FRED Film Radio - English Channel

Ena Rahelić – Industry Manager – Sarajevo Film Festival

FRED’s Matt Micucci interview Ena Rahelic, industry manager of the 21st Sarajevo Film Festival. Ena takes time off her busy schedule in the midst of an exciting industry programme to talk about many of the key initiatives of the Sarajevo Film Festival.

Among them, Avant Premiere, Sarajevo’s platform for the distribution and exhibition sector, the industry terrace, a fast-growing market place and a space dedicated for networking during the festival and a special focus on commission and retail.

During its more than 10 years in existence, Sarajevo Film Festival’s industry section has become the major hub for regional film professionals and played a crucial role in the development of regional co-production.  It has also become a key destination for professionals from across Europe who search for talent and co-production possibilities, or simply wish to get in-depth knowledge on the development of this dynamic region.

With the sections CineLink, Regional Forum, Sarajevo Talent Campus, Sarajevo City of Film, Docu Rough Cut Boutique and Minimarket, Sarajevo Film Festival’s industry offer includes activities for people from all spheres of the business, and for filmmakers in all stages of their career.

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Amra Baksic Camo – Head of CineLink

FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews Amra Baksic Camo, head of CineLink from the 21st edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival.

We ask her about Sarajevo’s co-production market, about its history and how it has evolved through the years. She also tells us a little bit about the selection process and the ways in which the program helps the directors and producers develop their films and with the way in which the festival is organised, alongside the industry program at the Sarajevo Film Festival, everyone is a winner – not just the winning project!

CINELINK: The CineLink Co-Production Market presents the most promising regional feature projects in a development and financing stage. The selection has traditionally been focused on Southeast Europe but is since a few years also open for projects from the Caucasus region. In addition, three projects will be presented in partnership with the Doha Film Institute, IMCINE and The Arab Fund for Arts & Culture.

CineLink Work in Progress continuously showcases future success stories on the festival circuit. We have seven new exciting titles in post production that will be shown to specially invited international decision-makers. This section is also open to projects from the North African and Middle Eastern countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

CineLink offers awards funds totalling more than 160.000 Euros in cash and services and boosts a impressive track record with previous projects going on to major international recognition – If I Want to Whistle I Whistle by Florin Serban (Jury Grand Prix Silver Bear and Alfred Bauer Prize, Berlinale 2010), Harmony Lessons by Emir Baigazin (Silver Bear, Berlinale 2013), Mold by Ali Aydın (Lion of the Future, Venice 2012), White Shadow by Noaz Deshe (Lion of the Future, Venice 2013), The Lamb by Kutluğ Ataman (CICAE Art Cinema Award, Berlin Panorama 2014), A Blast by Syllas Tzoumerkas and Cure by Andrea Štaka (both competing at Locarno 2014) just to name a few.

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Gabriele Brunnenmeyer, Selina Ukwuoma –  Project consultants and pitching trainers – Pack&Pitch

FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews Gabriele Brunnenmeyer and Selina Ukwuoma, experts, project consultants and pitching trainers of Pack & Pitch from the Talents Sarajevo programme of the 21st Sarajevo Film Festival.

It is under their guidance that the young directors and talents who have been selected to be part of this year’s project lineup will be preparing a written and spoken presentation of their projects to present in front of industry professional.

They tell us about what it is that they do, in terms of selection, teaching and training, and even give us a brief history of Pack&Pitch that has become somewhat of a reference point for other projects of this kind. On top of this, they share with us their opinions on the ideas and projects they have been presented with, and celebrate the wide variety of works, genres, ideas and formats that highlight the creativity of the region among the new generation of filmmakers.

PACK&PITCH: Producers and directors willing to take part in Talents Sarajevo are, since 2010, encouraged to submit their current projects and apply for Pack&Pitch.

Within the framework of this project segment, selected participants get the opportunity to learn how to analyze and prepare their projects for written and verbal presentations.

Selected talents will be mentored by two project consultants/pitching trainers who will work with them on how to analyze their current projects, how to pitch them and to whom and thoroughly prepare them for written and oral presentation that will take place at the end of the program before the jury and the audience of colleagues and industry professionals.

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Olivia Hetreed – Script Consultant – Talents Sarajevo.

FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews the celebrated screenwriter Olivia Hetreed, who is also one of the experts and script consultant of the screenwriters in this year’s edition of the Talents Sarajevo programme at the 21st Sarajevo Film Festival.

She talks about the work she does with the screenwriters, and how she helps them develop their ideas for screenplays. Olivia also gives us a brief overview of a masterclass she gave to the talents about screenwriting, and in particular about how to tell a story using images rather than words.

We also find the time to ask her about her latest film, which is currently in production, called ALTAMIRA.

TALENTS SARAJEVO: Sarajevo Film Festival’s networking and training platform for emerging film professionals from Southeast Europe and Southern Caucasus was founded in 2007 in collaboration with Berlin International Film Festival and Berlinale Talents.

Over the past eight years, Talents Sarajevo has become the regional hub for meeting and training of aspiring film professionals. Talents Sarajevo 2015 will welcome 70 up-and-coming actors, directors, DoPs, film critics, producers and screenwriters from Southeast Europe (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldavia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey) and Southern Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) for a week of master classes, panel discussions, networking and training opportunities.

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Steve Matthews – Script Consultant – Talents Sarajevo.

FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews the executive producer of drama development at HBO Europe STEVE MATTHEWS, one of the experts and script consultants of the screenwriters of this year’s edition of Talents Sarajevo from the 21st Sarajevo Film Festival.

We ask him to give us an overview of his work with the talents throughout the programme, and what he thought about the different concepts and ideas presented by the screenwriters. STEVE brings along with him a prominent and successful background in television, so we take the opportunity to discuss with him the differences between writing for television and writing for feature films.

On top of this, we also ask him about the power of European production in the midst of what is regarded as the golden age of television.

TALENTS SARAJEVO: Sarajevo Film Festival’s networking and training platform for emerging film professionals from Southeast Europe and Southern Caucasus was founded in 2007 in collaboration with Berlin International Film Festival and Berlinale Talents. Over the past eight years, Talents Sarajevo has become the regional hub for meeting and training of aspiring film professionals.

Talents Sarajevo 2015 will welcome 70 up-and-coming actors, directors, DoPs, film critics, producers and screenwriters from Southeast Europe (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldavia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey) and Southern Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) for a week of master classes, panel discussions, networking and training opportunities.

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Jan Forsstrom – Script Consultant – Sarajevo Talents.

FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews Finnish screenwriter and director JAN FORSSTROM, who is here at the 21st Sarajevo Film Festival as one of the experts and script consultants for the screenwriters taking part in this year’s edition of the Talents Saerajevo.

We ask him about the work process and also about, the one on one meetings but also what he was able to observe in terms of creativity through the ideas and concepts that were presented by the talents themselves.

JAN also tells us a little bit about a discussion and analysis of DAVID LYNCH’s film LOST HIGHWAY, and we ask him to give us a brief overview of that.

But we also take the opportunity to ask him about his own work, especially his experiences in making the transition from scriptwriting to also directing his own feature film scripts, a transition which he recently made with his recent outing THE PRINCESS OF EGYPT.

TALENTS SARAJEVO: Sarajevo Film Festival’s networking and training platform for emerging film professionals from Southeast Europe and Southern Caucasus was founded in 2007 in collaboration with Berlin International Film Festival and Berlinale Talents.

Over the past eight years, Talents Sarajevo has become the regional hub for meeting and training of aspiring film professionals. Talents Sarajevo 2015 will welcome 70 up-and-coming actors, directors, DoPs, film critics, producers and screenwriters from Southeast Europe (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Moldavia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey) and Southern Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) for a week of master classes, panel discussions, networking and training opportunities.

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Josh Mond – filmmaker – James White

Director Josh Mond talks about his movie “James White”, covering topics such as the casting of the main protagonist, the impact New York City has on the movie dynamics, the theme and estethics of his first feature film

JAMES WHITE: James White is a troubled twenty something trying to stay afloat in a frenzied New York City. As he retreats further into a hedonistic lifestyle, his mother’s battle with a serious illness faces a series of setbacks that force him to assume more responsibility.

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Sebastian Buttny – programme coordinator / director – Films For Kids.Pro / Heavy Mental

FRED’s Matt Micucci meets filmmaker Sebastian Buttny, who is a programme coordinator of the Films for Kids.Pro, at the 15th T-Mobile New Horizons International Film Festival.

We talk with Sebastian about the aims and goals of this project, which seeks to mentor groups of filmmakers with ideas for films for a school project, help them develop a script and then prepare them for the final pitch that takes place during the course of the festival. He gives us a brief overview of the project, his impressions based on the quality standards of the original idea and also tells us about what he thinks is the current state of this particular type of films aimed at a younger audience, with a focus on his home country of Poland.

But on top of talking about Films For Kids.Pro, we also take the opportunity to talk with him about his own film HEAVY MENTAL, which premiered in 2013, and is screened here at the festival. This was his first feature. He talks to us about it and about how a lot of the inspiration for the story came from his own life, and how he sought to make a genuine representation of people from his own generation by allowing it to be defined by a sense of humour.

FILMS FOR KIDS.Pro is the first program in Europe dedicated solely to the development of films for young audiences. Our goal is to support the production of ambitious movies for children aged 5-12 years, based on the highest artistic and production standards of European, and in particular Norwegian, cinema. We will work on ideas brought by participants and develop them from a short synopsis through first draft to a second draft of the screenplay (approximately 90-pages long). In parallel we will work with their respective producers on a strategy for financing, promoting and distributing those movies. All elements of the program are focused specifically on cinema for children. More information: www.filmsforkidspro.eu Supported by a grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-financed by the Polish funds. Participation in the whole program is free of charge (tutoring, lectures, transportation, accommodation and board, and also participation in f ilm festival screenings).

HEAVY MENTAL: A story about thirty-somethings under the pressure of modern times. Mariusz, undergoing fruitless psychotherapy for a year, is suffering from a creative block-he forgets his lines while performing on stage in front of an audience. Piotr, a caretaker at a nursing home, has a much bigger problem. Abandoned by their families, his patients have been leaving him their homes. When he inherits an apartment from Mariusz’s grandfather, he decides to make a deal with the actor: he will give him the apartment if Mariusz helps him pick up a particular girl. In praising mediocrity, Sebastian Buttny‘s bro comedy is a bittersweet tribute to all those who have run out of gas in their pursuit of success. Modeled on independent American cinema, the director uses some unusual devices to discuss the struggle with ordinariness, such as a wise fairy hiding in the ventilation system, a Japanese monodrama, and a televised archery course.

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Endre Lund Eriksen – screenplay – The Monsters of Dunderly (FILMS FOR KIDS.Pro)

FRED’s Matt Micucci talks with screenwriter Endre Lund Eriksen, who along with producer Merete Korsberg Dalsbo worked on the development of The Monsters of Dunderly at the Films For Kids.Pro project.

We interview him at the 15th T-Mobile New Horizons International Film Festival, the day before the final pitch. He tells us about his project, The Monsters of Dunderly, which he worked on adapting from his own novel, therefore we ask him about the challenges of adaptation.

We also ask him to give us an overall overview of the project and the situation regarding films for a young audience in Norway, a country that has set the example of how films for a young audience can be quite successful at the box office.

“FILMS FOR KIDS.Pro is the first program in Europe dedicated solely to the development of films for young audiences.

Our goal is to support the production of ambitious movies for children aged 5-12 years, based on the highest artistic and production standards of European, and in particular Norwegian, cinema. We will work on ideas brought by participants and develop them from a short synopsis through first draft to a second draft of the screenplay (approximately 90-pages long).

In parallel we will work with their respective producers on a strategy for financing, promoting and distributing those movies. All elements of the program are focused specifically on cinema for children. More information: www.filmsforkidspro.eu Supported by a grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-financed by the Polish funds. Participation in the whole program is free of charge (tutoring, lectures, transportation, accommodation and board, and also participation in film festival screenings).”

THE MONSTERS OF DUNDERLY: The protagonist of the story, Bulder, is a wild and funny monster living in Dunderly, a secret hideout far up in the mountains where a lot different monsters live together, safe from human beings. Their only connection with the outside world is an elevator, which is used to receive supplies and letters from other monsters. One day a new monster called Mons Monster arrives at Dunderly. This situation brings about changes in the monster village. The Monster of Dunderly is an adaptation of a very successful children’s novel created by Endre Lund Eriksen (author) and Endre Skandfer (illustrator)”

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Philip LaZebnik – tutor – FILMS FOR KIDS.Pro

FRED’s Matt Micucci interviews Philip LaZebnik, one of the tutors of FILMS FOR KIDS.Pro, a program dedicated solely to the development of films dedicated to a young audiences, from the T-Mobile New Horizons International Film Festival.

He talks to us about how he worked on this role, and gives us an overview of his tasks and activities. Being an experienced writer, who has worked extensively with Disney and DreamWorks, we also take this opportunity to discuss with him the current state of cinema for a young audiences, the problems with financiers backing such projects, the unfounded prejudices of filmmaking who view films for a young audiences as second rate, and he even pinpoints a reoccurring flaw that often marks such films.

Philip also talks about the writing process and the importance of the story, the true secret weapon that a film has to compete in a market largely dominated in Europe by American cinema and studio giants.

“FILMS FOR KIDS.Pro is the first program in Europe dedicated solely to the development of films for young audiences. Our goal is to support the production of ambitious movies for children aged 5-12 years, based on the highest artistic and production standards of European, and in particular Norwegian, cinema. We will work on ideas brought by participants and develop them from a short synopsis through first draft to a second draft of the screenplay (approximately 90-pages long). In parallel we will work with their respective producers on a strategy for financing, promoting and distributing those movies. All elements of the program are focused specifically on cinema for children. More information: www.filmsforkidspro.eu Supported by a grant from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through the EEA Grants and co-financed by the Polish funds. Participation in the whole program is free of charge (tutoring, lectures, transportation, accommodation and board, and also participation in film festival screenings).”

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