EAVE project THE HERD by Milko Lazarov is shooting

In Production September 2022

EAVE project THE HERD by Milko Lazarov, producer: EAVE graduate Veselka Kiryakova is shooting. As per his previous works, Lazarov has chosen a remote setting for his film, with the villages of Karlukovo and Kamenno Pole - situated in the decaying north-western reaches of Bulgaria - serving as his main locations. Shooting on 35mm film kicked off on the 29th of August in the region of Lukovit city and will continue for 31 days. The story focuses on Ali, his daughter Tarika, and her grandmother Chrysula, who are leading an isolated life in a village hut near the border. Tarika suffers from a rare bone malformation known as "butterfly wings", an abnormality passed down through the maternal line. Despite having lived in the area for a long time, enjoying a peaceful and harmonious relationship with their neighbours, the family have always been seen as strange. And then, out of nowhere, the animals in the village are struck down by disease, the river dries up, and sick boy Nikola dies after befriending Tarika. Driven by xenophobia and superstition, the villagers become increasingly suspicious and decide to deal with this unusual family themselves. Produced by Red Carpet, with 42film (Germany) and Amour Fou Luxembourg (Luxembourg) acting as co-producers, the film is funded by the Bulgarian National Film Center, MDM, ZDF/arte, Film fund Luxembourg and Eurimages.

L’AUTRE LAURENS by Claude Schmitz, producer: EAVE graduates Benoît Roland and Jérémy Forni started shooting. The movie follows in the footsteps of Gabriel Laurens, a private detective for whom suspicion and trailing designated individuals is his murky, everyday life. When his fifteen-year-old niece Jade bursts into his life, asking him to investigate her father’s death, memories which he’d believed dead and buried gush back into the detective’s mind. Confronted with the ghosts of his past, he finds himself getting to grips with a strange investigation, characterised by false pretences, fantasies and drugs trafficking. L’AUTRE LAURENS is produced by Benoît Roland on behalf of Wrong Men in Belgium and by EAVE graduate Jérémy Forni on behalf of Chevaldeuxtrois in France. The film is supported by the Wallonia Brussels Federation Film and Audiovisual Centre, as well as from Belgium’s National Film and Animation Centre, Wallimage, Creative Media and the Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Dordogne regions. Shooting takes place in September and October in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, in the Périgord noir region, on the French-Spanish border and, lastly, in Brussels.

PAJAROS by Pau Durà, producer: EAVE FFF graduate Cristina Zumarraga is shooting. The film features Colombo who works in a garage and supplements his meagre income by selling marijuana. And Mario, a lawyer who is a birdwatching enthusiast and unable to drive due to a past accident, convinces Colombo to take him to the Costa Brava to see some cranes in exchange for money. When they arrive at the lagoons, the lawyer tells him that the birds have changed their migratory route and are going to nest in the Danube delta in Constanta, Romania. Mario needs to get there... and Colombo needs money. Neither knows the other's true story, but at that moment a new and definitive journey begins for both of them. Produced by David Ciurana of Fosca Films, José Nolla of Icónica Producciones and EAVE FFF graduate Cristina Zumarraga of Tandem Films, in co-production with the Romanian company Saga Film, PAJAROS is made with the participation of RTVE, Prime Video and TV3, and with the support of the ICAA. Filming of the road movie began in September on location in Catalonia and will continue over the course of eight weeks in different parts of Europe, including Italy and Romania, as far as the Black Sea.

CREATURA by Elena Martin, producer: EAVE graduate and Spanish National Coordinator Maria Zamora is shooting. The film tells the story of how Mila and her partner move to a town on the Costa Brava. After an initial argument, she starts to warn him that the death of desire stems from a deep and distant, but still personal, place. Alone in her family’s summer house, she relives some of the experiences from her childhood and her teenage years; memories that will help her understand the origins of what has been hindering her from being able to make peace with her own body and maintain a more honest relationship with the ones she loves. CREATURA is a production by Vilaüt Films, Avalon PC, Elastica Films and Lastor Media, in co-production with TV3, with the involvement of Filmin, and with support from the ICAA, ICEC and Creative Europe – MEDIA. In addition, the project took part in Ikusmira Berriak, the lab that takes place at the San Sebastián Film Festival. The film is shot on location in Sant Vicenç de Montalt, L’Escala, Blanes, Barcelona and Sitges. Principal photography will continue until the last week of September.

JOHATSU by Lina Luzyte and Nerijus Milerius, producer: EAVE + graduate Roberts Vinovskis is shooting. JOHATSU is a story about Lina, a 35-year-old woman working in the Vilnius‘ morgue. One day something strange happens, when Lina takes a woman to recognise her husband who has died in an explosion. The woman confirms it was her husband, but she acts so strange that it makes Lina think she is lying. Lina takes some days off from work and, just like a real detective, she starts following scarce cues. However, she soon realises that she is not so much interested to find the missing man as she becomes more enthralled by the very idea of disappearance. The film is produced by Uljana Kim through Studio Uljana Kim in coproduction with Roberts Vinovskis through Latvia‘s Studio Locomotive and Christophe Audeguis through France‘s the cup of tea. The Lithuanian Film Centre and the national broadcaster LRT are supporting the project.

MOTHER MARA by Mirjana Karanovic, producer: EAVE graduate Snezana van Houwelingen, co-producers: EAVE graduates Paul Thiltges, Adrien Chef is shooting. The plot focuses on a successful businesswoman whose life is turned upside down by the sudden death of her only son. Through a relationship with a younger man, she tries to cope with the loss and find a way to move on. Snezana van Houwelingen is producing through Serbia’s This and That Productions in co-production with Paul Thiltges and Adrien Chef through Luxembourg’s Paul Thiltges Distribution, Vladimir Bulajic through Slovenia’s December, Nemanja Becanovic through Montenegro’s VHS, EAVE graduate Damir Ibrahimovic through Bosnian Deblokada, and Andrea Staka through Switzerland’s Oko Film.The project has been supported by Film Center Serbia, the Luxembourg Film Fund, the Slovenian Film Centre, Film Centre of Montenegro, the Sarajevo Film Fund, BAK Ministry of Culture of Switzerland, the Zurich Film Fund, as well as by MEDIA Creative Europe and Eurimages.

Page published 30 September 2022. Updated 3 October 2022.