw, with The Girl with the Needle emerging as the biggest winner of the night. The Danish/Polish/Swedish coproduction, directed by Magnus von Horn, swept an impressive nine awards, including Best Film, Best Director and Best Screenplay.
