CineLink celebrates its 10th anniversary

This year it’s time to celebrate the 10th anniversary of CineLink - Sarajevo Film Festival’s co-production market, which has grown into one of Europe’s most successful development and financing platforms for feature films. Among this year’s highlights are a number of powerful projects with major contemporary relevance.

Since the start 10 years ago with just a few countries represented, CineLink has developed into a hub for regional and international film professionals. This year it presents projects open for co-production from 14 Southeast European countries.

Two selected Greek projects both, in different ways, deal with the country’s current situation. Syllas Tzoumerkas, director of HOMELAND is back with A BLAST, another contemporary tale which paints a dazzling and devastating mural of Greece today. And in LIGNITE, Gregory Rentis tells a coming-of-age story with plenty of social critique. Other highlights includes a feature film, SOUTH FACING WALL, by the well-known Turkish artist Kutlug Ataman.

CineLink has these past 10 years played an important role in the development of international co-production in the region; a factor behind the recent years’ success for Southeast European cinema.

- In 2002 there very few films made in the region, as a result of the old production system falling apart. So from the beginning we realized that our task was to help create an industry, says Amra Baksic Camo, head of CineLink.

- Given the low level of funding available domestically in this region, co-production is crucial. But it has also become an interesting region for producers from across Europe to be a part of, because of the talent and storytellers we have here.

On average 60% of the films presented at CineLink go from development to production, a number which places CineLink among the world’s most successful co-production platforms.

A number of CineLink films have also gone on to major festivals: HONEY by Semih Kaplanoglu (Turkey), awarded the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival 2010; IF I WANT TO WHISTLE I WHISTLE by Florin Serban (Romania), Jury Grand Prix - Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival 2010; LOVERBOY by Cătălin Mitulescu (Romania), in Cannes 2011, and this year’s Competition entry in Sarajevo,THE WOMAN WHO BRUSHED OFF HER TEARS by Teona Strugar Mitevska (Macedonia) which premiered in the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama section earlier this year.

- CineLink is not just a co-production market but a programme where we develop projects through script workshops prior to the market. I think this has been extremely important for the success of the projects, says Amra Baksic Camo.

More information on this year’s projects and programme is available here.