15th SEEfest Cultural and Literary Salon to Explore “Boundaries of Belonging”In South East Europe
The 15th annual South East European Film Festival (SEEfest) running April 29-May 6 in West Hollywood and Beverly Hills, announced today the theme for the 2020 Cultural and Literary Salon: “Boundaries of Belonging: Culture, Identity, and Narrative in South East Europe.”
The Salon will explore contemporary artistic approaches to identity, nostalgia, and narrative representation. Using the conflict-ridden history of South East Europe as a springboard for a wide-ranging discussion, a diverse panel of specialists will offer perspectives on past and current issues of belonging.
Panelists will question the limits of art in expressions of difference—cultural, ethnic, linguistic, and political—to consider how historical processes shape our understanding of self in an increasingly hybrid world.
The Cultural and Literary Salon will take place on April 15, 2020, at 7 PM at the West Hollywood Council Chambers at the West Hollywood Library, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069. RSVP Required. Tickets are free and can be reserved here.
This program is presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood. For more info on WeHo Arts programming please visit www.weho.org/arts or follow via social media @WeHoArts.
Festival passes will go on sale in March. Individual tickets will go on sale on March 16.
About the South East European Film Festival (SEEfest)
SEEfest presents cinematic and cultural diversity of South East Europe to American audiences and creates cultural connections through films, artistic and social events. SEEfest program and activities are supported, in part, by the California Arts Council, a state agency; Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Department of Art and Culture; and ELMA, Foundation for European Languages and Movies in America.
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SEEfest at 15: Whose is this song?
Warning: singing can be a dangerous business! Ever since we took the road trip with Bulgarian filmmaker Adela Peeva in 2006 with her iconic film, it has been a non-stop movie travel through competing histories, similar yet antagonistic cultures, always peppered with characteristic black humor and idiosyncratic music. The Balkan Sound entertained our audiences through many more music and ethnomusic documentaries throughout SEEfest’s decade and a half.
Whose is this song? was our first opening film in 2006
And it all began with Whose is this song? in 2006, at the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles, our original home where SEEfest was welcomed and nurtured by programmer Margit Kleinman and media manager Stefan Kloo.
Nicholas Wood wrote about the film in the International Herald Tribune and mentioned some interesting details.
“The film does not attempt to define where the song originally came from, although Peeva said she was given numerous differing explanations, including the possibility that it had been introduced by soldiers from Scotland who were based in Turkey during the Crimean War.
In Greece it is known as “Apo Xeno Eopo,” or “From a foreign land,” and in Turkey it is called “Uskudar,” after the region of Istanbul.
The Turkish version was the subject of a film, “Katip” (The Clerk), directed by Ulku Erakalin in the 1960s, and the singer and actress Eartha Kitt recorded a version of the song, also called “Uskudar,” in the 1970s.”
Whose is this song? is available in the U.S. thanks to DER, Documentary Educational Resources collection in Watertown, Massachusetts. Check it out! It’s well worth it, and still very much relevant.
Whose is this song?
70 min, 2003
in Bulgarian, Turkish, Greek, Albanian, and Bosnian
with English subtitles
About the South East European Film Festival (SEEfest)
SEEfest presents cinematic and cultural diversity of South East Europe to American audiences and creates cultural connections through films, literary and art talks, retrospectives, and community events. The 15th festival will take place from April 29 to May 6, 2020.
Stay up to date with SEEfest Events and join us on our Facebook Page.
FILM REVIEW: I WAS AT HOME, BUT… AT AFI FEST 2019
SEEfest was proud to be the community sponsor for the screening of I Was at Home, But… (Ich War Zuhause, Aber…) at this year’s AFI Fest. The film by Angela Schanelec is a joint German and Serbian production and previously won the Silver Bear for Best Director award at the 2019 Berlin Film Festival. The well-attended screening was held on November 18 at the Chinese Theater. (more…)
Submit Your Film for the 15th SEEfest! April 29 – May 6, 2020
Submissions for the 15th anniversary edition of SEEfest in 2020 are opened!
Starting on Monday, September 16, 2019, through the end of January 2020 we will be accepting submissions of feature, documentary, short, and sci-fi films through FilmFreeway only. We are looking for a broad range of themes that illuminate all facets of South East Europe, from contemporary stories to inspiring tales about cultural, ecological or artistic heritage of this 18-country region.
All are welcome – ultra-low budget films, movies filmed on a smartphone, or your very personal labor of love. Students, non-traditional filmmakers, investigative journalists, and reporters are also encouraged to submit their work.
Got a project that’s still in development? No problem! Submit under “Accelerator” category and be ready for a week packed with workshops, mentoring, legal clinic, pitching forum, and panels of Hollywood experts.
If you are still not sure whether your film is eligible or have any questions, just drop us a line at info(at)seefilmla.org.
Submit your film here and SEE YOU in L.A. next year!
(image – still from “Occupied Cinema” – shown at SEEfest 2019
SEEfest-Produced Short Film is an ON LOCATION 2019 Finalist
SEEfest-Produced Short Selected for Oct 5 NewFilmmakers ON LOCATION Showcase Celebrating the City of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, 10 September 2019 – Short film entirely produced by SEEfest team of volunteers and directed by Vera Mijojlić, has been selected to screen as part of ON LOCATION: The Los Angeles Video Project at Sunset Las Palmas Studios in Hollywood on Saturday, October 5th, 2019.
Hosted by NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA), the 2019 On Location film competition includes stories in narrative, documentary, commercial or animation format celebrating the City of LA and answering the question, “What is your LA?”
NewFilmmakers’s event is expected to highlight finalists with over a million views, a red carpet premiere screening event at Sunset Studios in Hollywood with 750+ attendees, a celebrity judging panel with press interviews, an after-party, and over $60,000 in prizes, including cash.
The title of SEEfest’s original short documentary about Los Angeles is “Festival of the City.” “We wanted to create a cinematic love letter to Los Angeles by visiting out-of-the-way locations not featured on the star tourist maps,” says Mijojlić. “Los Angeles is a sprawling kaleidoscope of ethnic and cultural diversity, and with our film, we celebrate this cosmopolitan spirit shared by all people.”
For this year’s On Location program, NFMLA has partnered with LA City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, LA City Councilmember Mitch O’Farrell, Sunset Studios, Cinelease, KTLA, The Central Hollywood Neighborhood Council, SAG-AFTRA, FilmLA, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, The California Film Commission, Alternative Camera Rentals, HBO, and many others.
For more info about ON LOCATION program, please visit: https://www.newfilmmakersla.com/onlocation/
About the South East European Film Festival (SEEfest)
SEEfest presents cinematic and cultural diversity of South East Europe to American audiences and creates cultural connections through films, literary and art talks, retrospectives, and community events. The 15th festival will take place from April 29 to May 6, 2020.
Stay up to date with SEEfest Events and join us on our Facebook Page.
SEEfest Volunteer Spotlight – Nejra Kravic
SEEfest cannot exist without the fabulous interns and volunteers who are working behind the scenes day in and day out, especially between January and May. We’re putting the spotlight on these dedicated cinephiles who make the annual festival a reality.
Nejra Kravic comes to Los Angeles by way of Sarajevo. She’s a Media Studies major at Pomona College.
Here’s Nejra, in her own words…
What attracted you to volunteer for SEEfest?
I have volunteered at film festivals before and wanted to continue being a part of a community that cherishes film as an art form, all while bringing together viewers and artists alike.
How long have you been involved with SEEfest and the Festival and what volunteer positions have you held?
This is my first year as an intern at SEE fest and I could not be more excited! I have volunteered at the 2019 festival.
Are you involved in the film industry? If so, what do you do? How did you get started?
I have an enormous interest in the film industry, and besides volunteering for a couple of film festivals and working at Pomona College’s film equipment service, I am also a Media Studies major looking to pursue a professional career within the field.
What’s your favorite film and why?
That might be one of the hardest questions ever! I feel like I am always going through ‘’phases’’ with certain filmmakers and genres. Right now, I am a huge fan of Andrei Tarkovsky, a famous Russian director, and the majority of his filmography. I enjoy the inherent poeticism of his films, as well as his appreciation of one’s relationship with nature.
Tell us a bit about your life: where are you from; what do you do for a living; what do you love about Los Angeles and how long have you lived here?
I am from Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and currently a rising junior and an international student at Scripps College in Claremont, California. My favorite part about Los Angeles, besides the incredible weather, is the abundance of things to do around the city. I like going to the movies, exploring museums, bookstores and coffee shops, or simply hanging out with some friends at the beach.
What do you look forward to most about working with SEEfest?
Before becoming an intern at SEE fest, I was always involved with film festivals during the actual event season. I would love to take part in everything that comes prior, and learn more about what it actually takes to keep a film festival running throughout the year.
Please say hello in the comments and welcome to Nejra Kravic to SEEfest!
Click the button below to learn more about becoming a SEEfest Volunteer.
Psst! Please do us a favor and subscribe to the SEEfest YouTube Channel. We’ll be posting a lot more videos there this season!
SEEfest 2019 Awards
And the winners of the 14th South East European Film Festival are!
Best Feature Film, Grand Jury Prize:
Irina (Bulgaria), Director: Nadejda Koseva
Special Jury Mention:
The Delegation (Albania), Director: Bujar Alimani
Bridging the Borders Award, sponsored by Cinema Without Borders:
Crush My Heart (Austria), Director: Alexandra Makarova
Best Debut Feature:
Irina (Bulgaria), Director: Nadejda Koseva
Best Documentary Film:
Neighbors (Croatia), Director: Tomislav Žaja
Special Jury Mention:
ReGeneration (Bosnia & Herzegovina), Director: Emir Kapetanović
Best Cinematography in Documentary Film:
Neighbors (Croatia), Director of Photography: Jasenko Rasol
Best Cinematography in Feature Film:
Borders, Raindrops (Bosnia & Herzegovina), Director of Photography: Miloš Jaćimović
Special Jury Mention:
Together (Slovenia), Director of Photography: Marko Kočevar
Deep Cuts (Croatia), Directors of Photography: Radislav Jovanov Gonzo, Dubravka Kurobasa, Luka Matic
Best Short Fiction:
Fugue (Greece), Director: Laura Neri
Best Short Documentary:
Childless (Bulgaria), Director: George Nicholas Zdravkov
Best Animation Short:
The Call (Romania), Director: Anca Damian
Honorable Mentions: Untravel (Serbia), Directors: Ana Nedeljkovic, Nikola Majdak Jr. and Icebergs (Greece), Director: Eirini Vianelli
Audience Awards:
Feature Film: Irina (Bulgaria), Director: Nadejda Koseva
Documentary Film: 49,172 (Bulgaria), Director: Plamen Petkov
Thank you to everyone who joined us for #SEEfest2019! Head to our Facebook to see photos from the Festival.
Pictured: Nadejda Koseva accepting 3 awards for IRINA! Photo credit: Aaron Perez
SEEfest 2019 Opening Night Gala Photos and Videos
SEEfest 2019 is in full swing. We had a wonderful turnout for Opening Night with a packed house. Take a look in this photo album on Facebook.
Plus, a Red Carpet video on YouTube.
Curious what the press are saying about SEEfest? Head over to our Media Coverage page to read highlights and film reviews.
2 more days of screenings! Get tickets for the Closing Night Gala featuring the West Coast Premiere of ReGeneration with director in attendance here.
(Photo by Tshombe Sampson)
Star Panel Rocks SEEfest Cultural and Literary Salon
Continuing what started years ago as a companion program to the festival with a SEEfest book fair featuring the great scholar and translator, as well as SEEfest’s early supporter, the late Michael Heim, the festival hosted a cultural and literary salon on April 17 at the West Hollywood Library City Council Chambers.
The Star panel included scholars Thomas Harrison from UCLA, David Shafer from CSULB, guest from Germany and current artist resident at the Villa Aurora, Fatma Aydemir, author of multiple award-winning novel Elbow, and moderator and UCLA Ph.D. candidate, Nina Bjekovic.
An engaged and appreciative audience kept the conversation going until 10 PM! The sentiments expressed in these comments best illustrate the overall atmosphere and flair of the Salon:
“The theme of audacity is a great common denominator to start the dialogue about the role of art today.”
“I walked away from the event with a new interest in Artaud and the French avant-garde, a growing anticipation for the English translation of ‘Elbow’, and an eagerness to study more Nietzsche.”
The discussion touched on issues such as authenticity, originality and audaciousness of artists through the ages, ranging from Salvador Dali to Jimi Hendrix to punk, the possibility of poetic expression in the age of social media, the relationship between artists’ private lives and their work, and living dangerously as did one of the celebrated Italian writers, poets, filmmakers: Pier Paolo Pasolini.
The Salon set the tone for the upcoming week of SEEfest’s Cinema of Audacity starting May 1, and bringing to Los Angeles 56 films that boldly and audaciously speak about our difficult, but also intriguing times – times that offer rich trove of stories to artists to turn the mirror onto us and make us look boldly into our own complex way of living in a world fraught with challenges on a global scale.
Presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Division.
Photos by Michael Gaines, Photographic Arts
Tickets Are On Sale Now For All Screenings And Events
SEEfest 2019 Kicks Off in 2 Weeks
Tickets are on sale now for all SEEfest 2019 features, shorts programs, and special events. Screenings will take place in West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Echo Park and other locations — find all the venues here and don’t forget to go Metro! Plan your trip using the Trip Planner on the venue page.
This year’s SEEfest, running May 1-8, will explore the theme of cinematic audacity by drawing attention to filmmakers whose works grapple with complex existential, ethical, and historical questions in innovative, and provocative ways. You can secure your festival pass now on Eventbrite.
A SAMPLING OF SEEFEST PREMIERES!
See more of the festival lineup online and get your festival pass and single tickets today on Eventbrite.
I ACT, I AM
Los Angeles Premiere!
Bosnia Herzegovina, Slovenia, Croatia
Director: Miroslav Mandic
May 9 at 9:30 pm at Laemmle Music Hall Beverly Hills
Talk about method acting! Three stories examine, through actors, the paradox of life stripped bare of societal constraints. In each story, an actor is either researching or playing a role, eventually beginning to live the life of the character.
Watch the trailer and get tickets here.
BORDERS, RAINDROPS
North American Premiere!
Bosnia Herzegovina
Directors: VLASTIMIR SUDAR, NIKOLA MIJOVIĆ
May 6 at 9 pm at Laemmle Music Hall Beverly Hills
Jagoda, a city girl, is on a summer visit to her extended family in the Balkan countryside overlooking the Adriatic. Her presence awakens hope, love, and the sense of mystery.
Watch the trailer and get tickets here.
OCCUPIED CINEMA
North American Premiere!
Serbia
Director: SENKA DOMANOVIĆ
May 6 @ 8 pm at Echo Park Film Center
An engrossing documentary about guerrilla action initiated by young activists taking over a long-abandoned privatized cinema in Belgrade. The occupation revitalizes the cinema over the course of a year with 500 screenings, dozens of concerts and public discussions, and participation from hundreds of artists, activists, and filmmakers.
Watch the trailer and get tickets here.
What Does “Premiere” Mean?
Do you know precisely what it means when a screening is labeled as a Premiere?
World Premiere: first official screening of the film.
SEEFEST SPONSORS
SEEfest program and activities are supported, in part, by the California Arts Council, a state agency; Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission; and presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Division. Special thanks to ELMA for continued support of our programs.