Eight new projects from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine will be presented during the CineLink Industry Days on Sunday August 18.
Ji.hlava IDFF will also announce the next cohort of Emerging Producers 2025, and further reminds the doc industry of the August 15 deadline for European and East & Southeast Asian projects applying to Ji.hlava New Visions Forum & Market, as well as for filmmakers from the Caucasus who can have their travel and accommodation covered at Ji.hlava (see below).
DOCU TALENTS FROM THE EAST 2024
- After the Storm by Francesco Rufini. The film explores the intertwined lives and dreams of Arūnas and Paulius, two Lithuanian fishermen and amber searchers from different generations, united by their quest amidst the cold Baltic waters. Producer: Valdemar Albert Lovcik, Teresa Rožanovska. Production Company: Ketvirta Versija. Country: Lithuania
- Amoosed by Hana Nováková. A film director possessed by an ancient moose totem embarks on a seven-year journey, discovering others like her and uncovering a profound connection to the Mi’kmaq First Nation and her ancestors. Producer: Kateřina Traburová. CO-PRODUCER: Peter Kerekes. Production Company: LaDamplinque. Country: Czech Republic
- Baltic Uxo by Agne Dovydaityte, Alexander Belinski. The film explores the dangerous legacy of 1.6 million tons of WWII munitions dumped in the Baltic Sea, revealing the ongoing impact on marine life, scientists, and coastal communities. Producer: Dagne Vildziunaite. CO-PRODUCERS: Karsten Krause, Antra Gaile. Production Company: Just a Moment. Countries: Lithuania, Germany, Latvia
- Give Love Create by Márton Vizkelety. Scientist Gyula Dékány, who views life as a chemical information system, makes groundbreaking discoveries while living 16,000 km from his family. Producer: Julianna Ugrin. Production Company: Éclipse Film. CO-FOUNDER: Sundance Institute – The Sandbox Fund, National Film Institute of Hungary, Creative Europe Media, Hungarian Film Incentive. Country: Hungary
- Still Nia by Paula Onet. After emerging from 15 years of self-induced amnesia, Stefania uses dance and imagination to reconnect with her past, others, and especially her mother. Producers: Ada Solomon, Diana Caravia. Co-Producer: Cedric Bonin. Production Company: microfilm. Countries: France, Romania
- The Big Chief by Tomasz Wolski. Leopold Trepper, a WWII spy mastermind, faces a Kafkaesque struggle in 1970s Poland, battling communist persecution, denied a passport, and enduring a hunger strike before finally finding freedom in Israel. Producer: Anna Gawlita. Co-producer: Maria Choustova. Production Company: Kijora Film sp. z o.o. Co- production Companies: INA (France), ATOMS & VOID (Netherlands), TVP SA, IPN, MIK, KBF. Country: Poland
- The Running Land by Olena Siyatovska. Three chapters follow Ukrainian teenagers navigating war’s devastation, from forming a rock band in Lithuania to longing for lost homes, preparing for prom, and enduring life near the front line. Producer: Viktor Shevchenko. Co-producer: Ringaile Lescinskiene. Production Company: Contemporary Ukrainian Cinema. Countries: Lithuania, Ukraine
- Tskaltubo by Andrea Kalinová. As Tskaltubo transforms from a famed Soviet spa to a refugee camp and back to a resort, the film follows the last residents who create a new home and family despite hardships. Producers: Monika Lošťáková, Simona Hrušovská. Production Company: Super Film. Country: Slovakia
JI.HLAVA NEW VISIONS: EUROPE AND ASIA
Filmmakers from both Europe and East & Southeast Asia are invited to submit their projects to the Ji.hlava New Visions Forum & Market 2024. Projects presented at the Forum in the past three years have later premiered at festivals including HotDocs, Rotterdam, Berlinale, Cannes, and Locarno. “We welcome diverse audiovisual formats such as fiction with documentary aspects, hybrid, experimental, short films, docu and web series, cinema expanded projects, games with documentary aspects, and VR+AR+Live documentaries,” the festival notes. The deadline for applications is August 15.
ALLOWANCES FOR FILMMAKERS FROM CAUCASUS
Together with the IEFTA (International Emerging Film Talent Association), Ji.hlava IDFF invites documentary filmmakers from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia to participate in the Industry program of the upcoming Ji.hlava IDFF. Three selected participants will receive industry accreditations with access to all festival’s film screenings as well as the entire industry program and will be included in the festival’s Matchmaking Accelerator. Travel and accommodation will be covered. Apply before August 15.
REGISTRATIONS TO FESTIVAL IDENTITY ARE OPEN
The 15th edition of Festival Identity – a networking platform for film festivals at the Ji.hlava IDFF – will search for sustainable ways to collaborate effectively among film festivals in the environment which often accentuates competitiveness. The Festival Identity workshop will take place on October 29–30 and the 300 EUR participation fee includes industry accreditation with masterclasses, presentations, discussions, Ji.hlava New Visions Forum & Market, Matchmaking Accelerator, full access to the festival screenings plus three nights of accommodation covered by the festival. Click here to register.
