Magnificent7 2017 13th Edition

The 13th and last post from the 13th edition of the Magnificent7 Festival in Belgrade. The photos shown are from the closing night, where ”In Loco Parentis” by Neasa Ní Chianáin and David Rane was shown to an audience of the size you can see from the photos. Before the screening the two directors behind the Irish film received an award from the local Bel Medic ”for creative emphasis of humanistic values”, a diploma accompanied by an envelope.

The photos… from the stage I asked the photographers to turn around and catch the most magnificent audience I know of, applauding the festival, the filmmakers, the staff of the Sava Center, the team behind the festival and the festival directors Svetlana and Zoran Popovic, who were on stage. Standing ovation from more than 2000 spectators, who came to watch – an estimate of the attendance during the whole week is that 7500-8000 went to watch the Magnificent7 program of 7 films. One film per day, Q&A’s for around 50 people in a packed vip room and the day after meeting of directors with around 25 young filmmakers in two hour sessions. This year the festival welcomed directors from 6 out of the 7 films: Sergei Loznitsa, Jérome le Maire, Nikolaus Geyrhalter, Miroslav Janek, Audrius Stonys, Neasa Ní Chianáin and David Rane. Only Cosima Lange from the opening film ”Hello, I’m David” (Helfgott) could not come as she was not allowed to travel because of her pregnancy.

From an ”internal” perspective the hospitality was again second to none. Wonderful hotel, the Crowne Plaza, from where you can access the Sava Center cinema – and – as some Serbian filmmakers suggested as a logline for the festival guests: 7 films, 14 restaurants! With a reference to the fact that the festival team finds lunch and dinner restaurants for the 7 days.

Including me and my wife for the 13th time. HVALA!

http://magnificent7festival.org/en/

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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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