EAVE project EVERYTHING THAT’S WRONG WITH YOU is shooting

In Production and in Post-production December 2023

In production

• FLOOD by Martin Gonda, producer: EAVE graduate and National Coordinator Slovakia Katarina Krnacova is in production. The film delves into the unexplored theme of the displacement of the Rusyn, an East Slavic ethnic group from the Eastern Carpathians in Central Europe, during the construction of the Starina reservoir in the 1980s. Set against this tumultuous backdrop, FLOOD intertwines personal and collective stories, bringing to the forefront the often-overlooked plight of the Rusyn minority in Slovakia. The Starina reservoir's construction, which lasted from 1981-1988, led to the largest displacement in Slovak history. Gonda's personal connection to the region, having spent his childhood summers there, adds a layer of authenticity and depth to the narrative. The film not only recounts the physical destruction of the seven Rusyn villages, but also captures the emotional and cultural impact of this event on the community. The cast combines professional and non-professional actors, and FLOOD is destined to be the first film about Rusyns made in the Rusyn language. The project won the main prize at Febiofest Bratislava Industry Days in 2021. FLOOD is being produced by Silverart (Slovakia), and co-produced by Harine Films (Poland), Cineart TV Prague (Czech Republic) and Y-House (Belgium). The Slovak Audiovisual Fund, the Polish Film Institute, Radio and Television Slovakia, the Minority Culture Fund, Creative Europe – MEDIA, the Kosice Self-governing Region, the Czech Film Fund and the Belgian Tax Shelter have supported the project. The shoot started in September, and the majority of the footage has already been shot.

www.silverartfilm.sk

• EAVE project EVERYTHING THAT’S WRONG WITH YOU by Ursa Menart, producers: EAVE graduate Katja Lenarcic, EAVE+ graduate Danijel Hocevar, EAVE graduate Alexander Wadouh is in production. Menart tells the story of the trouble that the younger generation is having fitting into a world that was not created for it. The protagonist, Marusa, connects with Alja, a nurse who works abroad, online, and the two quickly become friends. When Alja falls ill, Marusa travels to her place only to find out that not everything is the way it seemed at the start. “The film tells a story about searching for closeness: the generation the two leading characters belong to is lonelier than any generation before it, and meeting new friends as an adult is even more difficult than forging friendships at a young age,” Menart said. “The world is merciless to young women, especially those who don’t benefit from strong support or have a background in power structures. The film depicts the contrasts between these feelings of invisibility and not belonging, and the longing for a human connection, for deep friendships, like those we often see in the movies, and for someone to finally understand us.” EVERYTHING THAT’S WRONG WITH YOU is a Slovenian-Serbian-German-Croatian co-production involving Vertigo, Radio-Television Slovenia, Living Pictures, Chromosom Films, Tidewater Pictures and Eclectica. It has received technical support from Studio Viba Film and financial backing from the Slovenian Film Centre, Film Center Serbia, Creative Europe – MEDIA and Re-Act. Filming takes place on location in the town of Tolmin, perched up in the mountains in the northwest of Slovenia. It will last for around 30 working days in and around Tolmin, Kranj, Nova Gorica and Ljubljana, as well as on the island of Usedom in the Baltic Sea.

www.vertigo.si

In post-production

• HÅKAN BRÅKAN 2 by Ted Kjellsson, producer: EAVE graduate Malin Söderlund is in post-production. Håkan has a babysitter, Amanda - the world's most boring one according to him - and he has to run home where he can attend a very important computer game competition. But Håkan is suddenly eye to eye with both burglars and ostriches... Premiering in cinemas is planned for February 2024.

www.kraftfilm.se

• STILL LIFE WITH GHOSTS by Enrique Buleo, co-producer: EAVE graduate Snezana van Houwelingen is in post-production. The film is made up of stories about the residents of a small Spanish inland town where believing in paranormal activity is fully accepted. Principal photography began in late September and took place in different locations in Manchuela Conquense, Cuenca (specifically, in Villanueva de la Jara, the director’s place of birth, El Picazo, Casasimarro, Iniesta and Amodóvar del Pinar), Castellón and Valencia. Indeed, in the movie, dark comedy, rural drama, absurd humour, magical realism (specifically that from La Mancha) and even science fiction exist side by side. "The movie is a half-comical, half-morbid portrait of some of the most primal and universal fears and desires… After all, it tackles subjects such as the search for one’s identity, the struggle against solitude and fear of the pointlessness of life.” STILL LIFE WITH GHOSTS is being staged by Spanish outfits Quatre Films and Cuidado con el perro, in co-production with France’s Ikki Films and Serbia’s This and That. It has received support from the ICAA, the Valencian Cultural Institute and Creative Europe – MEDIA. In addition, it boasts the involvement of À Punt Media, Castilla-La Mancha Media and ETuria CLM, following its victory in the feature-film production competition promoted by the Film Commission of the Autonomous Regional Government of Castile-La Mancha. The title triumphed in the When East Meets West Coproduction Forum and Abycine Lanza, besides taking part in the Producers Under the Spotlight programme at the Cannes Marché du Film and the Visitors Programme of the Berlinale’s EFM. 

www.thisandthat.rs

• HAMBURG by Lino Escalera, producers: EAVE+ graduates Jose Alba, Odile Antonio-Baez is in post-production. The screenplay to this thriller that broaches the thorny issue of mafia-run female prostitution, introduces us to Germán, the man in charge of ferrying around women who work as slaves in gentlemen’s venues on the Costa del Sol. Penniless and completely adrift, he tries to make a living by working for Cacho, an old friend of his who manages several of these venues for the local mafia, until one night, an opportunity presents itself: he leaves it all behind and decides to steal the club’s takings. What seems like a chance to completely turn his life around will put him in more danger than ever before. He will only have one option left – the same as the one being contemplated by the girls he takes from one place to another each night, like Alina: to pull off a successful escape. HAMBURG is a production by Spanish outfits Zeta Cinema, Icónica Producciones, Tandem Films and Pecado Films, and Romania’s Cinelab. The film has secured funding from the ICAA, the Andalusian Regional Government and the Community of Madrid, and boasts the involvement of Netflix and Canal Sur.

www.pecadofilms.com

• SNESCHA AND FRANZ by Svetoslav Draganov, co-producer: EAVE graduate Katya Trichkova is in post-production. Draganov tells a universal story about the call of freedom vs. the family life, based on the relationship between his aunt and his uncle. Тhe film digs into the call to distant lands, cultures and adventures against the meaning of creating a “family hearth”, and it is looking for an answer to the question: Is it possible to strike a good balance between individual longing and shared family wishes? “Snescha and Franz are my aunt and uncle. One of my brightest childhood memories is how my Austrian uncle Franz projected slides from his adventures on a big white sheet taken from the parent’s bed: skiing in Sahara, boat sailing along the Niger River... Then, during the years, I found his Super 8mm films and his unpublished books. In one of them I found a letter to Snescha and their kids in which he writes: “Yes, the difference between the individual wishes and longings and the common family wishes exists. I know those contradictions and try to see them or at least hold out. I try to do more things with you, to go on and find a good balance. I hope our measurements for balance are close”, Svetoslav Draganov said. Draganov is producing through Bulgaria’s Cineaste Maudit Productions in co-production with Katya Trichkova through Contrast Films (Bulgaria), with support from the Bulgarian National Film Center, Creative Europe MEDIA and Wiener Stadt und Landesarchiv. SNESCHA AND FRANZ was shot in 45 shooting days mainly in Austria. The shooting period started in February 2020 and finished in October 2022. The project was part of the Docu Talents from the East (2021) and MakeCoProDox Forum (2023).

contrast-films.net

Page published 21 December 2023.