Pula Film Forum is made up of conversations, meetings, and panels with participation from representatives of the international and domestic audiovisual community with the goal of strengthening dialogue and exchanging professional knowledge, as well as identifying and disseminating quality practices in domestic cinema.
WORK IN A WRITER’S ROOM
VLADIMIR TAGIĆ AND GORAN STANKOVIĆ
Tuesday, July 14, 5 p.m., Archaeological Museum.
The talk will be held in Croatian.
This lecture is a part of Authors’ Room, a new workshop programme aimed at a wider audience, especially screenwriters, directors, and producers. The conversation will focus on explaining the process of writing and the concept of working in a writers’ room, based on the experience of lecturers Vladimir Tagić and Goran Stanković (Operation Sabre, Morning Changes Everything). Emphasis will be given on methods of group work in making a feature film or a TV series as collective art. The lecture will offer an explanation of the importance of division of roles in such a team, as well as concrete methods of taking part in collective writing that allow for artistic freedom and authenticity of one’s own work.
GORAN STANKOVIĆ
Goran Stanković graduated in film and TV directing from the Academy of Arts in Belgrade, and earned his master’s degree from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles in 2014. His thesis film Way in Rye was nominated for the Student Academy Award, while his films Who Guards the Guardians and Old Mountain were screened at more than 50 international festivals and won 17 awards. During his studies at the American Film Institute, Goran was awarded the Hollywood Foreign Press scholarship and the Franklin J. Schaffner Award for Directing. His debut feature documentary In the Dark, a story about Serbian miners, had its world premiere at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. He is one of the creators and directors of the series Morning Changes Everything and the series Operation Sabre (in cooperation with Vladimir Tagić), which was awarded at Canneseries in 2024, and he also won the Primetime Killer Award in Brno. He directed five episodes of the series Bad Blood, and his first feature documentary Our Father premiered at Toronto International Film Festival in 2025.
Vladimir Tagić was born in Belgrade in 1986. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degree in film and TV directing from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade, and is currently in a PhD programme at the same Faculty. In 2018, together with Goran Stanković, he was the creator, screenwriter, and director of the drama series Morning Changes Everything. In 2020, he co-wrote and directed five episodes of the TV series Mom and Dad Are Playing War. He directed five episodes of the series Children of Evil (2023), which premiered on HBO MAX. Together with Goran Stanković, he created, co-wrote, and directed the series Operation Sabre (2024) about the assassination of Serbian Prime
VLADIMIR TAGIĆ
GOOD PRACTICE EXAMPLE: DISTRIBUTION OF INDEPENDENT FILM
MONICA FELEA (Bad Unicorn, Romania)
Tuesday, July 14, 12 noon, Archaeological Museum.
The talk will be held in English.
The winner of this year’s EFM Distributor Award and co-founder of Bad Unicorn, the leading film distribution company in Romania, will talk about the distribution of independent European film. The talk will focus on three important topics relating to distributing independent, domestic, and arthouse films: (1) how to successfully position and distribute the films within the multiplex system, (2) how to attract younger audiences, and (3) how to effectively programme and position the films within the independent cinemas network. The topics will be discussed in a constructive way, with emphasis on solutions, strategies, and positive practice examples, with an overview of current changes in the industry. Giving a broader industry context, Felea will also present her practical approach to film distribution – work methodology, key strategies and experiences gained from concrete examples and successful campaigns. This event is aimed at all film professionals, especially cinemas and distribution companies.
MONICA FELEA
I was born in Tulcea, a little city on the banks of the Danube. Although I once dreamed of becoming an ecologist, I moved to Bucharest with the ambition of becoming a journalist. After graduating from the Faculty of Journalism, I entered the cultural press 20 years ago, just as Romania’s first multiplex cinema was opening. Over time, I grew closer to the world of film through my work with festivals, events, and the promotion of Romanian cinema. I was marketing manager for many movie distribution campaigns, festival manager, team manager, artistic director, guest manager and so on. In 2016, together with my partner Ștefan Bradea, I founded Bad Unicorn. A year later, we released our first film in cinemas. Nine years on, we have brought more than 60 films to audiences and more than one million viewers. We hope this is only the first of many millions to come. I m also mentor in Europa Distribution Mentoring Progamme for Women in Distribution, member of European Academy and Selection expert for European Film Awards from 2023 to 2026.
CHILDREN’S FILM – INVESTMENT IN THE FUTURE
LJUBICA LUKOVIĆ
Monday, July 13, 5 p.m., Archaeological Museum.
The talk will be held in Croatian.
Motivated by new success of domestic children’s films (as many as three films in the programme this year) and the new Specialised public call for screenplay and project development offered by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, we will talk about the importance and position of children’s films with Ljubica Luković, one of the most respected screenwriters (How I Learned to Fly) and the most sought-after script consultant in the genre and beyond. Children’s film is not glamorous, there are no red carpets, spectacular premieres, or prestigious awards – but it is the only one that still fills the seats in cinemas. Through their first encounter with the big screen, children learn to love film, and develop a sense of humour and values as they grow up. Then why do creators neglect it so much, or do it without any awareness of how responsible that task really is? Ljubica Luković will give the introductory lecture about the specific characteristics, formal framework, and requirements for children’s film, followed by a discussion with the audience about the situation in children’s film in the region. The goal of the conversation is to change the perspective on children’s film and inspire authors who have not yet done children’s film, because investing in children’s film is investing not only in future audiences, but in the society we want to live in.
Ljubica Luković
Ljubica Luković spisateljica je iz Srbije sa sjedištem u Kölnu. Diplomirala je dramaturgiju na Fakultetu dramskih umjetnosti u Beogradu, a magistrirala serijsko pripovijedanje na IFS-u Kölnu. Serija koju je suautorirala, Kljun, premijerno je prikazana na festivalu Canneseries 2021. godine, gdje je osvojila nagradu publike. Njezin debitantski dugometražni film, Ljeto kada sam naučila letjeti, premijerno je prikazan u veljači 2022. i odmah se popeo na vrh domaće kino-ljestvice s više od 230.000 gledatelja. Također je pisala za serije Blok 27 i Apsolutnih 100, a razvija filmske i serijske projekte za nekoliko europskih tržišta.
PANEL DISCUSSION: AI IN FILM – CHALLENGES AND ADVANTAGES
Dr. sc. DARIO BOJANJAC, Dr. sc. IGOR GLIHA AND JASNA NANUT
Monday, July 13, 12 noon, Archaeological Museum.
The talk will be held in Croatian.
Recognising the need for public and expert discussion about AI and its growing impact on the domestic and European film industry, the Festival organised a panel discussion about the current issues of using AI technology in filmmaking. The discussion will touch upon topics of the possibilities AI can bring to film and audiovisual production across all phases of development to postproduction, as well as a number of current issues relating to authorship, copyright, ethical challenges, and the position of film authors and creative workers in the context of rapid development of AI technology. These issues will be discussed by the panellists, scientists in the legal and technical fields, and prominent Croatian authors and producers.
DARIO BOJANJAC
Dario Bojanjac is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing, University of Zagreb (FER), where he works at the Department of Communication and Space Technologies. He has undertaken research and professional training at the University of Michigan, the University of Siena, and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) as a recipient of the Swiss Government Excellence Scholarship.He is one of the initiators of the FERSAT student satellite project and has played a key role in advancing space research at FER. He serves as a member of the Galileo and EGNOS EU Space Programme Committee and the Reference Group for the EU Space Programme. He received the Roberto Giannini Award for excellence in teaching and student mentorship. He has supervised around forty undergraduate and master’s theses, as well as ten recipients of the University of Zagreb Rector’s Award. Actively engaged in the promotion of FER, science, and education, he is one of the founders of FER’s and the Department’s social media presence, a columnist for Tportal, a co-organizer of the Nuqleus project, and the founder and host of Podkist, Croatia’s first science podcast, which was named one of the country’s best podcasts by Telegram in 2023. He is also one of the initiators of the joint Applied Cognitive Science master’s programme offered by the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing and the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, for which he was nominated for the Visionary of the Year 2023 award in the Technology category.
IGOR GLIHA
Igor Gliha is a professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, where he also served as Dean from 2017 to 2021. He began his professional career in legal practice and later served as an adviser at the Embassy of the Republic of Croatia in the United States. He chaired the Intellectual Property Law Working Group responsible for preparing Croatia’s accession negotiations with the European Union.He has been a member of several expert working groups tasked with drafting legislative proposals, including the Copyright and Related Rights Act. He represented the Republic of Croatia at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Diplomatic Conference on Certain Copyright and Neighboring Rights Questions in Geneva in 1996 and at the WIPO Diplomatic Conference on the Protection of Audiovisual Performances in Geneva in 2000. Professor Gliha is the author of around one hundred scholarly publications in Croatian and international journals and edited volumes, including ten books as author or co-author. He has presented papers at numerous national and international academic and professional conferences.He is a full member of the Croatian Academy of Legal Sciences and serves as President of the Croatian Copyright Society (HDAP–ALAI).
JASNA NANUT
Jasna Nanut made her feature film debut with Seventh Heaven, which premiered at the 2023 Pula Film Festival. Following its premiere, the film opened the Zagreb Film Festival and went on to screen at numerous international film festivals. She has also written and directed six short fiction films, for which she has received two Oktavijan Awards. She is currently developing her second feature film and is one of the directors of the television series Wild Bees. Jasna Nanut is also the President of the Croatian Film Directors’ Guild.
PRESENTATION OF THE GUIDELINES FORINCLUSIVE SUBTITLING
Film for all
Tuesday, 3pm – Festival Centre – Home of Croatian defenders
Presentation of the guidelines for creating inclusive subtitles, developedthrough interdisciplinary collaboration between experts,deaf individuals, and users of croatian sign language, with the aimof promoting inclusive cultural practices. The Guidelines for Everyone, Everywhere project is implemented by Culture for Everyone, Everywhere, the Croatian Association of Sign Language Interpreters, the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Rijeka, the Ministry of Subtitles, and the Croatian Association of Audiovisual Translators, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, the City of Zagreb, and the Ombudsperson for Persons with Disabilities.
