TALLINN, Estonia — Industry @ Tallinn & Baltic Event, one of the leading industry events in Northern Europe, closed Nov. 22 with an awards ceremony where the focus country Germany dominated the list of 15 winning projects at various stages of development or post-production, on top of two accolades to promising producers.
For the first time, the public was invited to cast their vote for each category, which gave more chances of a larger number of projects standing out at the market.
Among the most coveted accolades, the €20,000 ($20,800) Eurimages Co-Production Development Award from the Baltic Event Co-Production Market was handed out to the German-Bulgarian project “The Worker” helmed by Bulgarian-born Eliza Petkova, whose debut feature “Zhaleika” earned a special mention at the 66th Berlinale.
The drama about Roma Bulgarian Gorgi, pushed into a life of lies and deceit in Berlin to try to make ends meet and maintain his family in a Bulgarian village, was praised by the jury for its portrait of displacement in Europe, which “takes us and the protagonist on an unexpected journey. A journey during which the director invites us to rethink the meaning of community and masculinity.” The film is being produced by Nicolas Konauer for Germany’s ROW Pictures and Fourmat Film.
For the first time, films for kids and youth joined the market pitches, an inclusion that benefitted the Ukrainian helmer Sveta Solovyova (“Oxygen Station”) and writer Ivan Tymchenko who scooped the €20,000 Eurimages Special Co-Production Development Award for their heart-warming animation/documentary hybrid “English Lesson.”
The pic consists of six-seven stories told by Ukrainian children during an online lesson, who confide about their life experience of war. Ukrainian producer Svitlana Soloviova of SvitlorforFilm is co-producing with Estonia, Sweden and the Czech Republic. The pic also grabbed a €1,000 ($1,040) grant from Many More Films.
In the Works in Progress session, the €7,000 ($7,280) best international project pitch went to Greek debut helmer Stefanos Tsivopoulos for “Late Shift” (“a.k.a Kindness”). The story of a Romanian single mum with a history of activism who struggles to fit in in Greek society is being produced by Nikos Smpiliris for Boo Production. “This film deals with a timely topic regarding migration and assimilation through the unique lens of the Greece process, featuring captivating acting by the lead actress,” said the jury.
Among other accolades, the Special Mention nod went to Switzerland’s “Wolves” by Jonas Ulrich set in the underground music scene, with Bartosz Bielenia (from the Oscar-nominated “Corpus Christi”) as lead vocalist. Dynamic Frame is producing.
Seasoned Latvian producer Uljana Kim (Studio Uljana Kim), recipient of last year’s Eurimages International Co-production Award, scooped the Best Baltic Project Prize with “Renovation” helmed by Columbia U graduate Gabrielė Urbonaitė, multi-prized for her shorts “The Swimmer” and “Back.” “Capturing the anxious nature of young adults in their thirties, this piece brings forth rich elements of self-discovery and the burgeoning yet complex emotions of love and companionship,” said the jury. Kim is co-producing with Lithuania’s Alise Rogule of Mima Films.
Another debut filmmaker trained in the U.S. – the Finn Risto Tuominen, a former graduate from L.A.’s American Film Institute – scooped the top award at the popular European Genre Forum for his thriller “The Dark Architect,” about a young student who moves into a decaying apartment building and is given a gruesome task by its residents. Established Finnish producer Ilkka Matila of MRP Matila Röhr Productions (“Mother of Mine,” “The Eternal Road”) is producing with Estonia’s Taska Film.
Meanwhile, two projects from Latin America – “Emi” by Argentinian-born Ezequiel Erriquez Mena and “The River,” by emerging Chilean writer-director Cristóbal García, won respectively the Best Just Film Project from the kids and youth section and the public award.
Reflecting on the 23rd Industry@Tallinn& Baltic Event which also included the Short Film Industry Days and series-focused TV Beats, industry honcho Marge Liiske said she was extremely happy about the 800+ delegates from 47 countries who “showed a strong interest in our activities and films and series from the Baltics. We had closed our accreditation 10 days before kick off as we couldn’t accommodate more participants at the Nordic Hotel Forum hub. We might make slight adjustments next year, but we will stick to our central headquarters which allows for easy networking for festival and industry guests,” she said.
Among the international sales agents on hand, Paris-based Arnaud Chevallier of B-Rated International, sales rep of the festival Competition entry “The Exalted,” praised Tallinn’s “dynamic and friendly industry showcase. This was a perfect platform to screen projects before the end of the year, confirm our lineup before Berlin and sit down with buyers in a relaxed market. “The works in progress in particular were of high quality,” said the former Mediawan sales executive who was chasing quirky auteur-driven and genre features, whatever the nationality.
TV Beats Forum’ co-heads Petri Kemppinen and Roosa Toivoven were equally satisfied with the human-size industry event in Tallinn which gave a chance to the smaller industry ecosystems in the Baltics to build networks and relationships with top international partners. “We had two full days focused on the current times where companies have to understand what content to produce, sell and buy, how we’re managing to serve the audience in the changing landscape of financing and viewing habits,” Toivoven summarised.
“I think we had a well-balanced series program with masterclasses, case studies, with storytelling always at the heart of it,” added Kemppinen who underscored the presence of key players such as Keshet International, Media Musketeers, WildBunch, Baltic platforms Elisa and Go3. He hopes to attract a larger number of TV commissioners for 2025.
Looking ahead, Toivonen said she will discuss with Industry @ Tallinn & Baltic Event organisers the possibility of setting up a think tank in Tallinn to address collaborations in Europe to make sure content creators stay at the top of their game in a highly competitive market. “We need to empower the producers to be as good as possible in finding financing, retaining IP and enriching our culture in Europe”, she said.
Here are some five takeaways and the full list of award winners:
Democracy under threat
With Russian – or Soviet – rule still vivid in the memories of the Baltic nations, solidarity with Ukraine, indie Georgian cinema and Belarusian filmmakers in exile were natural rallying cries in Tallinn. At the panel The Edge of Democracy, Belarusian filmmakers Tanya Haurylchyk, Yuliya Pogrebnyak and Volia Chajskouslakay (founder of the Belarusian festival in exile Northern Lights Nordic Baltic Film Festival) voiced their difficulties to live and work in exile and of the vital need for their dispatched community “to stick together and keep fighting.”
“When everything is so dark, let’s try to tell our stories with playfulness to reach wider audiences,” said Haurylchyk, whose take was shared by her counterpart Andrei Kashperski, currently working from Poland on the comedy slasher “Judgement of the Dead.” David Vashadze, head of the independent Georgian Film Institute, reminded all attendees of the double-edged value of film as an empowering tool of protest for filmmakers, but also of propaganda for authoritarian regimes to crush democratic voices.
Meanwhile seasoned documentary specialist Uldis Cekulis of VFS Film, currently co-producing two Ukrainian documentaries, urged dissident filmmakers and producers to make their voices and stories travel fast. Short films could be the way to reach audiences as fast as possible, he suggested.
“People who live comfortably in Western Europe should be reminded what is at stake [with today’s rise of populism]. Democracy is not a given, and freedom is not a given,” insisted Liiske.
Co-productions: All Eyes on Germany
For the smaller production nations of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania with a shared history with Germany, the Tallinn Focus on Germany was an opportunity to let German funding reps explain the upcoming reform of their film funding landscape, and to hopefully reboot collaborations that had declined in recent years. Bérénice Honold, advisor to the CEO for international and European affairs at the German Federal Film Board (FFA), said the industry-backed reform, due to be effective from January 1 – once approved by the Bundestag – will be two-fold.
The selective support will move towards an automatic support which make producers freer to take their own decisions, although a point system will still be in place. Secondly, a new tax incentive model due to replace the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF) and the German Motion Picture Fund (GMPF), will provide 30% non-repayable grant on German spend to producers of major features and high-end series, as well as service providers. “I hope these changes will be positive for the international community. Within Europe, we need a strong Germany, and a stronger German film industry will benefit everyone,” said Honold.
“We hope the German film reform will expand our co-productions, as we are natural co-producers with Germany,” said Edith Sepp, head of the Estonian Film Institute “Our own support system and 30% tax rebates are very fast [around 30 days for support decisions and for reporting on costs audition] and hopefully with the new German automatic scheme, things will speed up as well with Germany,” she said.
Buzzy film projects
Reflecting today’s troubled times, projects at the co-financing markets dealt with harsh human stories about migration, war, bullying, climate crisis and screen addiction but most were told with a playfulness and even humor in order to reach a wide audience. Standout projects included the winning projects “The Worker,” “English Lesson,” “Push the Button” and “The Flood”,but also Estonian-Norwegian thriller “Container” by Arun Tamm starring Danish star Dar Salim (“The Covenant,” “Darkland”), as well as Latvian-Slovenian dramedy “The Last Meal” by Elza Gauja. Latvia’s seasoned Uldis Cekulis (“The Rossellinis,” “Immortal”) is producing.
Among the international works in progress, the ambitious thriller “Papers” by two times Oscar contender Arturo Montenegro was a buzzy market title alongside the winning titles “Late Shift”, “Wolves” and “Interior.”
AI For All
“Let’s not be eaten up by technology but let’s try to master it,” said Liiske, a self-proclaimed tech geek, who sprinkled AI training sessions and talks in her industry program. One of the most entertaining AI sessions was delivered by Banijay’s Content Partnerships Executive Steve Matthews at his third round of ‘Steve vs the Machine’ game, where he had to guess which of a series pitch was AI initiated. He ended up guessing wrong. “The truth is that the ‘human’ idea was better; I overestimated the machine and underestimated the writer,” he acknowledged.
On the use of AI in screenwriting, Matthews said. “I have no problem with the idea of AI in a story room generating idea after idea, until the team finds one that resonates. I can see how the sheer practical brain-crunching hard work of complex storytelling can be helped. Research, drafting pitch decks or synopses, that’s all good. But what AI isn’t going to do is delve into the deep depths of Tony Soprano’s or Walter White’s or Logan Roy’s souls. Real writing engages bravely, painfully, with the human condition and only a human can do that.”
At Tallinn, AI also scored with the launch of Susi, the first ever recommender for festival audiences. “It’s not just a search tool, but an interactive companion that communicates in multiple languages and offers insightful suggestions, making the festival more accessible to international audiences. And today we can already see that Susi has brought new people to the festival,” said Mikk Granström, Tallinn head of administration.
Training and Upskilling
With training and education as one of the key strands of I@T & BE, this year’s edition broadened the existing schemes of film circulation training for emerging industry executives through the inaugural Tallinn Industry Academy, co-organised with LocarnoPro. 15 participants from the Baltics, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Finland, France, U.K., and Germany were selected out of 50 applicants to improve their skills in sales, distribution and festival programming.
“We don’t have sales companies in the Baltics, so we were glad to invite up-and-coming sales agents and festival coordinators from other countries,” said organiser Eda Koppel, who underlined the need as well to train emerging professionals in leadership and human behaviour. “Our working environment has changed. We need to be more caring towards each other.”
French major Gaumont’s festivals manager Eva Duriez said the program “provided her with a valuable insight into the complexities of film distribution, and also fostered connections with an inspiring group of young professionals from across Europe.” Rokas Jonas, festival programmer at the Vilnius Short Film Festival, said the “Tallinn Industry Academy exceeded my expectations. Both the lecturers and fellow participants shared invaluable tips, tricks and especially sore spots of the industry.”
Full List of Awards:
Baltic Event Co-Production Market
Best Project: “The Worker” (Germany, Bulgaria)
Directed by Eliza Petkova, produced by Nicolas Kronauer (ROW Pictures, Fourmat Film)
Eurimages Special Co-Production Development Award: “English Lesson” (Ukraine, Estonia, Sweden, Czech Republic)
Directed by Ivan Tymchenko, produced by Svitlana Soloviova (SvitloforFilm)
Public Favourite Award: “Push The Button” (Norway,Sweden, Denmark)
Directed by Anton Källrot, produced by Ylva Olaison, Jonathan SIlen, Madeleine Ekman, (Ögat Film)
Producers Network Prize to Yann Sochaczewski, Miriam Kunde for “Amy, Great Adventures on Little Paws!”, and Rūta Petronyté, Justinas Pocius for “The Flood”
Works in Progress
Best International Project: “Late Shift” (“a.k.a. Kindness”) (Greece)
Directed by Stefanos Tsivopoulos, produced by Nikos Smpiliris (Boo Production)
Special Mention winner: “Wolves (Switzerland)
Directed by Jonas Ulrich, produced by Nicole Ulrich (Dynamic Frame)
Public Favourite Award: “Interior” (Germany)
Directed by Pascal Schuh, produced by Timo Ackermann, Katrin Haase, Olivier Arnold (U5 Filmproduction & Co)
Best Baltic Project: “Renovation” (Latvia-Lithuania)
Directed by Gabriele Urbonaite, produced by Uljana Kim, Alise Rogule (Studio Uljana Kim, Mima Films)
Audience Favorite Award: “Sand In Your Hair” (Lithuania)
Directed by Mantas Verbiejus, produced by Živilė Gallego (Fralita Films)
Best Just Film Project: “Emi” (Argentina, Uruguay)
Directed by Ezequiel Erriquez Mena, produced by Laura Mara Tablón (Rite Cine)
Audience Favorite Award: “The River” (Chile, Argentina)
Directed by Cristóbal García, produced by Francisco Bisanez, Santiago Ortuzar (Vórtice Films)
European Genre Forum
Most Promising Project: “The Dark Architect” (Finland)
Directed by Risto Tuominen, produced by Ilkka Matila (MRP Matila Röhr Productions)
Special Mention: “Vrykola” (Greece)
Directed by Achilleas Gatsopoulos, produced by Minos Nikolakakis, Vassilis Economou (Apshalt)
Audience Favourite Award: “Neighbour” (Estonia)
Directed by Oskar Lehemaa, produced by Evelin Penttilä (Stellar Film)
Script Pool
Most Promising Project: “Kingpins” (Latvia)
Directed by Kristians Riekstins, produced by Alise Rogule (Mima Films)
Audience Favorite Award: “Fabula Rasa” (Germany-Luxembourg-Canada)
Directed by Miriam Suad Bühler, Maurice Sinner, produced by Steffen Gerdes (Red Balloon Film, Maze Pictures)
Enterprise Estonia Film Award: “The Code of Thule” (Estonia)
Directed by Liliana Torres, produced by Helen Lohmus, Rene Ezra (Oree Films)
PÖFF Industry Awards
Credit: Henri Kristian Kirsip
