BUCHAREST: The Romanian filmmaker Radu Gabrea plans to begin preproduction in January 2011 on his long docu-drama The Last Days of Ceauşescu based on the script written by Grigore Cartianu, editor-in-chief at Adevărul daily and the author of the book The End of the Ceauşescus/Sfârşitul Ceauşeştilor.

BUCHAREST: Dragoş Iuga is in production with his first feature The Little Spartan/Micul spartan, a fantasy story told in mockumentary style for grown-up audiences and also for children, the director told FNE.

Film director and visual artist Lech Majewski is in production with Psie Pole (Dog Field). The film will be shot in the Silesia region through the end of November 2010. The 2.8 million PLN received 1 million PLN from the Polish Film Institute (www.pisf.pl).

One of the most popular Polish comic book characters comes to life in Jeż Jerzy (Jeż Jerzy: The Movie), an animated film now in postproduction. The premiere is planned for 18 March 2011, with distribution handled by Monolith Films (www.monolith.pl).

Polish director Przemysław Angerman is in postproduction with Integration Trip, a light comedy about the life of corporate employees. Shooting took place 13 - 27 October 2010 in Rawa Mazowiecka. The comedy is produced by Filmcontract Ltd (www.filmcontract.pl) in co-operation with Telekomunikacja Polska (www.tp.pl). The budget is 4.4 million PLN (EEUR 1.1 million), with 1.5 million PLN funding from the Polish Film Institute (www.pisf.pl).

Polish director Marek Koterski is preparing for the second part of the shoot for his new comedy Women Are Somehow Different. The first part of the shoot took place mainly in Łódź in October 2010, and the production of the film will last until the beginning of 2011.

After a month of filming, the Polish history drama Daas will wrap shooting on 27 November. The film is expected to be completed in time for the Gdynia national film festival scheduled for May 2011.

Romanian director Adrian Popovici (Dracula The Impaler, Eva) is in post-production with a Romanian-Moldavian co-production, Looking For A Mother /Se caută o mamă. A tentative premiere date is planned for autumn 2011.

Director Davis Simanis and producer Liga Gaisa are in development with a Latvian full-length documentary, Escaping Riga, a "docu-fiction" about Riga-born film director Sergei Eisenstein who emigrated to Russia and philosopher Sir Isaiah Berlin who immigrated to England. The film, produced by Mistrus Media (www.mistrusmedia.lv) looks at their early childhood friendship and their final meeting after WWII.

BUCHAREST: The Italian documentary and short film directors Gianluca and Massimiliano De Serio are in Bucharest for the final stage of the casting the lead actress of their first feature, Seven Acts of Mercy/Sette opere di misericordia, an Italian/Romanian coproduction. The contemporary drama of redemption is set against the social backdrop of the immigrant situation in Italy.

Director/screenwriter Radu Jude is currently in post-production with a low-budget 60-minute film A Film for Friends/Film pentru prieteni which he produced and self-financed. Jude, whose first feature The Happiest Girl In The World/Cea mai fericită fată din lume was awarded with C.I.C.A.E. Award at the Berlinale 2009, told FNE that the film focuses on a man who, prior to take his life, tapes a video testament to his unfaithful friends.

The Slovak/Czech documentary Romanies Go To Elections from one of the new Slovak documentary directing stars, Jaro Vojtek (Slovak Oscar candidate The Border), is currently in production with 50% of the filming completed and post-production set to begin in January 2011. The film is scheduled for a November 2011 premiere.

Director Masha Novikova has completed filming her documentary triptych under the working title Sweet Smoke (OF FATHERLAND/ OF HOMELAND) in Lithuania. The release of the film is planned for 2011.

Slovak production company Arina (www.arinafilm.sk) is in development with director Juraj Nvota (Muzika) on We Will Meet in our Dreams. The 1.5 million euro story of thwarted love was presented at the Connecting Cottbus (www.connecting-cottbus.de) pitching forum by producer Silvia Panakova and scriptwriter Daniel Pastircak.

From Love With Best Intentions, the second feature by Adrian Sitaru, has concluded filming after one month and one day of production, producer Ada Solomon told FNE. Postproduction will take place in Romania at Chainsaw Europe (www.chainsaweurope.com) and in Hungary.

BUCHAREST: Italian actor, director and producer Michele Placido made his first trip to Romania for the feature film Itaker, which he is co-writing together with Toni Trupia. The script is in early development. Trupia will direct the film set in the 1960's which follows the story of a boy who leaves Northern Italy in order to find his father in Germany.