Competition Programme and Novelties of the 71st Pula Film Festival Presented
The main competition programme of the 71st Pula Film Festival, the side music programme, and the novelties of this year’s edition of the Festival, running from 11 to 18 July, were presented at the Home of Croatian Veterans in Pula by Tanja Miličić, director of the Public Institution Pula Film Festival, Danijel Pek, artistic director of Pula Film Festival, Mario Kozina, selector, and Krešimir Partl, state secretary in the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia. Along with the presentation of the main competition programme, it was also said that the opening film will be announced shortly.
Last year, Pula Film Festival celebrated its 70th edition, and continues building its positive atmosphere though its relationship with the audience and developing and strengthening Pula as the place where the Croatian film community and the most significant partners of Croatian film come together, marking it an important starting point for national distribution of Croatian and independent film.
This year’s novelty is that Pula Film Festival will open on Thursday, 11 July, and will be a day shorter, closing on 18 July.
“The shortened edition is an opportunity for making better use of a long weekend, when we can stay out longer, but also it is an opportunity for those coming to Pula to stay longer – from Thursday to Sunday and maybe a day or two longer. This way, the audience can enjoy all of the programmes: day, evening and late screenings, as well as the entertainment programme and concerts that will be held in the evenings in the courtyard of the Home of Croatian Veterans and will be open and free for everyone,” said Tanja Miličić, Pula Film Festival director.
Krešimir Partl, state secretary in the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, said that this year’s programme is the most complete to date and that it was unanimously approved at the meeting of the Festival Council.
“The programme is well-rounded and recognises the neuralgic points of the Croatian film industry and takes special care of the placement and distribution of Croatian film, encourages independent producers, and independent European and Croatian film, and I think this has secured Pula great visibility in our film. Last year’s report shows that the audience has come back to the Festival, and I welcome the decision to have the Festival start on Thursday. We always need to be prepared for change, because now we have three days rich in programmes, and the audience can participate in everything that the Festival offers with more ease,” said Krešimir Partl and confirmed that the Festival Council has proposed that the winner of the Golden Palm in Cannes, the film The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent by Nebojša Slijepčević, be screened at Pula Film Festival.
Artistic director Danijel Pek said that the opening just before the start of the weekend will attract larger audiences and guest, and that the number of films and guest has been increased from last year, resulting in a more dynamic schedule and more guests being included in festival programmes.
“One of the novelties is that the international programme will be a competition programme, aimed at encouraging distribution of European and independent films on the Croatian market. We will be introducing a developing workshop and a TV series pitch, while the meeting of the largest part of the Croatian audiovisual industry is planned for the second part of the Festival, bringing together directors, producers, students, distributers, cinemas, and festival and national television representatives,” said Danijel Pek.
MAIN COMPETITION
MAIN PROGRAMME – CROATIAN FILM
World premieres:
The Wrath of God, directed by Kristijan Milić (Eurofilm)
Frka, directed by Svebor Mihael Jelić (Oksimoron)
Celebration, directed by Bruno Anković (Eclectica)
This Is Not a Love Song, directed by Nevio Marasović (Šlager film d.o.o.)
Films screened in Croatian distribution or at festivals:
Bosnian Pot, directed by Pavo Marinković (Telefilm)
Our Children, directed by Silvestar Kolbas (Factum)
Sweet Simona, directed by Igor Mirković (Inter Film d.o.o.)
The Holy Family, directed by Vlatka Vorkapić (Inter Film d.o.o.)
The Woman with the Rubber Gloves, directed by Mario Šulina (Slavonija nova)
MAIN PROGRAMME – CROATIAN MINORITY CO-PRODUCTIONS
National premieres:
M, directed by Vardan Tozija (Četiri film), North Macedonia
Shooting Blanks, directed by Žiga Virc (Nukleus film), Slovenia
Sirin, directed by Senad Šahmanović (Sekvenca), Bosnia and Herzegovina
Sweet Sorrow, directed by Kosta Đorđević (Marinis Media), Serbia
Forever Hold Your Peace, directed by Ivan Marinović (Kinorama), Montenegro
Films screened at Croatian festivals or in distribution:
Housekeeping for Beginners, directed by Goran Stolevski (Kinorama), North Macedonia
Excursion, directed by Una Gunjak (Nukleus film), Bosnia and Herzegovina
KIX, directed by Bálint Révész, Dávid Mikulán (Eclectica), Hungary
Lost Country, directed by Vladimir Perišić (Kinorama), Serbia
Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World, directed by Radu Jude (Kinorama), Romania
Working Class Goes to Hell, directed by Mladen Đorđević (Kinorama), Serbia
SLAVONIA, YOUTH AND FILM BRINGING TOGETHER AUTHORS’ AND COMMERCIAL SENSIBILITIES
Talking about the main programme, Danijel Pek said that Slavonia stood out as a theme in three films this year. “These are Frka, directed by Svebor Milael Jelić, The Woman with the Rubber Gloves, directed by Mario Šulina, and The Holy Family, directed by Vlatka Vorkapić. Each of the three films focuses on different themes relating to Slavonia – history, class relationships, patriarchy, but also the way the youth lives today. In documentary film, which is traditionally strong and diverse, the film that stood out is Our Children, the (auto-)biopic by Silvestar Kolbas, a deep, honest, and direct analysis of his family dynamic”, said Pek and added he is glad the main programme will also see the film Celebration, directed by Bruno Anković, selected for Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and competing for the Crystal Globe.
Mario Kozina emphasised the large number of youth films: Frka, directed by Svebor Mihael Jelić, a film about youth, from youth and for youth, and in minority co-productions Sweet Sorrow, directed by Kosta Đorđević, KIX, directed by Bálint Révész, and Excursion, directed by Una Gunjak. There are also genre films: in the Croatian programme it is The Wrath of God, directed by Kristijan Milić, a thriller, mystery and revenge story during the Homeland War.
Also, a large number of submissions for Croatian minority co-productions have a pedigree of prestigious international festivals, and a surprising diversity of author and genre approaches, sometimes with a very bold and provocative choice of themes.
“Seeing how many of these films have a significant Croatian contribution, the number of selected films is somewhat larger in comparison to last year so that we can offer the audience the highest possible quality of selected films and to offer a cross-section of the current situation on the regional and global film scene”, said selector Kozina and emphasised the excellent comedy Forever Hold Your Peace, directed by Ivan Marinović, which boasts an excellent cast, and the film Shooting Blanks, directed by Žiga Virc, a black comedy about the past impacting our lives. “There are also darker stories, such as Working Class Goest to Hell, directed by Mladen Đorđević, and M, directed by Vardan Tozija – dark, dystopian films with elements of horror.”
OUT OF COMPETITION PROGRAMME AND PROGRAMMES FOR THE PUBLIC AND MEDIA
Other out of competition programmes include PoPular Pula, highly anticipated by the audience, as well as Time Machine, Pulica, student programme, and the programmes at Ambrela and Brijuni.
The programmes for the media and public continue with the High Noon critics’ duels, moderated 30-minute duels that were introduced last year, where two film critics comment on films screened the previous day in the Croatian programme. The usual presentations of films screened in the main programme the previous evening and conversations with film crews will be held in the mornings.
FESTIVAL LOCATIONS AND AN ABUNDANT CONCERT PROGRAMME
The film programmes will be held at the Arena, Istrian National Theatre, Valli Cinema, Ambrela beach and Brijuni Islands. It is worth noting that the main screening locations – the Arena, Valli Cinema and Istrian National Theatres now have new screens, and since late 2023, Valli Cinema has a new sound system, while the Istrian National Theatre has been fully refurbished.
The Arena remains the main location for Croatian Film, Minority Co-productions and PoPular Pula, while films in the main programme will be screened in the renovated Istrian National Theatre. Valli Cinema will be the location for Pulica, the international programme, and a smaller part of the competition programme.
The Festival Centre will be located at the Home of Croatian Veterans, which became the meeting point for directors and numerous audience members at side events last year.
“The return of the Festival to the Home of Croatian Veterans has helped create the festival atmosphere and bring the film community together, and this was widely recognised and welcomed last year. This year, we have commissioned last year’s winner of the Golden Arena for Production Design, Ivan Veljača, to design the space in line with the many festival needs. I am proud to announce that we will have great concerts in the courtyard of the Home of Croatian Veterans every festival evening, open to everybody. I can announce performances by Baby Lasagna, Buč Kesidi, TBF, Porto Morto, DJ Stanko Bondža, and the indispensable DJ Kovač, all of who guarantee a great time for the guests and audience, as well as our fellow citizens of Pula and Istria. You might have noticed posters around Pula with films that have won audience awards at previous editions of the festivals. Studio Sonda designed the visual identity for the Festival, and we are focusing on the audience award, which has been presented since 1954. We want to encourage the audience to score the films this year as well, as their scores are an important part of the film, that is, the Festival’s history,” said Tanja Miličić and added that this year the tickets to the Arena will be valid as bus tickets for city transport from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m. on the evening for which the ticket was purchased. This is part of the Festival’s initiative to pay special attention to separating waste at Festival locations and is a part of the global initiative Plastic Free July, and emphasis will be placed on digital tickets and accreditations, and paper instead of plastic packaging.
