Filmmaking in Times of Conflict, Network Building and Concrete Skills: goEast's Talent Development Projects Young Filmmakers for Peace and East-West Talent Lab
From 20 to 26 April, the German city of Wiesbaden will become the place to be for up-and-coming filmmakers from Eastern Europe and beyond: goEast - Festival of Central and Eastern European Film, hosted by Deutsches Filminstitut, has dedicated itself to the sustainable development of young filmmaking talent through its projects Young Filmmakers for Peace and East-West Talent Lab.
Filmmaking in Times of Conflict: Young Filmmakers for Peace
Originally launched last year against the backdrop of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the project Young Filmmakers for Peace, funded by the Robert Bosch Stiftung, is back again for this year's edition of the festival. 14 young filmmakers from conflict and post-conflict regions in Eastern Europe, from Germany and, for the first time, from the Arab world have been invited to come to Wiesbaden to examine the issues surrounding filmmaking in times of conflict and explore cinema's potential as a means of promoting peace and democratisation. goEast is offering them a programme composed of workshops, presentations and films to provide well-grounded insight on how to realise films in situations of armed conflict and how to approach such conflicts thematically without inadvertently resorting to stereotypical portrayals in the process.
The presentations and workshops will be conducted by highly experienced individuals from various areas of the film industry. Filmmaker Tamara Trampe will support the participants in developing their project ideas and guide them through the festival week. Film scholar and Professor Dr. Marcus Stiglegger will explore the question of whether such a thing as an "anti-war film" can actually exist in his presentation. In addition to giving a master class, award-winning Bosnian director Aida Begic will also personally present her film CHILDREN OF SARAJEVO (BIH, DEU 2012), which screened in Cannes in 2012. The screening on 21 April, to be followed by a Q&A with the director, is also open to the general public. With a look towards the Arab world, goEast is extending the project's thematic scope beyond the borders of Eastern Europe: Syrian documentary film producer, filmmaker and human rights activist Orwa Nyrabia, who was imprisoned in Syria in 2012 for his unflinching documentation of the Arab Spring, will share impressions that are specific to his region of origin.
Established and Sustainable: The East-West Talent Lab
The established format East-West Talent Lab for its part also knows how to pass on essential industry knowledge and a wealth of experience to its attendees. Featuring workshops and talks on project development and presentation, applying for funding, submitting work to festivals and searching for the right broadcasting institution for TV exploitation, a comprehensive programme awaits the 30 participating producers, directors and artists. The Lab, made possible with the kind support of Kulturfonds Frankfurt RheinMain, offers participants from Central and Eastern Europe and Germany practice-oriented, sustainable assistance in the development, realisation and distribution of their films - while at the same time also providing them with the opportunity to build networks and establish connections with their peers and key figures in the industry. The Lab also features well-known names among its presenters, especially this year's guest of honour, Academy Award winning Czech director Jiri Menzel. In addition to the lecture series, participants will work together throughout the festival week on their project ideas from the fields of documentary and fiction short films, experimental film and video art, which they will present at the conclusion of the week to the general public and a three-member international jury composed this year of Achim Forst (editor for film at 3sat / ZDFkultur), Asja Makarevic (programme manager for Sarajevo Talents at the Sarajevo Film Festival, Bosnia-Herzegovina) and Sebastian Weyland (producer and managing director of Heimathafen Film in Hamburg). The best pitch will be honoured at the goEast Award Ceremony on 26 April with the goEast Development Award with prize money in the amount of 3,500 euros.
In connection with the East-West Talent Lab, the Experimental Film and Video Art Competition, made possible with the kind support of BHF-BANK Foundation and Adolf und Luisa Haeuser-Stiftung für Kunst und Kulturpflege, is set to take place once again this year. Young artists and filmmakers from Central and Eastern Europe and Hessen's film and art academies will be presenting current work there and competing for the Open Frame Award, which is endowed with prize money in the amount of 5,000 euros.
The experimental films of the competition will be shown at Caligari FilmBühne on Thursday, 21 April. Following the screening, Museum Wiesbaden will host the opening of the exhibition of the competition's video installations, which will be on display in the museum until Sunday, 1 May. The exhibition will also provide further opportunities to see the experimental films of the competition after their initial screening at Caligari FilmBühne.
goEast - Festival of Central and Eastern European Film is hosted by Deutsches Filminstitut and supported by numerous partners. The festival is primarily funded by the Hessen State Ministry of Higher Education, Research and the Arts, the State Capital Wiesbaden, Foundation "Remembrance, Responsibility and Future" (EVZ), Kulturfonds Frankfurt RheinMain, the Robert Bosch Stiftung, ŠKODA AUTO Deutschland, BHF-BANK Foundation, the Adolf und Luisa Haeuser-Stiftung für Kunst und Kulturpflege, the Federal Foreign Office, the Foundation for Polish-German Cooperation, Deutsch-Tschechische Zukunftsfonds, Krušovice and Renovabis. Media partners include among others 3sat, the FAZ, hr-iNFO and sensor.
Current images can be found in the press section of the goEast website.
Press contact:
Katrin Wollnik
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+49-611-236 843-16
goEast Festival Office
Friedrichstraße 32
65185 Wiesbaden
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www.filmfestival-goEast.de
Host:
Deutsches Filminstitut - DIF
Schaumainkai 41
60596 Frankfurt am Main
