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.

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.

International Premiere: first screening outside the country of origin. And also the first festival screening.

SEEfest is proud to be screening many North American premieres such as Occupied Cinema and Borders, Raindrops mentioned above.

Learn more in this article about the various levels of Premieres and what they mean.

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.

Watch the SEEfest Trailer!

SEEfest 2019 is right around the corner, just 3 weeks away on May 1! Get a taste of the eclectic, audacious films in the 14th edition in the festival trailer.

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 and Opening and Closing Night tickets, now on Eventbrite.

GET YOUR TICKETS

Tickets for many screenings – including the Opening and Closing Galas – are now available and will become available as we confirm screening dates and times.

Peruse the entire film lineup: 13 feature narratives, 7 documentary narratives, half a dozen shorts programs, and an interstellar Sci-Fi program await you! We are now putting the final touches on the Business of Film Conference and Accelerator program.

The 8-day Festival all-access pass is the best deal and includes the Opening and Closing Galas (receptions following the screenings!), as well as The Business of Film Conference.

LITERARY SALON: TALKING ABOUT AUDACITY IN ALL ITS FORMS

Next week, Wednesday, April 17th, is the Cultural and Literary Salon in West Hollywood. Join us as a historian, a literary critic, and an author come together for an evening of scintillating cultural exchange. We will roam across audacity in the literature, history, and cinema of South East Europe, where geopolitical borders act as audacious protagonists in sociocultural affairs. Includes a reception for all attendees.

Panelists:

Fatma Aydemir, Author

Thomas Harrison, UCLA Professor

David Shafer, CSULB Professor

Moderated by Nina Bjekovic, UCLA Ph.D. Candidate

At the West Hollywood City Council Chambers (adjacent to the Library)

Presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Division. Click here for details and to RSVP.

SEEFEST SPONSORS

Meet the SEEfest Jury!

MEET THE JURY

Please meet the 2019 SEEfest Jury. Twenty accomplished jury members will select the winners for 7 major awards. Just a few of our distinguished jurors include:

Irina Maleeva, a Bulgaria-born actress who was discovered by Federico Fellini and appeared in three of his films, then went on to star opposite Orson Welles in his iconic version of The Merchant of Venice.
Yoram Kahana, a filmmaker who holds master’s degrees from UCLA in motion pictures and journalism. He has made more than 50 educational and commercial films about international cultures, crafts, anthropology and art, and is a long-time member and frequent Board director of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
Matia Karrell, an Academy Award-nominated writer, director and producer. She has been awarded fellowships including the Fulbright, American Film Institute (AFI) Women Director’s Fellowship, and the Disney-ABC Directing Fellowship.

Read about all of our festival jurors and juries at https://seefilmla.org/festival-jury/

LITERARY SALON – GUEST SPEAKERS ANNOUNCED

On April 17th, a historian, a literary critic, an actress, and an author will come together for an evening of scintillating cultural exchange. These dynamic panelists draw on their knowledge, experience, and anecdotes to contemplate the theme of audacity in all of its forms. Join us for the SEEFest Cultural and Literary Salon to explore audacity in the literature, history, and cinema of South East Europe, where geopolitical borders act as audacious protagonists in sociocultural affairs.

Panelists:

Fatma Aydemir, Author

Thomas Harrison, UCLA Professor

David Shafer, CSULB Professor

Moderated by Nina Bjekovic, UCLA Ph.D. Candidate

At the West Hollywood City Council Chambers (adjacent to the Library)

Presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Division. Click here for details and to RSVP.

FESTIVAL LINEUP NOW ONLINE

You can now explore the entire film lineup and start picking your list of must-see films. 13 feature narratives, 7 documentary narratives, half a dozen shorts programs, and an interstellar Sci-Fi program await you! Showtimes and tickets will be released shortly. Stay tuned for more details about the Business of Film Conference and Accelerator program!

SEEFEST SPONSORS

Opening Night Film & More Premieres Announced!

OPENING NIGHT FILM REVEALED…

Moon Hotel Kabul by Romania’s Anca Damian will open SEEfest with its West Coast premiere on May 1, 2019, at 7 PM at the Writers Guild Theater, 135 S. Doheny Drive in Beverly Hills.

Damian won Best Director Award at the Warsaw International Film Festival and the Mirada International Award at the Madrid Film Festival for this gripping mystery/thriller about Ivan, a charismatic but cynical investigative journalist with a sharp sense for story and no time for compassion. Everything changes after a one night stand in a Kabul hotel room with a translator named Ioana. Not long after their encounter, Ioana is found dead, and Ivan sets out on an investigation unlike any he has undertaken.

With all the best qualities of a sophisticated mystery and stellar lead performances, Moon Hotel Kabul will keep you guessing until the end.

“Anca Damian is the Agnès Varda of Romanian cinema: versatile, innovative, and audacious!” said SEEfest founder & artistic director Vera Mijojlić. “We are honored to open the 2019 South East European Film Festival Los Angeles with her latest daring work.”

This event is supported by the Blue Heron Foundation.

MORE PREMIERES

See more of the festival lineup online and get your festival pass today on Eventbrite.

DEEP CUTS
World Premiere
Croatia, 2018, 75’
Directors: Dubravka Turić, Filip Mojzes, Filip Peruzović

The thematic framework of the 3-story anthology feature film Deep Cuts is violence in all of its forms: as a destruction of intimacy, family, integrity, trust.

THE NIGHT OF THE BEAR
World Premiere
Romania, 2018, 77’
Director: Paul-Razvan Macovei

Three 17-year olds and would-be friends share emotionally-charged stories of their family life in the course of one summer night. Their often-absurd fights are mediated by the ironical appearance of a giant discarded teddy bear.

In his debut feature director, Macovei employs a unique story technique that will be especially appealing to young adult audiences (16 to 18-year-olds). He breaks the 4th wall to allow his subjects to talk directly to the audience and uses 2D animation featuring bears in lieu of people to illustrate family dynamics.

This screening is supported by the Romanian Cultural Institute, New York.

SUNRISE IN KIMMERIA
West Coast Premiere
Cyprus, 2018, 99’
Director: Simon Farmakas

A young villager gets caught in a tragicomic tug-o’-war, when a strange sphere, tracked by a foreign intelligence agency, crash-lands into his potato field.

Avoiding the stereotypical ethnographic comedies of the genre, the storyline intertwines the lives of the local villagers with the intelligence agents, combining the peasant-like naivety with international conspiracies and intrigues, conveying similarities that the latter has with the run-of-the-mill village rivalries and their struggle for authority and ownership.

Screening in the Sci-Fi program — stay tuned for more program announcements.

IRINA
North American Premiere
Bulgaria, 2018, 96’
Director: Nadejda Koseva

Irina is a part-time waitress in a small Bulgarian town. On the same day, she gets fired her husband gets into a serious accident, plunging them even deeper into poverty. To make ends meet, she becomes a surrogate mother.

With her emotions oscillating between disappointing family circumstances and new pregnancy, Irina confronts them with fierce determination and in her own unsentimental way discovers what it means to love and to forgive.

Winner of Best First Film, Best Actress and Union of Bulgarian Filmmakers award at the Golden Rose festival in Bulgaria, Special Jury Award for actress Martina Apostolova and Ecumenical Jury Award at Warsaw IFF, Best Feature Film Award at Tirana FF, Best First Feature Film Award & Best Actress Award at Cottbus FF, and Special mention to the actress Martina Apostolova at Tbilisi IFF.

This screening is supported by Calypso Media.

AUDACIOUS STORYTELLERS: SEEfest CULTURAL AND LITERARY SALON

A historian, a literary critic, an actress, and an author come together for an evening of scintillating cultural exchange. These dynamic panelists draw on their knowledge, experience, and anecdotes to contemplate the theme of audacity in all of its forms.

The SEEFest Cultural and Literary Salon will explore audacity in the literature, history, and cinema of South East Europe, where geopolitical borders act as audacious protagonists in sociocultural affairs.

Presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Division. Click here for details and to RSVP.

SEEFEST SPONSORS

SEEfest Grant Award from Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Fantastic news from SEEfest!

We are proud to share that the 14th edition of the South East European Film Festival LA is a recipient of a festival grant from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA), home of the Golden Globes.

“We are greatly honored by this recognition and grateful to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for supporting festivals that bring foreign language films to Los Angeles. This grant will help us provide mentorship for innovative projects and workshops for South East European filmmakers, and expand marketing to local film aficionados, educators, film scholars, and youth audiences, introducing them to cinematic gems from 18 South East European countries covered by the festival.”

-Vera Mijojlić, Founder & Artistic Director

Free screening and director Q&A

If you’re in the Long Beach area on Thursday evening. March 21, join us at California State University at Long Beach for a special free screening with the Jewish Studies Program of Gyula Gazdag’s 1985 documentary Package Tour. Following a group of Holocaust survivors and their children embarking on a tour to Auschwitz and Birkenau, The Package Tour asks why these people have come back – to remember? To try to understand how it could happen, and if it could happen again?

Gyula Gazdag is a director of film, theatre, and television productions and a professor at UCLA. He has served as the Artistic Director of the Sundance Directors Lab since 1997.

Followed by Q&A with director Gyula Gazdag and Vera Mijojlić

Literary Salon

Before SEEfest kicks off on May 1st, join us on April 17th at the West Hollywood Library for the literary and cultural salon Audacious Storytellers, with a thought-provoking interdisciplinary discussion of audacity in all of its forms. Through personal anecdotes, literary perspectives, and geopolitical histories, the panel will discuss the nature of audacity in an area of the world where borders continuously challenge national and cultural paradigms. Presented with the support of the City of West Hollywood’s Arts Division. Click here to RSVP.

Stay tuned for more announcements about the Opening and Closing Night films, a new sci-fi sidebar program, full film lineup, and the Business of Film Conference!

SEEfest Sponsors

First Peek at SEEfest Film Highlights!

SEEfest is excited to unveil the first batch of films for the 14th annual festival! 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.

Just a few of the 56 films in competition:

The Delegation
North American premiere!

Bujar Alimani’s multiple award-winning powerhouse of a film from Albania probes the layers of oppression between a prisoner and his unlikely entourage in what is essentially a first-rate road movie, or as Cineuropa describes, “a dark, absurdist comedy as it depicts how the officials try to uphold a system that is obviously in the process of falling apart.” Winner of the Grand Prix at Warsaw International Film Festival, Trieste Award for Best Feature Film, as voted for by the audience, and the PAG Jury Award at Trieste International Film Festival.

Re-Generation
West Coast Premiere!

Emir Kapetanovic’s documentary about a group of Bosnian adolescents from all ethnic groups in search of a future that is not held hostage by the past.

Crush My Heart
North American Premiere!

The first feature by Slovakian director Alexandra Makarova is an Austrian Romeo and Juliet love story with Roma protagonists. Winner of “Best Screenplay” and “Audience Award” at European festivals, SEEfest welcomes the North American premiere!

Together
North American Premiere!

Emotionally charged story of a gay Slovenian man who fights for custody of his deceased partner’s daughter tackles persistent prejudice and social obstacles facing same-sex couples.

Scopophilia
West Coast Premiere!

From Greece, Natalia Lampropoulou and Ilektra Aggeletopoulou create a slick homage to Hitchcock’s Rear Window, using a webcam app on the computer.

Prisoner of Society
North American Premiere!

Winner of numerous Oscar® qualifying awards and the first Georgian short documentary to be nominated for European Film Academy Awards, Rati Tsiteladze’s Prisoner of Society is a beautiful portrait of a transgender man who can’t leave home.

Pre-Festival Event

Stay tuned for more announcements about the Opening and Closing Night films, a new sci-fi sidebar program, full film lineup, and the Business of Film Conference!

Community Partner Spotlight: International Documentary Association

On March 19th, join the IDA for a special 20th-anniversary of Doug Block’s 1999 documentary Home Page, which explored the emerging culture of the internet and led directly to the formation of The D-Word. The event will begin at 800 Degrees from 5:30 pm with a mixer, continuing with a special screening of Home Page at 8 pm at the historic Linwood-Dunn Theater. Director and D-Word founder Doug Block will be present for a Q&A after the film, moderated by former IDA Board President and longtime D-Word co-host Marjan Safinia. More details and tickets here.

WWII Resistance Hero Immortalized in Iconic Film gets Museum in Sarajevo

During the recent Sarajevo Film Festival (sff.ba) Bosnian Film Center announced plans for a new Museum dedicated to the legendary film about the WWII resistance hero, Vladimir Peric, popularly known by his undercover name Walter. He was killed in the final battle for Sarajevo against the Nazi occupying forces in April 1945.

There is a unique cinematic connection to Walter. Quarter century ago Bosnian and Yugoslav director Hajrudin “Siba” Krvavac made the iconic film Walter defends Sarajevo, the third in his trilogy of WWII movies about partisan resistance fighters. Walter has since gained a cult status even in China (“Some 1.3 billion people now live in China and half of them have seen Walter Defends Sarajevo,”) as well as a reference point for defiant Sarajevans during the siege of the city in the 1990s. The closing line of the film, spoken by a Nazi officer looking down on the city from the hillside vintage point, “Das ist Walter,” (“This is Walter”) has become the defining moment to characterize Sarajevo as the city that will always stand tall in face of aggression and injustice.

Jasmin Durakovic, filmmaker and director of the Bosnian Film Center was joined by Alen Cengic, owner of the Park of the Princes restaurant where the press conference about the Museum was held – at the very spot where the iconic ending of the film took place. “Walter Defends Sarajevo has attained the status of a cult achievement of our cinema,” said Durakovic. “This film is one of the few widely recognized and uniquely Sarajevan reference points which is why the Sarajevo Film Center has decided to create the Museum dedicated to the film.”

The Walter Museum is expected to be completed in two months and will be located in the Film Center’s building (former Sutjeska Film Studio) in downtown Sarajevo. On the site of Park of the Princes restaurant overlooking the city a giant mural backdrop commemorates some of the scenes from the film – with Chinese subtitles. Even before the media event was over groups of Chinese tourists flocked to the site and started taking photographs. Young couples with children instantly recognized the imagery from the beloved film of their parents’ generation and enthusiastically confirmed that Walter still holds his immortal cinematic place in the hearts of the Chinese people. Bathed in the afternoon light the city of Sarajevo was lying below, its spirited citizenry in the party mood for the film festival. Yet quiet echoes of the legendary film live on in Sarajevo where one line of a movie dialogue forever defined its unconquered spirit. After all this is not an ordinary city. Das ist Walter.

: “Walter Defends Sarajevo” poster in China

Editor’s note:

Hajrudin “Siba” Krvavac (1926 – 1992) is best known for his hugely popular trilogy of war movies about WWII partisans whose heroic resistance became the stuff of legends: The Demolition Squad (Diverzanti, 1967), The Bridge (Most, 1969) and Walter Defends Sarajevo (Valter brani Sarajevo, 1972). Krvavac was also a well known documentary director. He was among the internationally acclaimed Bosnian filmmakers whose movies made the name of the production company Sutjeska Film Sarajevo known well beyond the country’s borders. He died in July 1992 during the Siege of Sarajevo. “However, Krvavac lived long enough to see the people of Sarajevo in 1992 chant, “We Are Walter!” in protest of the conflict.” (wiki)

Robert Dornhelm to be Honored with the 2018 SEEfest Legacy Award

Academy Award and Emmy nominated director Robert Dornhelm will receive the South East European Film Festival (SEEfest) Legacy Award during the opening night of the 13^thAnnual Film Festival. The prolific Austrian Film & TV director will receive the award during the red carpet gala event on April 26^th, 7 PM at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills (135 S. Doheny Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90211).

Get your ticket here for the SEEfest Opening Night Gala!

Romanian-born Dornhelm is a symbol of the escape from the communist regime through his film creations and legacy. Destiny would take him to Austria and the United States where his films received international recognition. His 1977 documentary film, “The Children of Theatre Street,” was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. He directed the TV miniseries “Anne Frank: The Whole Story” (2002), which received 3 Golden Globe and 11 Emmy nominations including Best Director for Dornhelm and an Emmy win for Best Miniseries. He also directed “Echo Park” (1985), “Requiem for Dominic” (1990), “Sins of the Father” (2002), “War and Peace” (2007), Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy” (2011), and most recently the critically acclaimed international series “Hotel Sacher” (2016) and “Maria Theresia” (2017).

The 2018 SEEfest Legacy Award will be presented to Robert Dornhelm not only for his body of work, but also for his inspiration to young filmmakers and his dedication to telling socially-critical stories.

“It is a special privilege for us at SEEfest to recognize those artists of South East European heritage whose legacies enrich cinema,” says Vera Mijojlic, founder and director of SEEfest. “We are honored to pay tribute to Romanian-Austrian filmmaker Robert Dornhelm for outstanding achievements in cinema and television in Europe and America both.”

SEEfest will screen “The Crown Prince” (2006) on April 28 at the Laemmle Music Hall in Beverly Hills.

For additional information, trailer, movie stills, and tickets, click here.

About Robert Dornhelm

Director Robert Dornhelm, an accomplished filmmaker in many arenas, has been impressing audiences the world over for many years. By winning broad acclaim not only for his Emmy-winning mini-series “Anne Frank: The Whole Story,” but also for his excellent telefilms “Sins Of The Father” and “RFK,”Dornhelm has established himself as a contemporary filmmaker of great range and versatility.

Most recently, the former Academy Award nominee filmed the critically acclaimed TV series “Maria Theresia” and “Hotel Sacher”, which was a rating hit in Europe. In 2011 he directed the Lifetime film “Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy” in Rome, but his subjects have been varied and eclectic.

Born in the provincial Romanian city of Timisoara, Dornhelm began his directing career as a prolific documentary filmmaker in Austria, his adoptive country and home since age 13. His first works to receive widespread international attention were “The Children Of Theatre Street” and “She Dances Alone”, both of which were selected for competition at the Cannes Film Festival. “The Children of Theatre Street” chronicles the lives of the young students of the Kirov Ballet and was nominated for an Academy Award, while the strikingly original “She Dances Alone” tells the story of Nijinska, daughter of the legendary Nijinsky. Dornhelm’s bittersweet comedy “Echo Park”, set in the quirky LA neighborhood of the same name, marked his transition into fictional filmmaking. He went on to direct “Cold Feet” for Avenue Pictures before returning to Romania to shoot the docudrama “Requiem for Dominic”. Requiem received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Foreign Film and was Austria’s Official Selection for the 1991 Academy Awards.

In 1992, NBC & Warner Brothers engaged him to direct “Fatal Deception: Marina’s Story”, for which Helena Bonham Carter received a Golden Globe nomination. Political thriller “The Break” opened the 1995 Dublin International Film Festival and, the following year, his adult fairy tale, “The Unfish,” marked the second time Austria selected a Dornhelm film as its submission for the Academy Awards. Lauren Bacall and Dennis Hopper starred in the quirky Dornhelm comedy, “The Venice Project,” which was selected for competition in the 1999 Venice Film Festival.

Robert’s 2001 mini-series for ABC, “Anne Frank: The Whole Story,” earned 11 Emmy nominations and resulted in a win for Best Miniseries. “RFK,” which he filmed for F/X, received critical acclaim, as did his CBS film “Suburban Madness” and his Lifetime movie “Identity Theft: The Michelle Brown Story”. In 2006, Robert returned to Vienna to film “The Crown Prince,” which told the tragic story of the heir to the doomed Austro-Hungarian Empire, followed by his eight-hour adaptation of Tolstoy’s epic “War and Peace” in Italy, Lithuania, Germany, and Russia.

While helming “Spartacus,” Dornhelm skillfully managed a crew of 400 and a cast of 12,000 extras. His work brought him to the attention of Steven Spielberg and DreamWorks SKG, who hired him to shoot the first episode of their two-hour limited series “Into The West”. The series, a multi-dimensional look at the settlement of the American West circa 1824-1892, began airing in June 2005 and won two Emmy Awards. The six films that make up “Into the West” are the most expensive ever produced by TNT and represent a $100 million investment.

Robert Dornhelm and his wife Lynn split their time between their homes in Malibu, Calif. and Vienna.

About “The Crown Prince”

Rudolf – the true story of a royal rebel and his tragic love. Indelibly linked to the tragedy of Mayerling, the name of Crown Prince Rudolf still evokes mystery and conspiracy, thwarted hopes and unfulfilled love.

Rudolf is raised since his earliest childhood to succeed his father Emperor Franz Joseph to the throne of Austria-Hungary. Well-read and passionately liberal-minded, Rudolf is exactly the kind of man Vienna needs to calm the Empire’s restive nations and maintain peace in Europe. Yet the political establishment and Rudolf’s own father stand between him and the exercise of power. Kept away from political affairs by the Emperor’s conservative councilors, longing for the affection of his constantly traveling mother Empress Elisabeth (“Sisi”), Rudolf begins publishing flaming diatribes against his father’s government under a pseudonym and indulges in many romantic affairs.

In Prague, he falls in love with a Jewish girl; but when she dies mysteriously after Rudolf’s true identity is discovered, he feels responsible for her death and realizes that his role prevents him from ever finding happiness. He thus resignedly agrees to marry Stephanie of Belgium. It is a loveless marriage that brings the dynasty “only” a daughter… Then, a ray of light brightens his life: Mary Vetsera, a ravishing young baroness who has idolized Rudolf since her childhood. Their passionate affair gives Rudolf new strength and courage, yet trouble continues to brew…

Rudolf clearly sees that without a radical change of policy the Austro-Hungarian Empire cannot survive in Europe’s new balance of power. Together with his liberal friends, he is ready to force his father to abdicate. But the emperor’s spies are faster. In a dramatic confrontation, Franz Joseph tells him that he is not fit to succeed him. And he also forbids Rudolf to divorce Stephanie. Seeing no way out of his dilemma, Rudolf plans to commit suicide in his hunting lodge at Mayerling. Mary is with him. Unwilling to live without him, she begs him to take her life before he takes his…

With Max von Thun, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Julia Jentsch, Vittoria Puccini, Sandra Ceccarelli, Omar Sharif and Christian Clavier.

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. It was founded in 2006 by Vera Mijojlić, long-time film critic, and cultural entrepreneur. The 13^thAnnual South East European Film Festival (SEEfest) will take place April 26 – May 3 and will bring a large selection of feature, documentary and short films to the Writers Guild Theater, Laemmle Music Hall, and West Hollywood Council Chambers/ Library campus.

Not a Cine-Fan yet? Join SEEfest today!

Become a Cine-Fan and engage with other SEEfest members, make new friends and join the journey of cinematic and cultural discovery. Cine-Fan Members receive a 20% discount on Festival Passes and Tickets.

Annual General Membership is $55. Student membership is $30. All are welcome! Click here to join today. THANK YOU!

The 13th Edition of SEEfest kicks off on April 26, 2018!

Gyula Gazdag receives Lifetime Achievement Award in Budapest

We are delighted to share with SEEfest fans the news from Budapest where our festival’s long time friend and renowned filmmaker, educator and mentor Gyula Gazdag was honored at the Budapest International Documentary Festival with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Congratulations!

Gyula Gazdag is a professor at UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. He has served as the Artistic Director of the Sundance Filmmakers Lab since 1997. Gazdag has been a creative advisor at the Maurits Binger Film Institute in Amsterdam since 2002, and at the Script Station of the Berlinale Talent Campus since 2006. Daily Variety selected him as one of the ten best film teachers of 2011. His numerous feature films include A Hungarian Fairy Tale, winner of Best Feature Film of the Year of the Hungarian Film Critics and screened at Cannes Directors’ Fortnight, Stand Off, winner of a Special Jury Prize at the San Sebastian Festival, Lost Illusions, winner of Best Screenplay at the Hungarian Film Week, Swap, Singing on the Treadmill, which was banned in Hungary for 10 years, and The Whistling Cobblestone, which was banned from foreign exhibition for 12 years. His documentary work includes The Banquet, Package Tour and The Resolution, which was named one of the 100 best documentaries of all time by the International Documentary Association, and The Selection.The latter two were also banned in Communist Hungary for more than a decade.

SEEfest was honored to have Gyula Gazdag on the jury for Best Documentary Film, and as festival advisor and cultural ambassador. Most recently SEEfest presented Gazdag’s influential documentary, Package Tour at the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust in November 2017.