It΄s common knowledge by now that Sarajevo Film Festival΄s Ιndustry section has become the major hub for regional film professionals and played a crucial role in the development of regional co-production. A key destination for professionals from across Europe who search for talent and co-production possibilities, or simply wish to get in-depth knowledge on the development of this dynamic region.

 

With the sections CineLink, Regional Forum, Sarajevo Talent Campus, Sarajevo City of Film, Docu Rough Cut Boutique and Minimarket, Sarajevo Film Festival΄s industry includes activities for people from all spheres of the business, and for filmmakers in all stages of their career. 

After presenting its first eight selected projects from new directors in April, CineLink co-production market unveils the rest of CineLink selection, from established authors, in advanced stage of development and financing, together with three guest projects, two of them as part of cooperation with Doha Film Institute (DFI) and one guest project coming from Russia.

 

For the Docu Rough Cut Boutique 2015, the festival has received a large number of submitted projects from many countries, which demonstrated high visual qualities and meticulous art of editing! Here are the five 2015 finalists:

From August 15 to 20, Sarajevo΄s networking and training platform for emerging film professionals from Southeast Europe and Southern Caucasus, Talents Sarajevo 2015, will welcome 70 up-and-coming actors, directors, DoPs, film critics, producers and screenwriters from Southeast Europe (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo*, FYROM, Moldavia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey) and Southern Caucasus (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) for a week of master classes, panel discussions, networking and training opportunities. We΄re happy to see the name of our very close collaborator Gergana Doncheva, along with our faithful participants and winners of altcineAction!, such as Assimina Proedrou, Stratis Chatzielenoudas and Dimitris Argyriou among their colleagues from the neighboring countries. 

The Sarajevo City of Film Fund on the other hand, is open for applicants with feature film projects from former Yugoslav countries and the wider region that wish to co-produce with and have potential to raise funding in new markets outside the Eurimages/Creative Europe MEDIA territories, as well as projects from these territories seeking a partner in Southeast Europe. The Middle East, North Africa, the Americas, India and East Asia are intended as the primary geographical focus. The aim is to support the production of up to 8 feature films, for which it has already secured a budget of over €400.000 for the 2015-2016 period. It features a Co-production Scheme with up to €60.000 support per project in a form of a soft loan, and a P&A Scheme with up to €60.000 support per project in a form of a soft loan.

With the aim of strengthening the short film΄s promotion and future circulation by bringing directors together with prominent European short film festival programmers, sales agents, and distributors, Mini Market΄s activities are open for filmmakers with short films playing in the festival programme (Short Competition Films, European Shorts, BH Films, Operation Kino, TeenArena and Children΄s shorts). 

Industry Terrace, the festival΄s place for business with rights and licenses and the place to make production and equipment services deals in Southeast Europe, offers to those registered (already decided by now) benefits from 1 to 1 meetings, interview sessions, access to industry and to work in progress screenings along with extensive networking opportunities.

Concluding, the Regional Forum΄s programme, which takes place from August 19 to 21 will be announced soon.