The Haapsalu Horror and Fantasy Film Festival (HOFF, www.hoff.ee), the exclusive genre film festival in the Baltics has become the latest member of the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation (EFFFF). Following the announcement by the Federation Board, HOFF will assume the duties as Adherent Member of the Federation as of next edition in April 2013.
The European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation (EFFFF) is a network of more than 20 film festivals in 16 countries dedicated to promote the originality and creativity of the European fantasy film industry and annually gathers the audience of over 600 000 spectators. HOFF, now in its 8th edition, held in the city of Haapsalu, Estonia, once a renown summer retreat of the Russian Czars, now a picturesque town on the western coast of the Baltic sea, will be standing in line with established genre events such as Sitges, Brussels and Neuchatel. The regional members of the Federation include respected events in Lund (Sweden) and Espoo (Finland). The goal of the EFFFF is to introduce and nourish European fantasy, sci-fi and horror cinema in the world dominated by US genre films. For doing so, all members of the Federation present an international competition program, the Méliès d'Argent. The nominees run for the competition for the most remarkable European Fantastic and Short Film, the Méliès d'Or - Best European Fantastic Film, awarded at the annual gala presently held in Sitges.
"Joining the Méliès' federation could be compared to the Michelin star rating of the haute cuisine testifying to the high level of organization and programming of HOFF that we have been dedicated for years. Méliès' membership is not exclusively tied to the budget nor the audience numbers, as besides cutting edge programming and execution, the festival has to serve as a gateway to the region as well as contribute to the federation by industry and territorial expertise - and I'm happy that HOFF fills this role perfectly", comments the founding Festival Director Sten Saluveer
"The rapid increase in international publicity and trust from the industry that goes along with Méliès helps to ensure that Haapsalu would host greater genre stars and films, an attractive competition and the prize laden audience award. We are determined that the fans of HOFF and filmmakers will be delighted by a new chance for the films to run for the award of best European fantastic film", comments the just inaugurated Fest head Maria Reinup.
"We are very happy to include Haapsalu Intl. Horror and Fantasy Film Festival as an adherent member of the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation. They will be a great addition to our team of festivals and will play an important part in promoting European genre films in the Baltic region", said Christian Hallman, coordinator of the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation.
The 2012 edition of HOFF presented 19 features with the audience record of over 2800 visitors. The highlights of the program, IRON SKY (Finland, 2012) and SLEEP TIGHT (Spain, 2011) are contenders to the Méliès d'Or Award for the Best European Fantastic Feature Film 2012.
Note to editors:
The Haapsalu Horror & Fantasy Film Festival (HÕFF, www.hoff.ee) is an international genre film festival organized by Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (NGO Pimedate Ööde Filmifestival or PÖFF, www.poff.ee ) - one of the largest and most known art house film festivals and organizations in North-Eastern European region, the city of Haapsalu and Haapsalu Culture Center.
Press inquiries and clarifications:
Maria Reinup
Festival Director
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Helmut Jänes
Press and Publicity
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