20th FILMFESTIVAL COTTBUS - COMPETITION FILMS AND JURY MEMBERS

On the occasion of the anniversary edition of the 20th FilmFestival Cottbus, this year's feature film competition will include ten German premieres. Among them are new discoveries alongside productions that have already
enthused audiences in Cannes, Locarno, Karlovy Vary and elsewhere. They will compete for the first prize, which is endowed for the first time with 20,000 euros. The short film competition features eleven contributions from
nine nations, including one world premiere and several international and German premieres. For this year's International Festival Jury we were able to win the Brazilian filmmaker Sandra Kogut, the Indian
director Shahant Shah, as well as Fernanda Silva, president of the FESTROIA association, member of the administrative board of CICAE (Confédération Internationale des Cinémas D´Art et D´Essay) and member of the
European Film Academy. Further jury members are the German actress Anjorka Strechel and the Serbian director Vladimir Perišic, whose debut film "Ordinary People" won the prize for the best film and the best actor in
Cottbus in 2009. The members of the Short Film Competition Jury this year are the Israeli filmmaker and director of the Sam Spiegel Film & Television School, Renen Schorr, actor and producer Arben Zharku, as well as Lenky Tyrpakowa, member of the selection committee of the Film Festival Karlovy Vary and also responsible for the programme of the Short Film Festival Prague. There is a wide variety of themes for spectators to discover in the Feature Film Competition: from a weird catlover to the departure from childhood, the search for a new and better life, and the dream of more light in the Kirghiz steppe. The styles used range from breathtaking close-ups to black-and-white landscapes. Young Piroska risks setting off to a new life in ADRIENN PAL. This year's FIPRESCI award-winner in Cannes immerses in the world of the overweight nurse who takes care of the dead in a hospital and suppresses her loneliness by eating. One day she starts searching for her childhood friend and for happier days. Ali, the shepherd in EIN ANDERER HIMMEL (A DIFFERENT HEAVEN), and his son wind up in Moscow - also hoping for a better life. Looking for the woman who abandoned them years ago, they turn into hounded souls who never arrive. Matilda, the day release prisoner in the Romanian debut OUTBOUND, is also dreaming of a new start. She has 24 hours to reorder her life, but the past catches up with her. The film is based on a story by Cristian Mungiu, the director of 4 MONATE, 3 WOCHEN UND 2 TAGE (4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS).
One of the most impressive Russian debuts this year is RÜCKWÄRTSGANG (REVERSE GEAR), directed by Andrey Stempkovsky. Based on the story of a mother and her missing son, the film tentatively relates the societal
impact of war, which permeates families like a cancerous growth. It additionally addresses the situation of guest workers in the CIS, a problem also taken up by the second Russian competition film, EIN ANDERER HIMMEL (A DIFFERENT HEAVEN). One can also discover many things in common in the Serbian productions TILVA ROŠ and WHITE, WHITE WORLD. Both have chosen the mining town of Bor as the location for their entirely different stories. The Estonian director Veiko Öunpuu surprises the viewer in terms of style with his first full-length feature film. In DIE VERSUCHUNG DES HL. TONY (THE TEMPTATION OF ST TONY), he tells of a bizarre journey to the depths of the soul using breathtaking black-and-white landscape images and a lot of black humour. In this year's Short Film Competition, cinematic highlights from Hungary, Poland, Russia, Estonia, and other
countries await the audience. The themes range from the first love to the departure from home or a talisman that brings no luck. Among the German premieres is the Romanian contribution by the dffb graduate Alexandru
Mavrodineanu. MUSIK IM BLUT (MUSIC IN THE BLOOD) is about a musical test with an unexpected outcome. The film won the Best Film Award in Grenoble. The Russian production MEER DER WÜNSCHE by the Georgian
director Shota Gamisonia will celebrate its world premiere in Cottbus. In 27 minutes, the film narrates the longing of two friends for the sea in the style of Beckett with a Russian touch.
For further information please feel free to contact Diana Kluge, Aurica Bloom and Dana Slink of the Press Office via email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or phone under 0355/ 43107 13.

Diana Kluge
Presse, PR und Marketing
FilmFestival Cottbus
Fon: +49 (355) 4310713
Fax: +49 (355) 4310720
Mobil: +49 1773508133
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www.filmfestivalcottbus.de

20. FilmFestival Cottbus - Festival des osteuropäischen Films
20. Festival of East European Cinema
02.-07.11.2010