SKOPJE: It was a truly exciting year for Macedonian cinematography with great box office results, international success for feature and documentary films, worldwide distribution for domestic titles and their participation in more than 200 film festival selections, and over 60 awards.

SKOPJE: Willow / Vrba, the sixth feature film by the Academy award nominated Macedonian helmer Milcho Manchevski, and documentary Honeyland / Medena zemja directed by Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov, which has received two Oscar nominations, topped the local charts of domestic films in North Macedonia in 2019.

SKOPJE: Macedonian director Vardan Tozija is in postproduction with his second feature film M, a coproduction between North Macedonia, Croatia, Kosovo and Greece. The premiere is planned for the second half of 2020.

SKOPJE: The North Macedonia Film Agency distributed 2,470,719 EUR / 151.7 m MKD to 15 films within the second deadline in 2019 for production grants for feature, short, animated and documentary films. The Agency supported five feature films including four debuts, five minority coproductions, two majority long documentaries, one minority long documentary and two short films.

SKOPJE: Producers Vladimir Atanasovski and Angela Nestorovska from Sektor Film are in final postproduction with The Hardest Thing / Najteskoto nesto directed by acclaimed Turkish director Serdar Akar. This Macedonian/Turkish coproduction is the first Macedonian film in the Turkish language.

SKOPJE: The Austrian road film Lilian directed by Andreas Horvath scooped the best film award in the official selection of the 18th Festival of European Film Cinedays, which ended on 16 November 2019.

SKOPJE: A total of 56 European films will compete for the main prizes of the 18th edition of Cinedays Festival of European Film, running 7 - 15 November in Skopje. Eight films will compete in the Official Competition and six in the CineBalkan programme.

SKOPJE: Netflix’s first international original series from Belgium, Into the Night, which features actors from across Europe, began shooting at the Skopje International Airport on 1 October 2019. North Macedonia`s Sisters and Brother Mitevski is providing the services for the three days shoot in Skopje. It is the first time a Netflix series is filmed in North Macedonia.

BITOLA: Helene Louvart, the cinematographer of the Brazilian/German drama The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmao directed by Karim Aïnouz, received the Golden Camera 300 at the 40th edition of the International Cinematographers' Film Festival Manaki Brothers. The festival took place in Bitola, North Macedonia, from 14 to 21 September 2019.

SKOPJE: Czech/French/Argentinian/Austrian coproduction Solo, directed by Artemio Benki won the Onion Award for best film in the main competition of the 10th edition of Festival of Creative Documentary Film Makedox. The festival took place from 21 to 28 August 2019.