Festival of East European Cinema opens in Cottbus

The 25th annual Festival of East European Cinema opens tomorrow in Cottbus, Germany, with nine new east nations represented in official competition.

Widely regarded as the most important film festival dedicated to east Europe, the program in Cottbus runs from 3 — 11 November and features sections dedicated to feature and short films, Russian and Polish cinema, films for children, a recurring competition for German-Polish filmmakers under the age of 18, as well as a special program on Islam in east European film.

The jury for the official competition consists of Želimir Žilnik from Serbia, Ineke Smits from the Netherlands, Andreas Kleinert from Germany, Aida Begić from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Visar Morina from Kosovo. They will choose from 12 entries, including Slovenian Dalibor Matanić‘s Un Certain Regard Jury Prize winner The High Sun and the Czech Republic’s 2014 Oscar candidate, Fair Play by Andrea Sedláčková. Last year the $27,600 prize went to Corrections Class by Russian director Ivan Tverdovsky.

Source: Cine Europa, Film Festival Cottbus