BPF 2020 - Projects

Keyhole

Set in one of many Eastern European panel houses, Keyhole is a neorealist observation of the life of a family of three, their relationship as well as their confined everyday happiness. All of it comes to a tragic end when the family gets separated by a disastrous accumulation of a pre-existing health condition, unfortunate fate, and a feeble lock design.

Director Juri Krutii
Producer: Nell Cunningham
Genre: Fiction
Estimated running time: 17 min
Production country: Estonia
Estimated budget: 15 000 EUR
Funding in place: 1 800 EUR
Production company

Founded in March 2020 by a group of film theorists and practitioners, Pensive Pictures is a production company dedicated to facilitating the works of Estonian and international artists, supporting independent filmmaking, and collaborating on projects with fellow creatives that share our thoughtful practices and goals. We embrace the intellectual promotion and celebration of arts and culture through various mediums. Specializing in a nuanced approach to constructing audiovisual experiences that resonate with audiences through multilingual writing and direction.

Director Juri Krutii

An Estonian/Ukrainian screenwriter and director driven by a bold visual approach to storytelling. Juri’s film background takes root in film studies and has then developed in practice resulting with an MFA in writing/directing from Screen Academy of Scotland as well as the UK-wide well received debut short. Heavily influenced by theory and cinema of immersion, Juri strives to create culturally relevant and visually compelling work. While being comfortable practicing various filmmaking mediums, Juri’s work often seeks to establish contact with the viewer with the use of vigorous visual language and valiant pacing. Provoking thought when delving into themes of trauma, isolation, and the elusive notion of existence resting deep in one’s psyche.

Producer Nell Cunningham

German/American writer and producer Nell is inspired by the strangeness of life. Both her writing and producing are based on creativity and empathy. With a background in film studies, exhibition, archive and practical knowledge, her goal is to make films that are intellectually stimulating and to provide a welcoming on-set experience. Her extensive experience in working with children is another source of inspiration to be playful and curious. As a film producer, she aims to put these ideas into action by ensuring a generous working environment and as a writer to tell stories that activate and empower the viewer.

Rabbit Hole

When investigating an abandoned house, Agnes, 11, finds a tied-up Russian man in the basement. The little girl must decide if she should free him before Mihkel, 17, returns to finish the job.

Director: Ragne Mandri
Producer: Laura García Baeza
Genre: Fiction
Estimated running time: 15 min.
Production country: Estonia
Estimated budget: 8 000 EUR
Funding in place: 5 000 EUR
Production company

Kino Eyes is a two year Joint Master’s Degree with a brand-new highly intensive fiction filmmaking focus supported by ERASMUS+, the European Union’s education body.

Director Ragne Mandri

Ragne is a film director from Estonia. She graduated from the Baltic Film and Media School as a director in 2009. Since then she has worked on several Estonian feature films as a 1st AD and participated in numerous film workshops such as Berlinale Talents, Scanorama Pitching Workshop, and a two-month-long directing exchange programme at the Communication University of China. From 2011 to 2016 she directed two Estonian prime time television series for the commercial TV channels TV3 and Kanal2. The comedy series Pillow Club (2014) for TV3 won the audience award for the Best TV Series of the Year.

Producer Laura García Baeza

Laura García began her film career in the production of The Man from Another Dimension by Wes Whittaker. She also produced Carlos Tapia’s short film Satan, selected for La Semaine de la Critique in Cannes 2019. In 2018, she worked on Juan Manuel Sepúlveda’s La sombra del desierto, a documentary that premiered at Cinema du Réel in Paris. That same year she also released the short film Aurora, her directorial debut that premiered at the Habana Film Festival and was nominated for a Mexican Academy Award.

Skin of a Mandarin (Winner)

Skin of a Mandarin is a sensitive story about ingrained traditions and beliefs through a world of a young woman Anna (25), whose mother has freshly passed away. She feels the necessity to say goodbye to her mother in her own organic and intimate way by dressing her mother’s body with her own hands. This act is not allowed by the rules of the Funeral Office, because it is medically inadvisable regarding the condition of the body after the accident. The story brings out empathy between two women with different world views in a very complex situation.

Director: Jaanika Arum
Producer: Tiina Savi
Genre: Fiction
Estimated running time: 15 min.
Production country: Estonia
Estimated budget: 50 000 EUR
Production company

Estonian-based Kartuliõis is focused on independent films with a fresh approach and working with up and coming talent. Kartuliõis is a young and dynamic production company whose core team has great experience in producing music videos, short films, and features.

Director Jaanika Arum

Jaanika Arum graduated from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre in 2014 as an actress. She has varied experience acting in both film and theatre. For a wider audience she is mostly known for her work in the following films: Free Range by Veiko Õunpuu, The Days That Confused by Triin Ruumet, The Polar boy by Anu Aun, and Purge by Antti J.Jokinen. Jaanika Arum has created two solo performances: Falling.together.moment (Tartu New Theatre, 2015) and Betweenspace (Von Krahl Theatre, 2017). She has collaborated with different international and local artists for video and room installations. This year she graduated with a master’s degree in Contemporary Art from the Estonian Academy of Arts.

Producer Tiina Savi

Estonian-based producer Tiina Savi studied Diplomacy, International Business Economics, and Documentary Filmmaking. Since 2015 she has been working as a producer and casting director for numerous local and international feature films.

Elk | Alnis

A young man, Privert, is in a psychoneurological hospital, because he thinks that he is followed by ravens that want to attack him. The doctor tries to find out where this obsession comes from. During the conversation with the doctor Privert says that his brother Ringold, who is a famous actor, after a long time has come to his forest house to hunt. During the hunt something happened, but Ringold asked the brother to never talk about it publicly. Privert, drifting into his memories, gradually reveals the story of him and his brother hunting for roebucks. Deprived of sleep and led by greed, the brothers fired into the eyes of an elk. Ringold runs away cowardly, leaving Privert alone at the scene of the event. At night, the wounded elk wanders around Privert`s house like a ghost.

Director: Lauris Ābele
Producer: Sintija Heine Sintija Heine
Genre: Fiction
Estimated running time: 26 min.
Production country: Latvia
Estimated budget: 12 570 EUR
Funding in place: 7 620 EUR
Production company

Tritone Studio is a film production and film-service studio based in Riga, Latvia. Established in 2009, it started as an animation studio and post-production studio, but soon creative minds started to develop and produce their own visions. What they are doing: art-house and experimental short films, documentaries, animation, and ‘auteur’ feature films.

Director Lauris Ābele

Lauris Ābele plays music and directs films – the short films Curonians, Hike 44, and Castratus the boar, which was recognized not only in Latvia but also in Europe. Lauris has also made the feature films Baltic Tribes and Troubled Minds.

Producer Sintija Heine

Sintija is a young producer and location manager with 4 years of experience working in the film industry. She has worked on student short films and full-length international projects such as Oleg, Heirs of the Night, Hero, Survive, Warhunt, etc. She is studying Audiovisual and stage production at the Latvian Academy of Culture.

The Man Who Scooped The Sea (Winner and Special Mention)

Due to his unique claimed ability to see in the dark, a coast guard from Lithuania accidentally encounters a wild man on the neutral strip of the Curonian Spit. Though heavily covered with overgrown pelage, the ‘Robinson’ looks no older than 40. His name is Timur Tshadadze. The man states that he is a Georgian who started living as a hermit back in the middle of the 20th century. Timur reveals that he was born in 1928 and moved to the Spit right after the end of WWII.

Director / producer: Zurab Dzhidzhilava
Co-producer: Elene Margvelashvili (Georgia)
Genre: mockumentary
Estimated running time: 25 min.
Production country: Latvia, Lithuania, Georgia
Estimated budget: 35 000 EUR
Funding in place: 5 000 EUR
Director / Producer Zurab Dzhidzhilava

Zurab Dzhidzhilava was born in 1980 in Moscow, Russia. He graduated from VGIK (The Russian State University of Cinematography). Experienced in commercials and shorts as a director, scriptwriter, and producer. Shortlisted for Cannes Lions for commercials, shortlisted for international film festivals as a director. The winner of Disney Russia director’s Contest in 2019. Author and director of the novel Allegro Moderato (Disney). Based in Latvia – Liepaja and Riga.

Tool | Sprungulis

17th century. The Duke of Courland (60) returns from the colony in Gambia, Africa, with a mysterious black box. It turns out to be a plant with powers of medicine and even arousal. During the fancy celebration, servant Anti (17) observes an orgy of his noble masters induced by the fruits of the African plant. At night, together with his young girlfriend Mara (16), they steal and taste the forbidden fruits and dissolve in a mystical experience among themselves and wild nature. The theft is exposed but Mara is the only one to get punished. But this doesn’t stop Anti from saying – I NEED MORE!

Directors: Raitis Ābele, Harijs Grundmanis
Producer: Raitis Ābele
Genre: Animation
Estimated running time: 15 min.
Production country: Latvia
Estimated budget: 17 000 EUR
Funding in place: 2 000 EUR
Production company

Tritone Studio is a film production and film-service studio based in Riga, Latvia. Established in 2009, it started as an animation and post-production studio, but soon creative minds started to develop and produce their own visions. What they are doing: art-house and experimental short films, documentaries, animations, and ‘auteur’ feature films.

Director / Producer Raitis Ābele

Raitis Ābele studied filmmaking at the New York Film Academy and also obtained a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology from the University of Latvia. His most recent works are the historical docudrama Baltic Tribes | Last Pagans of Europe, and the psychedelic cinema-trip-dramedy Troubled Minds (to be released in late 2020). He made his first short film when he was 12 but international success only came much later when Raitis and Lauris Ābele co-directed the short film Castratus the Boar (alumni of Baltic Pitching Forum 2013) and won the Grand Prix at Tampere Short Film Festival in 2015. Apart from that the brothers play and compose music in two rock and post-metal bands – Soundarcade and Sonntags Legion.

Director Harijs Grundmanis

Harijs Grundmanis is a Latvian artist and animator. Together with the brothers Abele he has been collaborating on several art and film projects. He has worked on the Norwegian animated series My Body Belongs to Me, which won the Emmy Kids Award for Best Educational Animation for Children. He worked as a character designer in an animated film that won the Annecy Feature Film Contrechamp Award. He collaborated with Paramount Pictures on the movie The Rhythm Section and on Disney’s Thor: Ragnarok, for which he drew posters for marketing purposes. He draws movie posters for premieres and classic film screenings in Latvia. He has written and illustrated the book Wood Pants, about weird forest residents who protect the forest from attackers like Bottlestein, Canminator, Plasticia, and many more.

Bruno

Bruno is a tribute to the famous Italian architect, car-racer, engineer, inventor, photographer, and designer Carlo Mollino. Bruno is a classic hero of his time – a stylish and successful man living in a world full of technological dreams of the retro-futuristic 1950s. He lives on a small island in a private residence. He owns a large fashionable furniture company. Bruno’s world is a childhood dream come true, where nobody is welcome. Technology is his best friend. Bruno is very content in his environment, but after a trivial event a woman-robot – a perfect housekeeper – tech-savvy and a great maid – appears in Bruno’s house. Bruno’s life starts changing unexpectedly. The new robot harmoniously blends into the home environment, she finds contact with other artificial residents of the house and gradually wraps up Bruno with endless care. Over time, Bruno loses his independence and self-confidence, and their roles begin to swap places.

Director: Danas Bereznickas
Producer: Gabija Budreckytė
Genre: Animation
Estimated running time: 12 min.
Production country: Lithuania
Estimated budget: 110 000 EUR
Funding in place: 30 150 EUR
Production company

Kinomind Films is a dynamic development, production, and distribution company based in Lithuania. Kinomind Films dissects subjects which emerge from mindfulness, positive psychology, and a search for identity in the contemporary world, reaching a global audience. Kinomind Films believes in the importance of cross border collaborations when creating content for Film, TV, and online platforms.

Director Danas Bereznickas

Danas is a director, animator, and graphic artist with 20 years of experience living and working around the globe. He has previously directed children’s TV series and short films. In the last decade he has been working as an animator on world-renowned European feature films, including the Oscar-nominated Song of The Sea and Breadwinner. He graduated from Vilnius Academy of Arts with a master’s degree in Graphics and Fine Arts and received a prize for his innovative animated e-book The Missing Book. Also, Danas collaborates with musicians and visual artists on art projects.

Producer Gabija Budreckytė

Gabija is a co-founder of the film development, production, and distribution company Kinomind Films. Gabija works as a producer on animated and documentary films. Happy Go Hopscotch is a multi-platform project with a Christmas special first broadcast on RTE in 2018 and on YLE in 2019, to name a few. A Happy Go Hopscotch TV series pilot was completed in summer 2020. She is currently developing the animated short Bruno, a Happy Go Hopscotch TV special, and two creative documentary projects.

Tell It to My Heart | Pasakyk, kad myli

Laura (28) decides to break up with Mantas (30), but still waits for her new rental home. Mantas doesn’t take it all too seriously. However, as the status of their relationship changes, their common life starts to go upside down.

Director: Elena Rožukaitė
Producer: Gabrielė Misevičiūtė
Genre: Fiction
Estimated running time: 23 min.
Production country: Lithuania
Estimated budget: 25 000 EUR
Funding in place: 15 000 EUR
Production company

Tremora is an independent production company, founded in 2005 by producer Ieva Norvilienė and director Ignas Miškinis, who have professional experience in advertising, short and feature film production, and distribution. With international contacts on board, Tremora can effectively collaborate on interesting and original film co-productions.

Director Elena Rožukaitė

Elena Rožukaitė started her Film Directing studies at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre in 2012, after graduating from Vilnius University with a BA in Philosophy. Simultaneously, she’s been working in the production of films and commercials, as well as producing the works of young filmmakers.

Producer Gabrielė Misevičiūtė

Gabrielė Misevičiūtė began her career in the film industry in 2018 and since then has worked on the production and/or distribution of 7 Lithuanian feature films ranging from comedy to arthouse. She has also worked as a production manager of several video commercials in various production houses. Having accumulated the necessary skills and knowledge of the filmmaking process, she is now starting to collaborate with talented young directors and cinematographers as a producer.

The One Who Knows | Ta, kuri žino (Winner)

Ūla is an introverted and anxious teenager who likes swimming. One ordinary morning at swimming practice, she is taken on an unexpected adventure, through which she grows-up, learns to accept herself and to see her body anew.

Director: Eglė Davidavičė
Producer: Agnė Adomėnė
Genre: Animation
Estimated running time: 10 min.
Production country: Lithuania
Estimated budget: 88 500 EUR
Funding in place: 16 200 EUR
Production company

Art Shot is an independent Lithuanian production company, focused on the development and production of artistic animated films. The founder and producer of the company, Agnė Adomėnė aims to produce visually engaging animations with the potential for international co-production and distribution.

Director Eglė Davidavičė

Lithuanian-born director and animator Eglė Davidavičė began making short films at the Skalvija Film Academy and continued her animation studies at the Vilnius Academy of Arts from which she graduated in 2019. Her debut animated film My Birth was nominated for the Best Student Film award by the Lithuanian Film Academy in 2018. Her second animated film Combing has also recently started its journey through international film festivals.

Producer Agnė Adomėnė

The creative producer Agnė Adomėnė focuses on developing and producing artistic animated films. In 2012, she founded the production company Art Shot, her first completed film was awarded by the Lithuanian Film Academy and selected by many international festivals (Ragnarok by Urtė and Johan Oettinger). Agnė is also one of the founders and a board member of The Lithuanian Animation Association, a board member of The Independent Producers Association of Lithuania, and a member of WIFT LT (Women in Film and Television).

Dessert Dachshund | Deserowy Jamnik

Dessert Dachshund is the story of a dachshund that adorns wedding cakes. The first scenes of the film introduce the protagonist. He flexes, stretches, and performs various acrobatics. Upon presenting itself, the dachshund, thanks to a special apparatus, is placed into a wedding cake by scientists of the “Dig In” bakery. It is quite comfortable inside the cake. It dances, juggles, and even smokes cigarettes. In its joyful jives, it is accompanied by the flavor of the cake mass.

Director: Betina Bożek
Producers: Aneta Zagorska, Robert Sowa
Genre: Animation
Estimated running time: 8 min.
Production country: Poland
Estimated budget: 40 000 EUR
Funding in place: 27 659 EUR
Production company

The Krakow Animation Center produces projects in the field of various types of animation. Located in Krakow, Poland, the Krakow Animation Center offers film production for author’s films, debuts, intermedia projects, co-productions, leads, spots, motion design, in all animation techniques (2D, 3D, hand-drawing, puppets, and stop motion). They offer production support – storyboards, moodboards for animated films, feature films, games, and more – character design, set design, compositing, post-production, blue box, motion capture, and a sound studio.

Director Betina Bożek

Betina Bożek was born in 1993 in Krakow. She is a graduate of the Graphic Design Department at the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow. She completed her studies with a diploma specializing in animation. She is a co-founder of the artistic Group Brzuch. Her chosen fields of activity are illustration and animated film. She is a winner of international competitions, artistic scholarships, and film festivals.

Producer Aneta Zagorska

Aneta Zagorska is a film producer from Krakow, Poland. Since 2003 she has run the Barton Film production studio. From her beginning as a producer and executive producer she made several feature and documentary films. On her initiative in 2015, Krakow Film Klaster – a film production studio in Małopolska – was created. She has been its president and supervisory producer since the start.

Producer Robert Sowa

Robert Sowa is a director of animated films and a producer, born in 1972 in Krakow. Currently he is a head of the Animated Film Workshop at the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow. He deals with original animated film, painting, and photography. In his animated films, he uses the language of associations and visual creation. Robert Sowa is also the author of multimedia projects which combine animation with contemporary music, among others. He has also worked on the creation of many feature films and documentaries.

Ebony

After being sold to a Polish aristocrat by a merchant, Jean finds himself in a strange country, serving in an empty, luxury palace. His mistress Izabela is incredibly excited to have him, and engages him in a number of games and entertaining activities – all the while ignoring his personal views and feelings. While not outwardly cruel or disrespectful, her passive-aggressive racism makes him question whether his position is truly enviable, or whether – just like a parrot that the mistress has bought – he is just another exotic addition to the palace. When confronted with a blatantly racist guest at the palace who’s willing to physically hurt him, Jean has to decide whether he’s going to fight for himself, even at the cost of losing his job and potentially being stranded in a foreign country, without financial aid, or the knowledge of the language.

Director: Karolina Żebrowska
Producer: Shruti Sidhan
Genre: Fiction
Estimated running time: 12 min.
Production country: Poland, Estonia
Estimated budget: 30 000 EUR
Funding in place: 4 000 EUR
Production company

Cowdaze is an independent production company based in Estonia, registered by Shruti Sidhan, as sole owner and freelance producer. Its main activities include motion picture, video, and television programme productions.

Director Karolina Żebrowska

Karolina Żebrowska is a Polish-born and based director, writer, and content creator. After graduating from Film Studies (bachelor) and Film Directing (masters) she moved on to freelance work, both commercial and her own projects. After several of her videos went viral both in Polish and foreign media (Daily Mail, Huffington Post, Refinery29, Elle, Business Insider), she started posting videos and shorts regularly to her YouTube channel, amassing 700k subscribers and 53 million views in five years. Karolina’s stories and works focus largely on the past, what we can learn from it, and how it relates to the present.

Producer Shruti Sidhan

Shruti Sidhan is an Indian born, Estonian-based freelance film, video, and print producer. She has produced 6 short films, with an interest in period dramas, with 7+years of experience in managing challenging productions around the world. Shruti has a master’s degree in Film Production, a postgraduate degree in Film & TV Production, and a bachelor’s degree in Business Management.

Team Building (Special Mention)

The dog days are over! Not only did Ada spend a great night with Kuba, her high school sweetheart, but was also offered her dream job! Things take an unexpected turn during Ada’s first day in the office, which happens to also be Kuba’s birthday. Ada learns that romantic relationships are against the company’s rules of conduct. Ada disregards them and confesses her crush for Kuba in a surprise birthday video that is recorded in the office. Eventually, under huge pressure from her outraged team, Ada loses confidence in this idea and records proper wishes instead. During the party, Ada wants to communicate with Kuba, but it is difficult since he came with his wife and is avoiding her. Confused and betrayed, Ada takes revenge. Once she realizes that it could cost her the job, she struggles to repair the damage. While doing it, Ada accidentally discovers the team’s dirty secret.

Director: Mateusz Pacewicz
Producers: Ludka Kierczak
Genre: dramedy
Estimated running time: 20 min.
Production country: Poland, Czech Republic
Estimated budget: 84 700 EUR
Funding in place: 18 320 EUR
Production company

Kosmonaut is a production company based in Warsaw and set up by Bionaut (an award-winning film and TV production company based in Prague, Czech Republic) and Jan Komasa to develop and produce high-quality content for Polish and international audiences. Jan Komasa is one of the most respected and talented Polish directors today. The company is currently developing new projects with several Polish writers and directors, and is a member of the Polish Producers Alliance.

Director Mateusz Pacewicz

Corpus Christi, Mateusz’s first written feature, tells the story of a young criminal who poses as a Catholic priest. The film, directed by Jan Komasa, premiered at the 76th Venice Film Festival in the Giornate degli Autori where it won two awards. The film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. His second movie The Hater won Best International Narrative Feature at Tribeca FF 2020 (Netflix has acquired global rights to the movie). In 2016, Mateusz co-wrote & co-directed Heat, a short film accepted to the Sundance Festival in 2017. Since then, Mateusz has combined screenwriting with directing. He is a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Producer Ludka Kierczak

Ludka Kierczak is a producer from Poland, based in Prague, Czech Republic. At Kosmonaut, Ludka develops projects for TV series and films. Before joining the company, she gained experience as a freelancer, working on feature films, short films, music videos, and commercials. Ludka graduated with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Film and TV Production from the Łódź Film School. She continues to broaden her knowledge by taking part in courses and workshops (Cartoon Springboard, Midpoint Shorts 2019-2020, Accelerator for Young Entrepreneurs of the AV Sector, ACE Producers Training Days 2019, Script Program at Wajda School, New Horizons Studio+).