Galery

1

The international film festival in Thessaloniki announces two competitions for scriptwriters and for film producers. The first is related to the 8^th Balkan Fund which already awaits the applications of the candidates. The Balkan Fund finances film scripts of Balkan productions and more specifically from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, FYROM, Greece, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey. The purpose of the fund is to support filmmakers from the region in their efforts to develop their screenplays as professionally as possible.

Each year an international jury awards the most promising film projects with up to 10 00 euro each. Previous jury members include Leny Crooks of the New Cinema Fund, Peter Carlton from Film4, Roman Paul from Razor Film Production, Simon Perry from Irish Film Board and the writers and directors Milcho Manchevski, Razvan Radulscu and Richard Kwietniowski.

Already many productions have been developed and completed subsidized by the Balkan Fund and among them are: “Snow” by Aida Begic, Californa Dreamin’ (endless) written and directed by Cristian Nemescu, Here & There by Darko Lungulov. The 8^th Balkan Fund will take place during the 51^st Thessaloniki Film Festival on November 19 – 28, 2010. The deadline for submission of the projects is June 1^st, 2010 and information can be downloaded from the website of the festival: http://www.filmfestival.gr/default.aspx?page=644, or if you send an e-mail to Angeliki Vergou at balkanfund@filmfestival.gr.

The second contest is again related to the cinema and to the Thessaloniki Film Festival, however it is for films which have participated in the “Crossroads” forum which this year will take place for the sixth time. The goal of “Crossroads” is to support the producers of fiction films, which are related to the Mediterranean or the Balkan regions. The producers will have the chance to meet a new network of sponsors, co producers and leading industry specialists. The program provides the opportunity for formal and informal meetings between distributors, sales agents, consultants and radio – television producers.

The Bulgarian participation in “Crossroads” is through the movie “Mission London” by Dimitar Mitovski based on the Alek Popov’s novel. Another participant in “Crossroads” is the film “The last of the storytellers” by Chadi Zeneddine, which will be the first Disney movie in Arabian. The film “Ajami” by Scandar Copti, which had its premiere in Cannes and then went on to win the Golden Alexander award in the Thessaloniki festival and at the end was nominated for Academy Award for Best foreign movie.

Everyone who wishes to take part in “Crossroads” has to send an application by August 31^st, 2010 and could receive more information at the website of the Thessaloniki Film Festival: http://www.filmfestival.gr.