Film Festival Cottbus
festival venues
The Film Festival Cottbus - Festival of East European Cinema is a year since 1991 in Cottbus take-find film festival , which focuses on Eastern European films lies.
First, around 130 feature and short films from over 30 countries were shown in the municipal venues Stadthalle Cottbus (festival center), Weltspiegel Cottbus , Kammerbühne, Staatstheater Cottbus as well as the hall and top cinema in the youth culture center Glad-House . The festival of Eastern European film will be officially opened in the Great House of the State Theater. In the 2010s, the organizers expanded the repertoire to meanwhile almost 400 films and additional venues were added, including a cinema in Zielona Góra in Poland .
history
The FilmFestival Cottbus - Festival of Eastern European Films has been held in November each year since 1991 and provides a comprehensive overview of feature film productions in all of Central and Eastern Europe . It was founded in the post-reunification period by film enthusiasts and members of the Cottbus and Berlin film club movements. These people feared that with German reunification, Eastern European films would disappear from German screens, many were also affected because they did not know how filmmaking would continue in their (new) own country. Initially supported by the city of Cottbus, the festival is organized by the FilmFestival Cottbus GmbH , which was founded in 2001 . The managing directors of this company are Doreen Goethe, Jörg Ackermann, Andreas Stein (as of 2019). Founded by Lutz Hattenbach, Roland Rust took over the position of artistic director in 1996 and held this position (since 2001 with the title of festival director) until 2014. Since then, Bernd Buder has been program director of the FilmFestival Cottbus.
In 2007, the industry journal Variety (USA) listed the FilmFestival Cottbus as a “must-attend global event” and one of 50 “unmissable film festivals” worldwide. In 2008, the Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier certified that the festival was the most important film festival in Germany alongside the Berlinale .
In 2016, nine venues were already included in the festival; The Cottbus prison memorial , the planetarium and the city library in neighboring Zielona Góra were added to the above .
The festival's honorary president is the Hungarian director and Oscar winner István Szabó ; the patron is the Prime Minister of Brandenburg, Dietmar Woidke .
Content orientation
overview
The FilmFestival Cottbus is not only characterized by its comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the film industry in Eastern Europe, but also by its support for young talent. From the Balkans to the Baltic States , from Central Europe to Central Asia - the FilmFestival Cottbus defines Eastern Europe geopolitically and includes the post-socialist states of Eastern Europe including all the successor states of the former USSR and Yugoslavia . At the center of the festivals are the three competitions for the best feature film , the best short film and the U18 youth film competition (since 2010).
In addition, feature films and short films were made in Cottbus in the sections Spectrum , Specials, Heimat | Domovna | Domizna, hits and kids in the cinema for performance. For several years now, the festival has also presented current productions from the largest film countries in Eastern Europe - Russia and Poland - in the sections Russkiy Den and Polskie Horyzonty .
The FilmFestival Cottbus also sets annual thematic priorities .
The film program is complemented by a varied supporting program. Readings, exhibitions and concerts as well as workshops, seminars, panels and film talks make the festival a forum for encounters and dialogue. The east-west co-production market connecting cottbus also plays an important role, bringing filmmakers, producers and potential financiers together and thus paving the way for promising new feature film projects.
Feature film competition
Every year ten to twelve feature films compete in this competition for the prizes and the glass prize sculpture Lubina . The competition entries may not be older than one year (produced in the current year or in the previous year). In addition, the regulations of the festival state that they must be German premieres and a maximum of the fifth work by a director.
Short film competition
This competition offers its own platform for the discovery and promotion of young film talent. Around ten to 15 contributions (with a maximum duration of 30 minutes) are presented in the traditional Long Night of Short Films .
U18 Youth Film Competition
Cinema for the next generation and as a cross-border experience: The tri-national competition, which has been running since 2016, offers the unique opportunity to see current youth films (in addition to long films [longer than 45 minutes] and medium-length works) from Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. A jury made up of students from the two twin cities Cottbus and Zielona Góra as well as the Teplice Gymnazium will decide on the main prize winner.
Special offers
The very special film: previews, tributes and tributes to prominent jurors find their audience here. You can also discover productions in this section that come to Cottbus through cooperation with national and international festivals.
Spectrum
This section invites you to make discoveries away from the mainstream with current works by newcomers or established directors as well as international co-productions - an outlook on the trends of tomorrow.
Home | Domovna | Domizna
The regional program window of the festival deals with films from and about the region. In the content selection, the festival focuses just on contributions by and about in the Lausitz -based sorbent (Contact) as on films by young filmmakers and Lausitzer movies that were filmed on the Lausitz and in the Lausitz.
Hits
Productions that are commercially successful in their countries of origin, but hardly known abroad, are shown here. The section is a crowd puller - popular with spectators and trade visitors alike.
Russkiy Den
The Russian Day is dedicated to the most productive scene of Eastern Europe: experience compact at a festival day, the highlights of the year from Russia, from genre films to arthouse, from blockbusters to experiment.
Polskie Horyzonty
News from the neighbors - cinematic discoveries from Poland's lively film scene - are presented in partnership with Nowe Horyzonty from Wroclaw , the largest and most important film festival in the country.
Kids in the cinema
Every day of the festival has a special film offer for the youngest visitors. From classic children's films to current productions, the program introduces children to the medium of film. Following the screening, there will be an invitation to a media-educational discussion with filmmakers and guests.
Focus (2002-2017)
The overall profile of the respective festival year was shaped by the focus that presented selected film regions in a broader context every year. After the FilmFestival Cottbus initially dealt with individual film countries and later with the newcomers to the EU Poland (2002), the Czech Republic (2004), Hungary (2005) as well as Romania and Bulgaria (2006) before they joined, cultural areas have been in place since 2007 Center of interest (2007: Adria , 2008: Baltic states and 2009: Black Sea region ). For the anniversary edition, the festival left “its” territory for the first time in 2010 and, under the focus title globalEAST, went in search of traces of the influences of Eastern Europe in global filmmaking. The success of this focus led to the establishment of globalEAST as an independent program section of the festival (2010–2015).
In the following years, the FilmFestival Cottbus dealt again with cross-border cultural areas and topics in Eastern Europe in the film series Focus under the motto Eastern Europe of Diversity . In 2011, starting with Eastern Europe of the Regions - in anticipation of the European Football Championship in 2012, the focus was primarily on Poland and Ukraine - was addressed by the focus in 2012 with "Eastern religions" and in 2013 under the title Eastern cultures with Issues of the Sinti and Roma . The main focus in 2014 was queerEAST and filmed the topic of homosexuality in Eastern Europe. 2015 stood Netherlands in Focus - a reason for the constant important commitment offered Dutch film producer as a partner for Eastern European film projects and content cross-references between the Netherlands and Eastern Europe associated with it. In 2016, the focus was on Cuba . In 2017 the film series with Vietnam came to an end.
GlobalEast (2010-2015)
The film series globalEAST , launched for the 20th anniversary of the festival in 2010, traced the diverse influences and interactions of Eastern Europe in contemporary cinema around the world. The transcontinental search for traces led from " Brazil to Bollywood " in 2010 , from " New York via Dubai " in 2011 , from the " Iberian Peninsula to distant Latin America and the Caribbean " in 2012, to " Australia and New Zealand " in 2013, and "cinematic" in 2014 Connections between Italy and Eastern Europe "and 2015 to the Netherlands .
Cottbus film show
The traditional start of the festival week every year on Monday evening is the Lausitz short film competition Cottbuser FilmSchau , a platform for ambitious amateurs and semi-professional filmmakers from Lower and Upper Lusatia . The best short films will be awarded the main prize and the special prize of the Foundation for the Sorbian People . In addition, the audience awards a prize to their favorite.
Prices
The main prize has been awarded by the international festival juries since 2003, the Lubina (Sorbian: "the lovely one"), a three-colored sculpture made of glass by the Lausitz artist Beate Bolender. With the award sculpture, the festival emphasizes on the one hand its anchoring in the region and on the other hand its special character as the most important festival of Eastern European film.
The Lubina , each unique, is awarded exclusively to the winners of the following four prizes from the feature film competition:
- Main prize for the best film,
- Special price for the best director,
- Award for an outstanding actress,
- Award for an outstanding performer
The honorary Lubina is awarded irregularly for services in the development of the FilmFestival Cottbus (previously to honorary president and Oscar winner Istvan Szabó and chairman of the board of trustees Bernd Schiphorst).
The main prize for the best film is endowed with 25,000 euros and goes equally to the director and the film producer of the film. In addition, a further nineteen prizes are awarded annually. The total value of all prizes awarded is 80,750 euros. From 1991 to 2002 the foundlings prize of the film communication interest group was also awarded here.
Prominent guests
For many Central and Eastern European directors, the road to fame led through the Cottbus Festival. Including well-known filmmakers such as Cristian Mungiu (RO), Jan Cvitkovič (SLO), Jan Svěrák (CZ), Oleg Novkovic (SRB), Bohdan Sláma (CZ) and Jan Hřebejk (CZ). In addition to István Szabó, the most prominent guests in the history of the festival were undoubtedly Krzysztof Zanussi (PL), Jiri Menzel (CZ), Tschynggys Aitmatow (KGS), Andreas Dresen (D), Allan Starski (PL), Yolande Zauberman (F), Oana Pellea (ROM), Katja Flint (D), Andreji Plachow (RUS), Katarzyna Figura (PL), Cedomir Kolar (F), Christine Schorn (D), Jean-Marc Barr (F), Rolf Hoppe (D), Itzhak and Samuel Fintzi (BG), Wladimir Kaminer (RUS / D), Anna Thalbach (D), Anica Dobra (SRB), Sylvia Kristel (NL), Nana Djordjadze (GE), the producer Alexander Rodnyansky (RUS) and the young Germans Actors Robert Stadlober , Jacob Matschenz and Tobias Schenke .
Winner of the main prize for the best film
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Connecting Cottbus
Connecting Cottbus is an east-west co-production market for producer-writer-director teams who are looking for partners for the realization of their new feature film projects. A jury selects the fabrics that are presented to a specialist audience consisting of experienced producers, buyers and financiers. Current insights into the production landscape in Eastern and Central European countries are offered in discussions and case studies.
literature
- 20 years FilmFestival Cottbus. Festival of Eastern European Films . Regia-Verlag, Cottbus, 2013, ISBN 978-3-86929-173-4 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Jens Blankennagel: “There is an incredible amount of interest.” Interview with the program director of the FFC , Berliner Zeitung , November 10, 2016, p. 18.
- ↑ Variety.com: 50 unmissable film festivals
- ↑ Bundestag-nachrichten.de: “Unique meeting place for East and West”. Steinmeier opens FilmFestival in Cottbus ( Memento of the original from December 28, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ FFC venues as of November 2016
