PRESS RELEASE
56th THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
November 6-15, 2015
AGORA INDUSTRY
November 7-14, 2015
56th THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
November 6-15, 2015
AGORA INDUSTRY
November 7-14, 2015
14 projects at the 11th CROSSROADS CO-PRODUCTION FORUM
10 films in AGORA WORKS IN PROGRESS
226 international titles in the AGORA FILM MARKET
10 films in AGORA WORKS IN PROGRESS
226 international titles in the AGORA FILM MARKET
AGORA INDUSTRY (November 7-14, 2015) is an industry event offering various networking opportunities for the global film industry in an informal, welcoming and professional atmosphere. As an international meeting and trading event, AGORA INDUSTRY runs parallel to the Thessaloniki International Film Festival and offers to its visiting industry professionals a variety of industry activities:
- The Agora Film Market with a Digital Video Library (November 7-14)
- The Crossroads Co-Production Forum (November 10-13)
- The Agora Works in Progress - Screening of films in post-production (November 12)
All Industry activities focus on the countries of Central Europe, the Balkans and the Mediterranean.
The AGORA FILM MARKET promotes the majority of the films included in the Festival’s official program selection. This year the Digital Video Library of the Agora Film Market includes 226 films from all over the world, available for viewing by the professionals who participate in the Agora Industry (producers, distributors, broadcasters, sales agents and consultants), as well as the Greek and international press representatives.
CROSSROADS, the Co-Production Forum headed by Marie-Pierre Macia, has selected 14 projects this year, based on the quality of the script, the creative team and the likelihood of it being produced. All selected projects are either produced or co-produced by a country in South-eastern and Central Europe or the Mediterranean area, or contain story elements linked to these regions. The selected projects come from the following countries: Albania, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Romania, Serbia and Turkey.
The producers of these 14 projects will be introduced to a variety of industry professionals from all over the world. The program is varied and provides opportunities to meet other producers, distributors, broadcasters, sales agents and consultants. CROSSROADS’ goal is to support the producers of feature-length film projects that are linked to the Mediterranean and Balkan regions in finding the right partners to finance and accomplish their projects. CROSSROADS is supported by the MEDIA Creative Europe program.
The Crossroads Awards are:
- The Greek post-production house Two Thirty Five (2|35 Inc) offers the main prize of a co-production award (image and sound post) to the winning project
- CNC offers 10.000 euro for project development
- The Producer’s Network of the Cannes Film Festival offers a free accreditation for the Producer’s Network in the Cannes Film Festival 2016
- Sofia Meetings of the Sofia IFF will select one project to be presented in March at the Sofia Meetings 2016
- The Mediterranean Film Institute Script 2 Film Workshops offers a scholarship for its next round of Script 2 Film Workshops to one of the projects
- Initiative Film, a script-development consultancy firm in France, offers its services to one of the projects
- CINEMED will include at least one Greek project in the Development Grant selection according to its state of development and follow the films from Crossroads and Works in Progress in regards to its program selection
The 2015 Crossroads jury consists of:
Titus Kreyenberg, producer - Una Film, Germany
Fenia Cossovitsa, producer - Blonde S.A., Greece
Joseph Rouschop, producer - Tarantula, Belgium
This year’s projects are:
1) Charlton Heston Director: Andrei Cretulescu, Production: Codruta Cretulescu- Kinosseur Productions, Velvet Moraru - Icon Production, Romania
2) Τhe Death of Black Horses Director: Ferit Karahan, Production: Ferit Karahan, Gulistan Acet, FK Films Turkey
3) The Disappeared Director: Ramin Matin, Production: Emine Yildirim – Giyotin Films, Asli Erdem – Beatrice Films, Turkey
4) Elefsina Director: Alexandros Skouras, Production: Yorgos Kyriakos, View Master, Greece
5) The T Factor Director: Francesco Costabile, Production: Alessandra Grilli, Controra Film, Italy In collaboration with SOFIA MEETINGS of the Sofia International Film Festival
6) I Will Cross Tomorrow Director: Sepideh Farsi, Production: Panos Karabinis – Pan Entertainment, Thierry Lenouvel – Cine-Sud Promotion, Greece/France
7) Interrogation Director: Hac? Orman, Production: Serkan Acar, Filmfabrik Film and Television, Turkey
8) The Land of No One Director: Aran Hughes & Christina Koutsospyrou, Production: Vassilis Chrysanthopoulos, Plays2Place Productions, Greece
9) The Mistake Director: Mircea Nestor, Production: Ana Puiu, Mandragora, Romania
10) The River Director: Haris Raftoyiannis, Production: Eleni Kossyfidou, Blackbird Production, Greece
11) The Seam Line Director: Nir Sa'ar, Production: Amir Harel & Ayelet Kait, Lama Films, Israel
12) A Shelter Among the Clouds Director: Robert Budina, Production: Sabina Kodra, ERA Film, Albania
13) Tide Director / Production: Hussen Ibraheem, Lebanon
14) Usud Director: Stefan Malesevic, Production: Vladimir Vasiljevic, EED// Productions, Serbia / Bosnia & Herzegovina In collaboration with MFI SCRIPT 2 FILM of the Mediterranean Film Institute
The AGORA WORKS IN PROGRESS are closed sessions for Thessaloniki’s invited industry professionals, presented to sales agents, distributors, producers and festival representatives. 10 films have been selected from Bulgaria, Croatia, Egypt, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Montenegro, Palestine, Romania Serbia, Spain and Sweden.
Graal S.A. will provide the winning film of the Works in Progress section with a co-production award of post–production services.
The 2015 Agora Works in Progress Jury consists of:
Christos Behtsis, distributor, Seven Films, Greece
Maren Kroymann, sales agent, M-appeal, Germany
Fabienne Hanclot, festival programmer, Cannes Film Festival-ACID, France
This year’s films are:
1) Ali, the Goat and Ibrahim Director: Sherif El Bendary, Production: Hossam Elouan, Transit Films, Co-producer: Film Clinic, Egypt
2) The Black Pin Director/Producer: Ivan Marinovic, Adriatic Western, Montenegro / Serbia
3) The City with No Compass Director: Antonio Savinelli, Producers: Antonio Savinelli, Ismael Garcia Lopez, Spain
4) Devil’s Garden Director: Nevio Marasovic, Producer: Danijel Pek, Antitalent, Croatia
5) Fellini Director: Karolos Zonaras, Production: Katia Leclerc, Zonaras Productions, Greece Fellini participated in the Crossroads Co-production Forum in 2013.
6) Hristo Directors/Producers: Grigor Lefterov, Todor Matsanov, Lema Film, Co-producers: Idea Cinema, Bulgaria/Italy
7) Land of the Little People Director: Yaniv Berman, Production: Tony Copti, Fresco Film, Israel/Palestine OUT OF COMPETITION
8) The Last Day Director: Gabriel Achim, Production: Gabriel Achim/Dan Burlac, Green Film, Romania
9) That Trip We Took With Dad (working title) Director: Anca Miruna Lazarescu, Production: David Lindner Leporda, FILMALLEE GMBH, Co-producers: Strada Films, Mirage Films, Chimney, Bayerischer Rundfunk/Arte, Germany / Romania / Hungary / Sweden That Trip We Took With Dad won the Balkan Fund Script Development Award in 2010
10) Voevoda Director/Producer: Zornitsa Sophia, Production: MQ Pictures, Bulgaria
