Meeting Point – Vilnius was organised in the framework of the Vilnius IFF, supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre, the Lithuanian Council of Culture, the City of Vilnius and Creative Europe Desk Lithuania, and in collaboration with Vilnius Film Cluster, MAIA Workshops, Connecting Cottbus, ICO-Independent Cinema Office, Baltic Pitching Forum, Film Fest Portugal, Marché du Film, Golden Apricot Film Festival, Minsk International Film Festival “Listapad” industry, Creative Europe Desk Estonia, Creative Europe Desk Latvia.
Meeting Point – Vilnius Winners:
MPV Award Best Project in Development (3,000 EUR in cash):
My Thoughts Are Silent (Ukraine)
Directed by Antonio Lukich
Best Lithuanian Pitch (1,000 EUR in cash):
Nova Lituania (Lithuania)
Directed by Karolis Kaupinis
Produced by M-Films
Supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre
Postproduction Award (3,500 EUR in postproduction services):
The Sailor (Slovakia) Documentary
Directed by Lucia Kašova
Produced by TOXPRO
Invitation to Cannes‘ Marché du Film:
The Sailor (Slovakia)
Directed by Lucia Kašova
and
El Padre Medico (Lithuania, Brazil)
Directed by Vytautas Puidokas
Produced by Iron Cat
Coproduced by Lente Viva Filmes, Dansu Films
Supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre
Other Projects from CEE Countries Selected for Coming Soon:
36 Months (Latvia)
This documentary directed by Liene Linde and Armands Začs follows four young women throughout their pregnancy. Guntis Trekteris and Madara Kalniņa are producing through Latvia’s Ego Media.
The budget is 54,685 EUR, Madara Kalniņa told FNE. The Culture Capital Foundation of Latvia is supporting. Shooting started in July 2017 and wrapped in the summer of 2018. The theatrical release is set for 2019.
Legacy (Romania)
Known as an actor and short-film director, Romania’s Dorian Boguţă is developing his first feature film Legacy as a psychological thriller focusing on the disappearance of a famous piano player. The police investigation and flashbacks will reveal a troubled artist who, despite his success, felt crushed by his lack of inspiration as a composer. According to the director, the feature will portray many of his own experiences. The director penned the script together with Loredana Novak,
Oana Giurgiu is producing through Romania’s Hai-Hui Entertainment. The budget amounts to 270,000 EUR, with approximately 90,000 EUR coming from the Romanian Film Center.
Marygoround (Poland)
According to its director Daria Woszek, Marygoround is a black comedy drama about Mary, who is just about to turn 50, an agnostic collector of Virgin Mary statues. Due to annoying symptoms related to menopause, her gynaecologist gives her special patches which are supposed to bring immediate relief. That same night Mary’s liberated and vibrant niece – Helena crashes at her house, as usual, to sleep on the sofa. Whether due to hormones or other reasons, this time Mary behaves differently and Helena notices immediately. Mary’s senses and imagination are suddenly alive.
The cast includes Grażyna Misiorowska, Helena Sujecka, Janusz Chabior, Sylwester Piechura. The film is produced by Jan Pawlicki and Marcin Lech through Jutrzenka Studio in coproduction with Dagmara Molga through Solopan and Janusz Bielecki through All Muses. The project is supported by the Polish Film Institute.
Soviet Man (Latvia, Lithuania, Czech Republic)
Latvian director Ivo Briedis tries to deconstruct in his documentary the concept of the Soviet man with the help of stories told by the last Soviet and first post-Soviet generations. Elīna Gediņa-Ducena and Gints Grūbe are producing through Latvia’s Mistrus Media in coproduction with Jurga Gluskiniene through Lithuania‘s Monoklis and Jitka Kotrlová and Hana Šilarová through the Czech Frame Films.
The estimated budget is 200,200 EUR. The film is supported by the National Film Center of Latvia, the Adenauer Foundation, the Latvian Television, the Lithuanian Film Centre and the Czech Film Fund. The premiere is set for the autumn of 2019.
The Family (Lithuania, France)
Austėja Urbaitė’s debut feature examines what constitutes family and love, digging deeper into womanhood and maternal feelings. A French couple adopts two Lithuanian children and, in order to help them adapt to their new environment, they invite a medical student from Lithuania for the summer.
The film is produced by Živilė Gallego through Frailita Films in coproduction with Murielle Thierrin through France‘s Aldabra Films. The Lithuanian Film Centre supported the project with 30,000 EUR in 2018 and 330,000 EUR in 2019. The premere is set for 2020.
The Flood Won’t Come (Lithuania)
Marat Sargsyan presented his first feature film The Flood Won’t Come, a magical realism tale analysing the games that people and the authorities play on each other. The cast includes famous Lithuanian theatre and cinema actors such as Valentinas Masalskis, Remigijus Vilkaitis, Sigitas Račkys and Albinas Keleris.
The film is produced by Ieva Norviliene through Lithuania‘s Tremora and it was supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre with a production grant of 500,000 EUR. The estimated budget is approximately 766,000 EUR. The project also used the incentives scheme. The release is set for 2019.
Batrachomyomachia (Germany, Poland)
The film directed by Kasia Hertz is a psychological comedy drama with a slice of horror. The story follows one day in the community of Tluszcza, a small town located by a huge artificial lake. The lake is the key to its existence, both ideologically and materially. One day, a group of strangers suddenly arrives and forces the citizens to change their perception on the lake. The cast includes Artur Wower, Ewa Palińska, Miłosz Przybyłowski and Joanna Woźniak.
The film is produced by Wrota Podlasia and Jan Szewczyk through Germany‘s DFFB. The release is set for September 2019.
The Lions Heading Venice (Albania, Czech Republic)
The film directed by Jonid Jorgji follows three Albanian filmmakers who are going to attend the Venice Film Festival with their film. They are happily married till the moment they met three porn stars. Their journey will become a sexual trip with comic and unexpected situations.
The cast includes Vasjan Lami, Kastriot Çaushi, Natalia De Maria, Alissa Huzar, Alessandra Bonarotta, Dario Diana. The film is produced by EJF Production in coproduction with Blue Hills Picture and it was supported by the Albanian National Film Center. The release is set for 2019.
The Soviet Garden (Moldova, Romania)
While investigating his grandmother’s mysterious death, Dragoș, a filmmaker from Moldova (a small country which was formerly part of the Soviet Empire), discovers a secret scientific experiment. In nearly 10 years of investigations, he will unveil the secret plan to transform Moldova into the Soviet Garden using atomic energy in local agriculture.
The film is directed by Dragoș Turea and produced by him through Moldova’s Parmis Film Studio in coproduction with Marian Crișan through Romania‘s Rova Film. The release is set for 2019.
