Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Awards for Turkish, Bulgarian, Slovak, Croatian, Montenegrin, Slovenian, Hungarian and Serbian films



The 7th annual South East European Film Festival, SEE Fest 2012 concluded Monday night at UCLA's Bridges Theater in Los Angeles with the screening of the Turkish epic FUTURE LASTS FOREVER, an exploration of the parallel pasts and Anatolian elegies  directed by Ozcan Alper, which also won Bridging the Borders award for best feature film of the festival. Honorable Mention went to another Turkish film, DO NOT FORGET ME ISTANBUL, a collection of seven stories by seven directors under artistic direction of Turkey's auteur Huseyin Karabey. Both awards are traditionally presented by Cinema Without Borders, festival's media sponsor.
                                    
Seventeen industry people served as jury members, awarding diverse films and unique voices for which SEEFest is well known. Young Bulgarian-American filmmaker Kristina Nikolova won Best Debut Feature award for FAITH, LOVE AND WHISKEY, following an expat's journey between two homes; Slovak elegiac journal of music recordings of Roma singers CIGARETTES AND SONGS by Marek Sulik and Jana Kovalcikova won Best Documentary, with Honorable Mention going to Croatian GABRIEL by Vlatka Vorkapic; two shorts, THE VISIT from Slovenia's Miha Mazzini, and COLD SHOWER from Hungary's Orsy Nagypal shared Best Short (fiction) award, while German production MURDER REVISITED by Serbian filmmaker Milan Miletic won award for  Best Documentary Short. 

Cinematography jury's feature award went to DO NOT FORGET ME ISTANBUL, for overall excellence in visual storytelling, and in particular, the segment 'The Jewish Girl' and cinematographer, Baris Ozbicer. Best cinematography in documentary category was awarded to Momir Matovic from Montenegro whose images beautifully captured the spirit of the passing and irretrievable moment in his memorable documentary PERSEVERANCE...SPIRIT...BREATH.
Winner of this year's Audience Award was Romanian HELLO! HOW ARE YOU?, directed by Alexandru Maftei, romantic comedy which showed another face of Romania and South Eastern Europe not often seen on the big screen.

Juries and awards of the 7th South East European Film Festival included:

Bridging the Borders Award
, with jurors Bijan Tehrani, editor-in-chief, Cinema Without Borders; Kevin Cassidy, international news editor, The Hollywood Reporter; and Fareed C. Majari, director of the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles.

Best Documentary Award,
with jurors Margit Kleinman, director, Villa Aurora in Pacific Palisades; Arnold Schwartzman, Oscar-winning filmmaker and designer; Valentina Ganeva, film editor;

Best Debut Feature Award,  with jurors Ana Maria Bahiana, author and film critic; Matthew Mishory, filmmaker; and Zeljko Marasovich, film composer;

Best Short Film, Best Short Documentary Awards,
 with jurors Prince Gomolvilas, playwright; Jelena Mrdja, actress; Marsha Goodman, EMMY-winning casting director; and Jelena Erceg, visual effects artist.

Best Cinematography Award,
feature and documentary film, with jurors Boris Schaarschmidt, cinematographer; Michael Pessah, cinematographer; Nicholas Fahey, cinematographer; and Hans Diernberger, visual artist.


Monday, May 7, 2012

SEE FEST 2012 Comes to an End....

...TONIGHT! 

Coffee Futures
An exciting night of Turkish films is in store for all you SEE FEST-ers! Closing Night starts off with documentary COFFEE FUTURES (Neyse Halim Çiksin Falim), which parallels the custom of coffee fortune telling with the story of Turkey's decades-long attempt to join the European Union. Coffee Futures will be followed up with the West Coast premiere of Turkish drama FUTURE LASTS FOREVER (Gelecek Uzun Surer) about a university student who takes an unexpected journey through Turkish lands, having to face her own traumatic past along the way.

To avoid lines or the possibility that Closing Night may get sold out (like on Opening Night!), we suggest purchasing tickets ahead of time on ItsMySeat.


SEE YOU TONIGHT FOR THE FINAL NIGHT OF THE SOUTH EAST EUROPEAN FILM FESTIVAL '12.



Future Lasts Forever
The schedule for Monday, May 7, 2012 is as follows: 

6:30 pm- Closing night gala, guests arriving
7:00 pm- Coffee Futures (Turkey; documentary)
7:30 pm- Future Lasts Forever (Turkey; drama)
*conclude SEEFEST 2012*


405 Hilgard Ave., at Parking Structure 3 
Los Angeles, CA 90095


Sunday, May 6, 2012

Photos: South East European Film Festival 2012


SEE FEST 2012 has been a raging success! Off to a great start with a completely SOLD OUT opening night, this year's festival has already had the honor of hosting some of South East Europe's talented directors, producers, stars, and supporters. Goethe-Institut director Fareed Majari welcomes the audience on opening night; filmmaker and SEE FEST panelist Matthew Mishory gets interviewed; Do Not Forget Me Istanbul producer Huseyin Karabey stops by the Goethe; and Sabin Dorohoi, Transylvania Girl director, gladly answers audience questions about his film, even after a long flight from Romania. Take a look at all the photos in our albums!


Today's program includes:

Sunday May 6, 2012
1:00 pm- Empty Boxcars (USA; documentary)
 *Shorts Program*
2:00 pm- A Day on the River Drina (Bosnia-Herzegovina; documentary)
2:20 pm- The Visit (Slovenia; short)
2:30 pm- Posthumous (Bosnia-Herzegovina; short)
**
3:00 pm- Maya (Albania; feature)
5:00 pm- "Special Screening" (Romantic Comedy)
7:00 pm- Broken Mussels (Turkey-Sweden-Bosnia-Herzegovina; Drama)

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

SEE FEST 2012 Panelist Claudio Faeh Takes On True Story of Sarajevo's Very Own Romeo & Juliet

Admira and Bosko
Admira Ismic was a Bosnian Muslim. Bosko Brkic was an Orthodox Serb. Their unparalleled bond struggled as they themselves looked for a way out of the terror that was to become the Siege of Sarajevo. Tragically shot down while crossing a bridge that would have ultimately led them to their freedom, the couple became a symbol of the power of love in time of tragedy when Admira lovingly embraced Bosko in her arms before both their lives were taken by the madness of war.

Now, award-winning director/producer and SEE FEST 2012 panelist CLAUDIO FAEH brings this story of love during the Balkan War to the big screen. A project in the making, LEAVING SARAJEVO will portray the couple's true story which, according to Faeh, "Goes far beyond the political minutiae of the Balkan conflict." 

The feature drew much inspiration from the PBS frontline documentary 'Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo.' Excerpts from the documentary can be watched below.


SEE FEST 2012 opens tomorrow night!
Join us for a weekend-long celebration of South East European culture and film and who knows, you may just run into director Faeh himself. Take a look at the festival PROGRAM if you haven't already and we'll see you there!

 
Excerpts from 'Romeo and Juliet in Sarajevo' (1994)