POLAND AT CINELINK

A delegation of 15 Polish producers and distributors will participate in the CineLink co-production market at the 21st Sarajevo International Film Festival. Poland is this year’s official partner of the festival.

CineLink

The CineLink event coincides with the tenth anniversary of the Polish Film Institute. To celebrate, the CineLink programme will feature a special presentation of the Polish film industry and co-production opportunities. The presentation will be prepared by Robert Baliński of the Polish Film Institute. Participants include representatives of public bodies (Tomasz Dąbrowski of Film Commission Poland, Robert Baliński and Marzena Cieślik of the Polish Film Institute), producers (Anna Wydra, Ewa Puszczyńska, Joanna Szymańska, Wojciech Leszczyński, Marta Habior, Maria Pułaska, Dawid Nickel, Krzysztof Grędziński and Kuba Kosma), and distributors (Michał Myśliński, Maciej Zabojszcz, Magdalena Zabojszcz).

According to Izabela Kiszka-Hoflik, Head of International Relations at the Polish Film Institute:

“recent years have brought significant change to the shape of Polish cinema. We have started producing more films, we become involved in international co-productions more often, and box-office sales are higher than ever before. We appreciate the artistic potential of Western Europe and the Balkan countries, and we believe that we, as Poland, have a lot to offer.”

Polish cinematography is already present in the Balkans, particulary in Bosnia thanks to two co-productions between Skorpion Arte (Poland) and Sarajevo Center for Contemporary Arts Pro.Ba (Bosnia), which were co-financed by Eurimages: Rosa by Denijal Hasanovic and Klucz (The Key) by Timur Makarevic (minority co-production).

Amra Baksic, head of CineLink:

“It is a pleasure to invite the Polish delegation and present them with the potential of our region. Regardless of what part of Europe we live in, we operate in the same industry, and the digital world is erasing the borders that divide us. We are happy that this meeting will bring an opportunity to discuss the challenges we all face. I hope that the meeting will help contribute to building a foundation for long-term cooperation.”

CineLink Country Partner

The CineLink Country Partner initiative has been in force for over ten years. The project is aimed at strengthening the relationship between the film industry in southern European countries and their international partners. Country partners at past editions of CineLink have included the United Kingdom (2014), Germany (2013), and France (2012).

The 21st Sarajevo International Film Festival runs from August 14 through August 22. The CineLink co-production market runs from August 19 through August 22, 2015.

Further details are available at the festival website: www.sff.ba/en.

Magdalena Wylężałek