Jihlava FF: Support to Kovalenko, Turajlić and Kerekes

CREATOR: gd-jpeg v1.0 (using IJG JPEG v62), quality = 95

Strong move from Jihlava FF, copy paste from press release of today. Personal note – all three are for me important directors, who have in previous films shown their talent. And here comes what is to be expected:

110,000 EUR WAS DISTRIBUTED TO DOCUMENTARY PROJECTS FROM SLOVAKIA, UKRAINE/POLAND, AND SERBIA

The Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival and Czech entrepreneur Jan Barta joined forces to support outstanding auteur filmmaking from Central and Eastern Europe by launching the Ji.hlava / JB Films support scheme. The recipients of the support were announced on Wednesday, October 30 at during the Industry Days of the 28th edition of Ji.hlava IDFF.

Power, Elaine, directed and produced by Serbian director Mila Turajlić received a co-production support 40,000 EUR. In this memoir documentary, Elaine Mokhtefi revisits her days of radical activism tracing more than half a century of the rise and fall of progressive struggle. The estimated date of premiere is January 2025.

With Love, from the Frontline, directed by Ukrainian director Alisia Kovalenko (photo) and produced by Polish producer Katarzyna Kuczyńska (Emerging Producer 2023) received a co-production support 40,000 EUR. This personal project is based on the director’s private footages taken on the Ukrainian frontline from the early spring to summer of 2022. The film is expected to premiere in the first half of 2025.

Wishing on a Star directed and produced by Slovak director Peter Kerekes received a co-production support 30,000 EUR. Underneath the humorous mood, this documentary intends to be a tender and empathic investigation into a strong human need: looking for meaning in a cosmos filled with endless chaos. The film has already premiered at the Venice Film Festival and is screened at the Ji.hlava IDFF.

All revenues generated from the JI.HLAVA / JB FILMS co-production share will be reinvested into additional documentary film projects from Central and Eastern Europe in the future.

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Tue Steen Müller
Tue Steen Müller

Müller, Tue Steen
Documentary Consultant and Critic, DENMARK

Worked with documentary films for more than 20 years at the Danish Film Board, as press officer, festival representative and film consultant/commissioner. Co-founder of Balticum Film and TV Festival, Filmkontakt Nord, Documentary of the EU and EDN (European Documentary Network).
Awards: 2004 the Danish Roos Prize for his contribution to the Danish and European documentary culture. 2006 an award for promoting Portuguese documentaries. 2014 he received the EDN Award “for an outstanding contribution to the development of the European documentary culture”. 2016 The Cross of the Knight of the Order for Merits to Lithuania. 2019 a Big Stamp at the 15th edition of ZagrebDox. 2021 receipt of the highest state decoration, Order of the Three Stars, Fourth Class, for the significant contribution to the development and promotion of Latvian documentary cinema outside Latvia. In 2022 he received an honorary award at DocsBarcelona’s 25th edition having served as organizer and programmer since the start of the festival.
From 1996 until 2005 he was the first director of EDN (European Documentary Network). From 2006 a freelance consultant and teacher in workshops like Ex Oriente, DocsBarcelona, Archidoc, Documentary Campus, Storydoc, Baltic Sea Forum, Black Sea DocStories, Caucadoc, CinéDOC Tbilisi, Docudays Kiev, Dealing With the Past Sarajevo FF as well as programme consultant for the festivals Magnificent7 in Belgrade, DOCSBarcelona, Verzio Budapest, Message2Man in St. Petersburg and DOKLeipzig. Teaches at the Zelig Documentary School in Bolzano Italy.

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