34 of the finest CEE Productions

The very first LET’S CEE Film Festival was opened by Agnieszka Holland’s newest and Academy Award-nominated masterpiece In Darkness on Monday, 28 May 2012 at the Wiener Urania, attended by the internationally acclaimed director herself as well as other high-profile festival guests. The following seven days featured a selection of 34 of the finest productions from Central and Eastern Europe, presented in Vienna’s historic cinemas Urania and Apollo.

From Local Highlights to Art-House Masterpieces

14 films were presented as participants in the two film competitions and another 20 as parts of topic-related series of films. All but two were Austrian premieres. The first LET’S CEE Film Festival featured the entire spectrum of CEE cinematography from local highlights to art-house masterpieces. All in all, the festival presented productions from 24 different countries.

32 International Guests

The list of international guests of the first LET’S CEE Film Festival in 2012 contained 32 names, from film directors, scriptwriters, producers and film critics to actors, among them Romanian-born exceptional actress Anamaria Marinca from London, Bosnian rock legend Saša Lošić, Russian festival director Sitora Alieva, Academy Award-winning Czech director Jan Svěrák and the Golden Globe-winning director Agnieszka Holland as well as the country’s most famous film critic, Tomasz Raczek.

Top Acts, Party Line and Exhibition

The screenings were accompanied by events from an elaborate supporting programme. Top acts by acclaimed musicians such as Dunkelbunt, opportunities for chilling and relaxing, as well as attractive party lines in some of the city’s top locations  were part of the programme. Also, cultural events such as a photographic exhibition from last year’s European Capital of Culture Maribor and a film symposium consisting of high-calibre experts, realised together with the Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe (IDM), were featured during the first LET'S CEE Film Festival. 

And the Winners are...

The festival ended with the Award Ceremony on Sunday, 3 June, the winners being the Turkish production Zenne – The Dancer (with lead actor Kerem Can attending the ceremony) and the Polish documentary Argentinian Lesson. The winners received the Urania statuette and a cash prize of € 1.500 each contributed by Robert Hofferer, CEO of the companies Artevent and Artdeluxe. Turhan Bey, an Austrian with Czech and Turkish roots and one of the most impressive acting careers in Hollywood, was given the first Lifetime Achievement Award.

Last but not least

In its first year, the festival had only very limited financial resources. Still, thanks to the generous support of Cineplexx International and many other sponsors, who provided goods and services, and also in large part thanks to the great work done by more than 60 volunteers (20 of them in the festival’s actual core team), the LET’S CEE Film Festival 2012 turned out a well done and sophisticated event. The large variety of the offered films and events made a lasting impression on international festival guests, filmmakers and film critics and was covered by media in 15 different countries.

Opening Film:

In Darkness (Poland, Germany, Canada 2011, Director: Agnieszka Holland)

Feature Film Competition:

Everybody In Our Family (Romania, The Netherlands 2012, Director: Radu Jude)
Good Night, Missy (Slovenia, Croatia 2011, Director: Metod Pevec)
Joan and the Voices (Armenia 2011, Director: Mikayel Vatinyan)
Lidice (Czech Republic 2011, Director: Petr Nikolaev)
Siberie, Monamour (Russia 2011, Director: Slava Ross)
Zenne Dancer (Turkey 2012, Director: Caner Alper, Mehmet Binay)

Documentary Film Competition:

33 Animals of Santa Claus (Latvia 2011, Director: Laila Pakalnina)
Argentinian Lesson (Poland 2011, Director: Wojciech Staroń)
Invisible Strings (Hungary 2011, Director: Ágnes Sós)
Mobitel (Bosnia and Herzegovina 2011, Director: Nedzad Begović)
My Mate Manchester United (Bulgaria 2011, Director: Stefan Valdobrev)
Ramin (Georgia, Latvia 2011, Director: Audrius Stonys)
Visiting Room (Romania, 2011, Director: Alexandru Baciu, Radu Muntean)
With Fidel Whatever Happens (Serbia, Cuba 2011, Director: Goran Radovanovic)

Highlights:

Cinema Komunisto (Serbia 2010, Director: Mila Turajlic)
Kooky (Czech Republic 2010, Director: Jan Svěrák)
Rooster's Breakfast (Slovenia, Croatia 2007, Director: Marko Nabersnik)
Sevdah for Karim (Bosnia and Herzegovina 2010, Director: Jasmin Duraković)

Guest of LET‘S CEE/Estonian Focus:

Disco and Atomic War (Estonia 2009, Director: Jaak Kilmi)
Georgica (Estonia 1998, Director: Sulev Keedus)
The Idiot (Estonia 2011, Director: Rainer Sarnet)

School Cinema:

Nicky´s Family (Slovakia, Czech Republic 2011, Director: Matej Minac)
Tomorrow Will Be Better (Poland, Japan 2010, Director: Dorota Kędzierzawska)

Children’s Day:

Die kleinen Bankräuber (Latvia, Austria 2009, Director: Armands Zvirbulis)

LET’S CEE Tribute/Turhan Bey:

Vom Glück verfolgt. Wien - Hollywood – Retour (Austria 2002, Director: Andrea Eckert)

Film Symposium:

Look, Stranger (USA 2010, Director: Arielle Javitch)
Patria Mia, Nomad Direction (Bosnia and Herzegovina 2008, Director: Duska Zagorac)
Siberian Lesson (Poland 1998, Director: Wojciech Staroń)

Music Documentaries:

Lucky Kid (Croatia 2003, Director: Igor Mirković)
Orkestar (Bosnia and Herzegovina 2011, Director: Pjer Žalica)
Shuffle (Kosovo 2005, Director: Edon Rizvanolli, Ylber Mehmedaliu)

Travelling Cinema:

Courage (Poland 2011, Director: Greg Zgliński)

Special Screening

Body Complete (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria 2011, Director: Lukas Sturm)