CinEast 2015 overview
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Transcript of CinEast 2015 overview
OVERVIEW OF THE 2015 EDITION
CinEast 2015 – OVERVIEW
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Introduction
CINEAST 8–25 October 2015 Luxembourg www.cineast.lu
100 screenings over 18 days
55 feature and 40 short films from 18 countries
Over 9 500 participants and 25 special guests
Numerous special events (including 5 concerts and an exhibition)
During its 8th edition, the CinEast (ciné-East) festival
presented Luxembourg audiences with a rich and
varied selection of some of the best recent films
from Central and Eastern Europe.
Over 18 days the festival presented around a
hundred screenings of films of various genres from
18 countries that would otherwise have had little
chance of being shown in local cinemas. The main
objective of the festival is to present the most
remarkable films from this part of Europe.
However, it also strives to provide an opportunity to
explore the cultures of the participating countries
and to provide a space for friendly encounters and
exchanges between the different communities
residing in Luxembourg.
That is why CinEast also presents concerts, DJ
nights, exhibitions, gastronomic events, debates,
activities for young audiences and more.
The thematic cycle of the 8th edition, ‘Urban
Stories’, addressed the city as a living space and a
social phenomenon in its context of constant
transformation. An extensive eponymous
photography exhibition at Neimënster and the ‘Free
Spaces’ project co-organised by Mudam were also
dedicated to this theme.
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Official opening Neimënster, 8 October
The 8th CinEast festival was officially inaugurated in
Salle Krieps at the Neimënster cultural centre by its
director Ainhoa Achutegui, Colette Mart (alderman
of the City of Luxembourg), Bob Krieps (director at
the Ministry of Culture) and Marc Scheffen (deputy
director of the Cinémathèque de la Ville de
Luxembourg). The official ceremony was followed by
a sold-out screening of the festival’s opening film
Body.
Almost 300 people attended the event, including
numerous representatives of the cultural scene,
business, media and the diplomatic corps.
The opening ceremony was accompanied by the
official opening of the photographic exhibition
‘Urban Stories’, produced in collaboration with
Neimënster, and displayed at the abbey’s Cloister.
A cocktail was held after the screening of the
opening film at the cultural centre’s Agora.
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Official competition, jury and awards
The official competition of the 2015 edition of
CinEast included seven films: Body by Małgorzata
Szumowska ; Babai by Visar Morina, Son of Saul by
László Nemes, In the Crosswind by Martti Helde,
Self-Portrait of a Dutiful Daughter by Ana Lungu,
Family Film by Olmo Omerzu and The Cleaner by
Peter Bebjak.
The international jury of CinEast 2015 was
presided over by renowned Polish filmmaker Andrzej
Żuławski and also included the director Yann
Tonnar, the actor Vicky Krieps, the director Ina
Ivanceanu and the producer Alexandra Hoesdorff.
The Awards Ceremony was held on 23 October at
the Cinémathèque de la Ville de Luxembourg with
many personalities from the world of cinema and
culture in attendance.
The Grand Prix of the CinEast 2015 went to the film
Body by Małgorzata Szumowska, while the Special
Jury Prize was awarded to the film Babai by the
Kosovar director Visar Morina and the Audience
Award went to the film Losers by Ivaylo Hristov. The
Critics’ Prize, which was awarded for the first time,
went to Son of Saul by László Nemes.
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Film highlights
During the 2015 edition of CinEast over 55 features
and 40 short films were screened in
Luxembourgish cinemas (Cinémathèque, Ciné
Utopia, Neimënster, Ancien Cinéma, Ciné Ariston
and others). Many of the films had received major
awards at international and national festivals and
most of them were shown at CinEast as their
Luxembourg or Benelux premiere. The programme
also included numerous documentaries, as well as
some classics and special programmes for young
audiences. In addition, special school screenings
were organised in cooperation with the European
Schools in Mamer and Kirchberg, the Lycée
classique of Diekirch, Lycée Technique des Arts et
Métiers and the International School of Luxembourg.
Among the most noteworthy films in the programme
(apart from the official competition) were:
Aferim (Silver Bear, Berlinale 2015), The Summer of
Sangailé (Best Direction, Sundance 2015), No One’s
Child (Audience Award and FIPRESCI Prize, Venice
IFF 2014), Cosmos (Best Direction, Locarno 2015),
Losers (Grand Prix, Moscow IFF 2015), Koza (Best
Director and FIPRESCI Prize, GoEast IFF 2015),
Brothers (Grand Prix, Critics’ Week, Locarno IFF
2015), Liza The Fox-Fairy (Best Film, Fantastic Film
Festival Brussels 2015), The Lesson (finalist of Prix
LUX 2015, Best Young Director, San Sebastian
2014), Gods (best Polish film of 2014), Home Care
(Best Actress, Karlovy Vary 2015)...
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Short film programmes
Besides feature films, CinEast 2015 also presented
a large variety of short films. The programme
featured four short film marathons (one dedicated to
documentary shorts, one to animated shorts and two
to fiction shorts), each offering about 130 minutes of
carefully selected recent short films from the
participating countries. The marathons were divided
into two parts with snacks and drinks offered to
viewers during the break.
The audience had the opportunity to vote for the
Audience Awards for Best Short Film in each of the
three categories.
Moreover, a special short film evening was organised
at the Ancien Cinéma in Vianden. Altogether, festival-
goers had the opportunity to discover almost 50 fresh
short films from Central and Eastern Europe.
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Festival guests
CinEast 2015 hosted over 25 well-known directors,
actors and producers, among others:
Želimir Žilnik (director of Logbook Serbistan), Ivaylo
Hristov (director of Losers), Andrzej Chyra (actor in
Carte Blanche), Julija Steponaityté (actor in The
Summer of Sangailé), Martti Helde (director of In the
Crosswind), Andrea Sedláčková (director of Fair
Play), Ina Ivanceanu (director of Free Spaces),
Magdalena Czerwińska (actor in Gods), Peter Baláž
(actor in Koza), Danijel Hočevar (producer of Home),
Gábor Hörcher (director of Drifter)...
In addition, several Luxembourgish guests took part
in debates during the festival. Many film
professionals from CEE countries and Luxembourg
also participated in the 4th co–production
workshop "CinEast Pro" (organised at the
FilmLand in Kehlen) on October 19, a networking
event aimed at enhancing collaboration between
producers from Luxembourg and their colleagues
from the East (with the support of Film Fund
Luxembourg).
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Photographic exhibition and charity project
For the fifth time in a row, the CinEast festival
featured an extensive photographic exhibition, this
time related to the thematic cycle ‘Urban Stories’,
reflecting on the theme of the city and its inhabitants
both in Eastern and Western Europe a quarter of a
century after the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was
organised in collaboration with and with the support
of Neimënster..
Over 120 works by 8 artists from Poland, Slovenia,
Serbia, Switzerland and Luxembourg were exhibited
in the Cloister of Neimënster for the duration of the
festival (8 to 25 October). The exhibition was freely
accessible and was seen by thousands of visitors.
After the festival, the exhibition photographs were put
up for auction to support the festival’s charity
project. All the money collected (over EUR 3,500),
including donations from festival-goers as well as
proceeds from the sale of the photographs, will be
used to purchase air purifiers for a hospice for
seriously ill children run by the ‘Gajusz‘ foundation in
Lodz (Poland).
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Balkan Night with Klezmafour Melusina, 11 October
The first special event of the festival was a live
performance by the Polish group Klezmafour,
followed by a DJ set by DJ Kosta Kostov.
The audience had a unique opportunity to enjoy a
genuine blend of traditional klezmer music with
Balkan and gypsy elements. The band’s energetic
performance met with an immense response from
the crowd, which would not let the musicians leave
without several encores. The night then continued
until 3 a.m. with an eclectic Balkan music set
delivered by Bulgaria-born DJ Kosta Kostov from
Cologne.
The event was attended by more than 600 people
and was a remarkable success.
Gypsy Soul Rotondes, 16 October
A special fun evening dedicated to discovering
various aspects of gypsy/Roma culture.
Almost 300 attendees were eager to learn more
about Roma lifestyle and traditions through our quiz,
the entertaining documentary Pretty Dyana,
traditional music and dance presentation by a
special guest, as well as a spectacular, live street-art
performance.
Throughout the evening people had the opportunity
to taste traditional dishes from the countries of
Central and Eastern Europe that are home to large
Roma communities. The ultimate highlight –
energetic rhythms played by DJ dr. gonZo, inspired
to a large extent by gypsy and Balkan music– made
this unique celebration of cultural diversity even
more of a success.
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Włodek Pawlik Trio Neimënster, 17 October
The evening with the world famous Polish jazz
pianist Włodek Pawlik was a real treat for jazz
lovers. Around 250 fans came to see and listen to
the exceptional Grammy Award-winning musician
performing for the very first time in Luxembourg.
Włodek Pawlik was accompanied by Cezary Konrad
(on drums) and Paweł Pańta (on bass), and the trio
mainly performed compositions from Pawlik’s two
latest albums Night In Calisia and America, as well
as several adaptations of Chopin and film music.
The audience was very enthusiastic and rewarded
this memorable show with long ovations.
Concert organised in collaboration avec Neimënster
and the Autumn Leaves festival.
Ciné-concert by Neuvěřitelno Cinémathèque, 20 October
It has been a tradition to include a live film
soundtrack (ciné-concert) in the programme of the
festival – a format much enjoyed by the Luxembourg
audiences.
This year, the 1927 Czechoslovak film An Old
Gangster’s Molls, an exuberant slapstick comedy
mixing invented murders, chases and doppelgänger
scenes, was accompanied by live music by the
Czech trio Neuvěřitelno. Using numerous
instruments as well as found objects, the group,
performing right in front of the screen, enriched the
atmosphere of the film with their rock, jazz, blues
and experimental sounds..
The more than 120 people attending the event
enjoyed the fantastic performance and rewarded the
musicians with enthusiastic applause.
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Closing Event with Freeborn Brothers and Sean & Zander Sang & Klang, 24 October
The Closing Event, which attracted around 200
people, included two concerts as well as traditional
food. The Californian veteran duo Sean & Zander
opened the evening with their original hybrid of folk,
country, bluegrass and gospel, infused with a good
dose of energy and spirituality, After that it was the
Polish trio Freeborn Brothers who literally boosted
the public with their high-energy mix of various
influences, well-defined by the title of their second
album Gypsy Hobo Trash Grass. And to finish the
night in style both groups played a few songs
together, to please the ecstatic crowd.
Throughout the event the audience also had the
opportunity to try Polish and Ukrainian food and
drinks.
Free Spaces at Mudam Mudam, 25 October
For the second year in a row the CinEast festival co-
organised a special event with the Musée d’Art
Moderne (Mudam). On the last festival day, the
museum’s auditorium hosted the Luxembourg
premiere of the documentary Free Spaces by the
Austrian director Ina Ivanceanu, which captures and
reflects on various ways of artistic expression in
public spaces in four Eastern European cities.
Over 80 people attended the screening and took
part in the interesting discussion with the director
and representatives of the film’s production
company Amour Fou (based in Luxembourg).
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Gastronomy events
The CinEast festival also presented opportunities
to explore the national cuisines of the countries of
Central and Eastern Europe. A food evening at the
Brasserie Le Neumünster attracted over 80 people
who enjoyed a selection of traditional dishes from
across the region as well as regional beers and
wines. Moreover, specialities inspired by the Roma
traditions were available at the Gypsy Soul event at
Rotondes, and the Klezmafour concert at Melusina
was also an opportunity to taste some Eastern
European dishes at the restaurant and later on at
the concert venue. Typical Polish, Ukrainian and
Balkan food was also available at the Closing Event
held at Sang & Klang.
In addition, culinary encounters were also organised
directly in the cinemas before or after selected
screenings, with Serbian ajvar, Ukrainian pareniki
and other regional snacks and drinks. During the
whole of the 8th edition, festival-goers could also
enjoy Eastern European snacks and sweets at the
festival’s minibar set up at the Cinémathèque.
Media coverage
The 8th edition of the CinEast festival was
covered by a large number of different
media outlets in Luxembourg, the Greater
Region, the countries of Central and
Eastern Europe, as well as international
media specialising in cinema (e.g.
Cineuropa.org).
In addition to wide coverage by the media
partners of the festival, many articles were
published in all the major newspapers in
the country and numerous magazines. The
festival was also extensively covered by
radio stations (100,7, Radio Ara City, etc.),
the most important TV channel in the
country (RTL) and a large number of web
portals.
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Partners
The 2015 edition of the CinEast festival would not
have been possible without the support of our
partners and we would like to thank them warmly for
their trust, support and encouragement.
We would especially like to thank our two main
institutional partners: the City of Luxembourg and
the Ministry of Culture of Luxembourg, whose long-
term commitment to our project has allowed the
festival to keep going and continue to evolve.
We would also like to thank our main screening
partners (Cinemathèque, Neimënster and Utopia
SA), the film institutions (especially Film Fund
Luxembourg and the Polish Film Institute), our main
private sponsors BGL BNP Paribas, Orange and
Luxair, as well as the embassies, the cultural centres
and all other partners that made this 8th edition
possible.