June 5, 2008
EFP with "Variety Critics' Choice: Europe Now!"
at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (July 4-12, 2008)
Unconventional, surprising, provocative:
Young European directors present their films
Unconventional young European cinema: that's what can be expected in the Variety Critics' Choice: Europe Now! at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (July 4-12, 2008) in Karlovy Vary (Czech Republic). Each year, ten selected films of varying shades surprise, provoke, entertain and fill the cinemas of this extremely renowned and popular international festival. Now firmly established in the festival programme, the "Europe Now!" sidebar is presented in close cooperation with the international trade magazine Variety, the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and European Film Promotion (EFP). Financial support is provided by the MEDIA Programme of the EU and the ten participating EFP members. In addition, this year's programme is generously sponsored by Cinemax - a movie channel from the family of HBO Czech Republic.
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is ranked by FIAPF (Fédération Internationale des Associations de Producteurs de Films) among the most prestigious world film festivals and is considered to be the most influential film event in Central Europe. As a melting pot and forum for young filmmakers from all over Europe it brings filmmakers, the international film industry and press from East and West together. And as Steven Gaydos, the programme's founder of "Europe Now!" and Executive Editor of Variety, stresses, this year it once again reflects the great creative power of European directors: "As demonstrated by the abundance of awards for European filmmakers in Cannes - many of them under 40 - Euro cinema is enjoying a period of creative resurgence and perhaps the best place in the world today to sample the latest filmmaking talents is Karlovy Vary Festival and Variety's "Europe Now" film showcase."
On the film selection for "Europe Now!", Derek Elley, Variety Senior International Film Critic and the programme's coordinator, adds: "The fact that seven out of our 10 movies are first features shows there's no lack of exciting young talent in Euro cinema nowadays, and I'm especially pleased that several of them feature a Middle East component, showing the real diversity of European movie-making."
Press Release
E u r o p e a n F i l m P r o m o t i o n e . V. Friedensallee 14 -1622765 HamburgGermany Tel. + 49.40.390 62 52
Fax +49.40.390 62 49E-Mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. www.efp-online.com
The project's eleventh year also sees it continuing to aim at showing the energy and potential of young European directors and giving a boost to the programme's films in their international marketing. The directors and two actors will present their films in person and will also be introduced to the film industry and the trade press at a press lunch and a big party with 500 guests. The response to the selected films is enormous; the presentation in the festival sidebar and the Variety magazine has a strong marketing effect for the film and the director.
Claudia Landsberger, EFP president and managing director of Holland Film and represented at "Europe Now!" this year with Dunya & Desie by Dana Nechushtan: „We are very happy with this sidebar and the cooperation partners. Variety's experienced film critics have an excellent overview of the whole range of European productions and choose those films for the programme which seem the most remarkable to them. The presentation in "Europe Now!" is a distinction for the films and provides them with additional attention."
Film selection for "Variety Critics' Choice: Europe Now!" 2008 in Karlovy Vary
Title Director Country Film
Frei nach Plan (According to Plan) by Franziska Meletzky Germany 2nd feature
Nuits d'Arabie (Arabian Nights) by Paul Kieffer Luxembourg/ 1st feature
Belgium/ Austria
Ciao bella by Mani Maserrat-Agah Sweden 1st feature
Lascia perdere, Johnny! by Fabrizio Bentivoglio Italy 1st feature
(Don't Waste Your Time, Johnny!)
Dunya & Desie by Dana Nechushtan The Netherlands/ 3rd feature
Belgium
La Habitacion de Fermat by Luis Piedrahita and Spain 1st feature
(Fermat's Room) Rodrigo Sopeña
Fighter by Natasha Arthy Denmark 3rd feature
Polčas rozpadu (Half-Life) by Vlado Fischer Slovakia 1st feature
I Epistrofi (The Homecoming) by Vassilis Douvlis Greece 1st feature
Le Tueur (The Killer) by Cédric Anger France 1st feature
The 10 films will be presented by the respective directors (except for Fighter which is presented by the actress Semra Turan and Le Tueur which is presented by the actor Grégoire Colin). They make up the delegation accompanying the "Europe Now!" section. Further information on the selected films and on EFP at www.efp-online.com.
Participating EFP member organisations: German Films, Film Fund Luxembourg, Swedish Film Institute, Filmitalia, Holland Film, ICAA/Spain, Danish Film Institute, Slovak Film Institute, Greek Film Centre, Unifrance.
Interviews with the directors have been prepared in cooperation with Cineuropa and will be available shortly on www.cineuropa.org.
Press contact
Jo Mühlberger, project manager
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
phone: +49 40- 390 6252
Mareen Gerisch
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
phone: +49 40- 390 6252
Radovan Holub
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
phone: +420 376- 397 234
EFP is supported by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union and by its member organisations. In addition, promotion and PR activities are backed by the Centre National de la Cinématographie (CNC) as well as for "Variety Critics Choice: Europe Now!" by Variety and Cinemax/HBO Czech Republic. The Hamburg-based office is financially supported by the German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media and the Cultural Department of the City of Hamburg.
