Sarajevo Film Festival unveils Competition line-up

The Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF), running August 16-24, has announced the Feature, Short and Documentary Competition titles comprising 50 films.

Selectors and the SFF team viewed 750 films from the region, including 200 feature films, 150 documentaries and 400 short and animated films.

Across the three Competition sections are 15 world, seven international and 18 regional premieres.

The main competition will feature five world premieres including Carmen, the first feature by Romanian director Doru Nitescu.

It is a family drama co-written by Tudor Voican, known for Periferic and Medal of Honour. The Filmex Romania production stars Doru Ana from Principles of Life, Adrian Titieni from Child’s Pose and Maia Morgenstern.

Greek director Dimitris Bavellas’ debut feature Runaway Day is a black-and-white film exploring how young Greeks feel lost in modern day Athens, a city under financial occupation. It starts Maria Skoula from Wasted Youth.

Austrian Katharina Mückstein’s first film Talea is a story about reunion of a 14-year old girl with her mother who is released from prison. The La Banda production stars Nina Proll.

In Bosnian director Faruk Loncarevic’s second film, With Mum, a young artist is trying to live out her just discovered sexuality and accept her mother’s terminal illness.

The co-production between Bosnia’s SCCA/Pro.ba, Slovenia’s Vertigo/Emotionfilm, Restart and Vertigo, and Germany’s Detailfilm features Children of Sarajevo star Marija Pikic and living legend of Yugoslav film Mira Furlan.

Wolf, the first feature by Bogdan Mustata, winner of Golden Bear for short film for Good Day For A Swim and co-writer of Loverboy, a story about a troubled young man and his problems with mother, girlfriend and memories of deceased father, stars newcomer Mihai Vasilescu and Loverboy’s Ada Condeescu. It was co-produced by Romania’s Strada Film and Germany’s Neue Road Movies.

Regional premieres include three more first feature films: Bobo Jelcic’s Berlinale Forum title A Stranger (Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina), Daniel Hoesl’s Rotterdam Tiger winner Soldate Jeanne, and multi-awarded In Bloom by Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Groß. The latter is the first film from Georgia in competition at SFF, which has this year opened the programme to Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia.

Corneliu Poromboiu’s When Evening Falls On Bucharest Or Metabolism, which will world premiere in Locarno’s competition right before Sarajevo, rounds up the selection.

Competition Programme - Feature Film

WORLD PREMIERES

CARMEN                                                           
Romania, 2013, Colour, 88 min.
Director: Doru Nițescu
Screenplay: Tudor Voican, Doru Nițescu

RUNAWAY DAY
Greece, 2013, Black&White, 80 min.
Director and screenplay: Dimitris Bavellas

WITH MUM / SA MAMOM
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, 2013, Colour, 80 min.
Director and screenplay: Faruk Lončarević

WOLF / LUPU
Romania, 2013, Colour, 77 min.
Director and screenplay: Bogdan Mustață

REGIONAL PREMIERES

IN BLOOM / GRZELI NATELI DGEEBI
Georgia, 2013, Colour, 102 min.
Director: Nana Ekvtimishvili, Simon Groß
Screenplay: Nana Ekvtimishvili

SOLDATE JEANNETTE
Austria, 2013, Colour, 79 min.
Director and screenplay: Daniel Hoesl

A STRANGER / OBRANA I ZAŠTITA 
Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2013, Colour, 87 min.
Director and screenplay: Bobo Jelčić

TALEA
Austria, 2013, Colour, 75 min.
Director: Katharina Mückstein
Screenplay: Selina Gnos, Katharina Mückstein

WHEN EVENING FALLS ON BUCHAREST OR METABOLISM / CÂND SE LASĂ SEARA PESTE BUCUREŞTI SAU METABOLISM
Romania, 2013, Colour, 93 min.
Director and screenplay: Corneliu Porumboiu

Competition Programme – Short Film

WORLD PREMIERES

ALERIK / ALERIK
Macedonia, Germany, 2013, Colour, 17 min.
Director: Vuk Mitevski
Screenplay: Teona Strugar Mitevska

SOMEONE FOR DINNER / VALAKI VACSORÁRA
Hungary, 2013, Colour, 18 min.
Directors and screenplay: András György Dési, Gábor Móray

INTERNATIONAL PREMIERES

FAMILY PICTURES / FOTOGRAFII DE FAMILIE
Romania, 2012, Colour, 26 min.
Director and screenplay: Andrei Cohn

SON / SIN
Croatia, 2012, Colour, 14 min.
Director: Ivan Sikavica
Screenplay: Ivan Skorin

WE’RE FLYING / WIR FLIEGEN
Austria, 2013, Colour, 20 min.
Director and screenplay: Ulrike Kofler

REGIONAL PREMIERES

ANNA
Cyprus, 2012, Black & White, 22 min.
Director: Spiros Charalambous
Screenplay: Theo Panayides

ORPHEUS / ORFEJ
Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2013, Colour, 4 min.
Director and screenplay: Tina Šmalcelj

PRIDE / ЧЕСТ
Bulgaria, Germany, 2013, Colour, 30 min.
Director: Pavel G. Vesnakov
Screenplay: Pavel G. Vesnakov, Vanya Rainova

RABBITLAND
Serbia, 2013, Colour, 7 min.
Director: Ana Nedeljković, Nikola Majdak, Jr.
Screenplay: Ana Nedeljković

SHADOW OF A CLOUD / O UMBRĂ DE NOR
Romania, 2013, Colour, 27 min.
Director: Radu Jude
Screenplay: Florin Lazarescu, Radu Jude