CineLink 2024 winners

Co-Production Market

Eurimages Co-Production Development Award – Big Women (Ser) dir. Milica Tomovic; prods. Dragana Jovovic, Jelena Radenkovic

Eurimages Special Co-Production Development Award – Times New Roman (Ukr-Lith) dir. Philip Sotnychenko; prod. Valeria Sochyvets

Film Center Montenegro CineLink Award – Hystera (Gr-Slovenia-Fr) dir. Asimina Proedru; prod. Maria Kontogianni

Film Center Serbia CineLink Award – Air In A Bottle (Bos/Her-Ser) dir. Aida Begic; prod. Snezana van Houwelingen

Artekino International Prize – Uptight Ass (Ser) dir. Matija Gluscevic; prod. Carna Vucinic

Drama Awards

Croatian Audiovisual Center Drama Award – Pray For Us (Bos/Her-Kos-Mont) cre. Filip Jokanovic; prods. Jon Gojani, Sara Stijovic

TV Drama Vision Pitch Award – Angelmaker (Rom-Cze) cre. Cristina Grosan; prod. Anda Ionescu

Co-Production Market/Drama Award

Female Voices CineLink Award – Lullaby (Gr-Geo) dir. Keti Machaviarani; prod. Anda Ionescu

Work in Progress

Turkish National Radio Television Award – Honey Bunny (Cro-Ser) dir Igor Jelinovic; prod. Rea Rajcic

Post Republic Award – Hear The Yellow (Tur) dir. Banu Sivaci; prods. Yusuf Aslanyurek, Orkun Huylu

Think-Film Impact Production Award – Divia (Pol-Ukr-Neth) dir. Dmytro Hreshko; prods. Polina Herman, Glib Lukianets

Docu Rough Cut Boutique

HBO Award – In Hell With Ivo (Bul-US) dir-prod. Kristina Nikolova

Cat&Docs Award – Kartli (Geo-Fr) dirs. Tamar Kalandadze, Julien Pebrel

DOK Leipzig Preview Award – Electing Miss Santa (Mol-Rom) dir. Raisa Razmerita; prod. Ion Gnatiuc

Avantpost Award – In Hell With Ivo (Bul-US) dir-prod. Kristina Nikolova

Movies That Matter Award – Electing Miss Santa (Mol-Rom) dir. Raisa Razmerita; prod. Ion Gnatiuc

East Silver Caravan Award – In Hell With Ivo (Bul-US) dir-prod. Kristina Nikolova

Milica Tomovic’s Serbian project Big Women headed the winners at Sarajevo Film Festival’s CineLink industry platform for 2024, taking the €20,000 Eurimages co-production development award.

Produced by Dragana Jovovic and Jelena Radenkovic, the film will follow two friends who embark on an unplanned trip to the Montenegrin coast, where they uncover long-buried secrets.

The awards were distributed during a ceremony at Sarajevo’s new Festival Garden on Thursday, August 22. As a surprise, a special Eurimages Co-Production Development Award was given to Philip Sotnychenko’s Ukraine-Lithuania co-production Times New Roman, in what the festival said is a sign of its continued support for Ukraine.

Set against the backdrop of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the film is about a contemporary artist who tries to find understanding with his loved ones, despite his struggles with alcoholism.

The Co-Production Market awards were selected by a jury of former Heretic producer Konstantinos Kontovrakis, Komplizen film producer Janine Jackowski and the Romanian Film Center’s Illinka Teodorescu.

The Female Voices CineLink Award, doubled in size to €20,000 this year, was given to Keti Machaviarani’s Greece-Georgia co-production Lullaby, about a caregiver who faces losing her income as the man in her care approaches death.

In the Work in Progress strand, Igor Jelinovic’s Croatia-Serbia co-production Honey Bunny took the €25,000 award from sponsor Turkish National Radio Television. The film follows a woman’s secret move into a coveted family property on the island of Hvar, which fractures her relationship with her sister.

The €30,000 in-kind post-production award from sponsor Post Republic went to Banu Sivaci’s Turkish title Hear The Yellow, about a woman searching for her missing cat when returning to her village, who uncovers family secrets along the way.

With founder and CEO Danielle Turkov and COO Amy Shepherd both attending the festival, UK-based film impact organisation Think-Film Impact Production gave its €20,000 in-kind award to Dmytro Hreshko’s Poland-Ukraine-Netherlands co-production Divia, about the destruction of Ukraine’s natural beauty during the Russian full-scale invasion.

The 22nd edition of CineLink Industry Days distributed over €200,000 in prizes to projects from the southeast Europe and MENA regions, including €130,000 in finance and €73,500 in kind.

Earlier this week Czech event Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival gave out its Docu Talents from the East awards. The 30th Sarajevo Film Festival draws to a close this evening (Friday, August 23).

Conclusion:

The Sarajevo Film Festival’s CineLink industry platform has once again showcased the best of southeast European and MENA region filmmaking, with over €200,000 in prizes awarded to 22 projects. The winners were chosen by a jury of industry professionals and included a mix of first-time directors and established filmmakers.

FAQs:

Q: What is CineLink?

A: CineLink is a film industry platform that connects filmmakers from the southeast Europe and MENA regions with potential partners and investors.

Q: What is the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award?

A: The Eurimages Co-Production Development Award is a prize awarded to the best project in the Co-Production Market, which aims to promote the development of European film co-productions.

Q: Who were the winners of the CineLink 2024 awards?

A: The winners of the CineLink 2024 awards include Big Women (Ser) for the Eurimages Co-Production Development Award, Times New Roman (Ukr-Lith) for the Eurimages Special Co-Production Development Award, and Lullaby (Gr-Geo) for the Female Voices CineLink Award, among others.