Nisimazine monthly January 2008

NisiMazine *5 January 08

Special Focus Documentaries

Editorial

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We are all used to being hopeful for something new. When a new period is beginning, we concentrate on our plans and dreams for the future. On the 1st of January, none of us woke up changed, but most probably we all felt glad because of the hope inside us.

Cinema, in all its genres and styles, ref lects a world which is designed by its creators. Documentary, because it records not a fabricated story but what is really happening, corresponds to a special dimension of cinema. Documentary filmmakers not only ref lect reality, but also add their own perception and interpretation to it in the process, by deciding where to put the camera, where to cut the scene, etc.

In this issue, Nisimazine focuses on ‘documentaries’, specifically on past and future documentary workshops and training courses, documentary resources, and of course festivals. In a testimonial of DOKO YOMI - organised by NISI MASA in Kosovo in 2006 – a participant shares his ideas about the workshop one year on. We also interviewed the organisers of a documentary workshop in Kurdistan, Iraq and of the big project Cine-Train , who explain to us their goals and motivations. There is a portrait of Helena Mielonen from Euphoria Borealis, Finland, coordinator of the DocPoint - Helsinki Documentary Film Festival in Helsinki. Finally, there is a chance to know more about our Austrian association kino5.

Now more than 6 years old, a network of 19 European countries, we are still passionately designing, developing, and organising projects. Last year was a dense period of filmmaking workshops, with many based on concepts such as the city and public space, during which young European filmmakers shared their thoughts and ideas.

For me the NISI MASA spirit takes its roots from this understanding - people from different geographies, backgrounds come together to produce outputs which are more than the sum of their inputs! Besides filmmaking workshops, 2007 was also a year of publications. Firstly, a dream came true when the monthly Nisimazine newsletters were re-launched, enabling increased communication within the network as well as outside. Also, the Nisimazine workshops which published gazettes for festivals like Cannes and Turin opened a new opportunity for members interested in writing and debating on cinema. Finally, after 2 years, the long-awaited seminar publications on Human Rights and Balkan cinemas are finished!

2008 started quickly for NISI MASA. The board has already had its first meeting, where they discussed important issues related to network. In 2 weeks, there will be another Nisimazine workshop in Helsinki during the DocPoint Festival; and soon after young talented scriptwriters will come together and develop their scripts in Andé and Clermont-Ferrand for European Short Pitch. The story will continue throughout the year with events and projects held by young cinema enthusiasts from all over Europe.

I would like to thank our European Office and each national association for all the precious work they undertake. I hope that each day of the New Year brings NISI MASA the opportunity to develop successful projects with the contributions of its members. Sharing a common interest brings people to a level where they believe they can do something for the greater good. If we, young people, do not lose our trust and passion, our words and works will take a valuable place in the story of the world. To develop this enthusiasm, we need your involvement!

Happy New Year!

Agenda January, 4th - 5th Paris, France NM Board Meeting

January, 18th – 28th

Helsinki, Finland Nisimazine DocPoint Workshop

January, 28 - 31 th

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Andé, France European Short Pitch

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Esra Demirkiran President of NISI MASA

Next Issue...

NISIMAZINE 6 ~ February 2008 focus : Script Contest Winners Update

7 ARTE IN THE SPOTLIGHT Portrait: Eve-Laure (Cinéscript)

NISIMAZINE is a monthly newsletter published by the association NISI MASA. EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-chief Matthieu Darras Secretary of the editorial Jude Lister Layout Emilie Padellec Contributors to this issue Maud Corino, Esra Demirkiran, Johanna Kinnari, Baudouin Koenig, Sami Mustafa, Aram Saeed, Nikita Sutyrin, Anu Wanasinghe On the cover: “Budapest Squares” workshop, photo by Anne Reverseau; “Building a Common European House” project (Turin), photo by Maddalena Longhi; “DOKO YOMI” workshop (Mitrovica); photo by Giorgio Cordeschi NISI MASA 10 rue de l’Echiquier, 75010, Paris, France.

Tel.: + 33 (0)1 53 34 62 78 + 33 (0)6 32 61 70 26 Email europe@nisimasa.com Website www.nisimasa.com

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Special Focus: Documentaries

n anticipation of Nisimazine at the DocPoint festival in Helsinki, we decided to whet your appetites in our January edition. The documentary scene is so hot right now that new European events are struggling to invent names for themselves - it can all get slightly confusing, what with the overabundance of ‘Euro’ and ‘Doc’ prefixes/suffixes fighting for recognition. There will be more yet to come, but in the meantime we hope you enjoy our first dossier dedicated to useful workshops, trainings and festivals.

DOKO YOMI: One year on

Q&A: Nikita Sutyrin

© Francesca Cirilli

DOcumenting KOsovo YOuth in MItroviça International film workshop, October 2006 - Mitroviça, Kosovo.

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© Photo by Giorgio Cordeschi

t has already been one year since I took part in the DOKO YOMI workshop. A lot of things have changed – for better or for worse – and yet, what is the purpose of living other then facing the challenges of good and bad things, of beautiful and ugly things. It was a chance for me to go and see South Mitroviça. Before, I had seen this place – only 30 km from my town – only on TV. As a non-Albanian, I was afraid to stay there for two weeks; I even had to lie to my parents saying, “I will be in the North of Mitroviça. If you want to visit me, don’t - it’s an intense workshop!”. Fortunately, the people I met there were the best people in the world.

I made a documentary to show my own perspective of reality through someone else’s life. I also had in mind the advice from the tutors that “we are making a portrait of the young people here and we want to see their reactions. Don’t be too objective with the people you are filming, try to spend as much time as possible with your characters”. Afterwards, I decided to widen my experiments, this time going to Bosnia to undertake European Voluntary Service (EVS) with Roma and Bosnian youths. I wouldn’t have been capable of sharing my experience if DOKO YOMI hadn’t given me a missing part I had in my mind about filmmaking (the film crew, building up stories with a video camera, knowing more about a subject I am talking about…)

During my EVS, I received an email with the title ‘DOKO YOMI at the Cannes Film Festival’. The dream of every young filmmaker, for me as part of the Roma community it meant a lot. NISI MASA had selected “Road to Home” and “In Cage” to be screened alongside 8 other short films. The feeling of being there was indescribable.

Sami Mustafa You can see the DOKO YOMI films online at: http://daazo.com/Kosovo/

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© Photo by Hannah Cuyitoh

ember of Moviement and coorganiser of NISI MASA project Ciné-Train, a 2-week documentary workshop which will take place across Russia next September*.

What do you hope to achieve with CinéTrain?

To present our country in all its richness, not only the well-known Moscow and SaintPetersburg. Also, an interesting movie! We have already been invited to the International Film Festival “Pacific Coast” in Vladivostok for the premiere of the film. I hope it will be the first, not the last festival, which takes an interest.

What difficulties can participants expect to face?

Moscow to Vladivostok by train takes 7 days – for some people it may not be easy. To spend a week in an enclosed space, as filmmakers working with colleagues, discussing ideas, shooting and editing. Collaborating in such “submarine” conditions can be quite stressful, but it should work through enjoyment, friendly cultural exchange and having fun together!

How is it different to past workshops?

We will work not only in one host city, but across the whole country, in a process of ref lection on the Euro-Asian reality. The title of our cine-expedition is “How can we define the European border”? Raising such questions is important in a world of economic globalisation, open borders on the one hand and national features and double standards on the other. *A call for participants for Cine-Train will be launched soon! Keep your eyes and ears peeled…

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Special Focus: Documentaries

Q&A: Baudouin Koenig & Aram Saeed

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audouin Koenig, who was a tutor of the DOKO YOMI project, is a documentarymaker and active member of AlterDoc - an NGO committed to film and human rights issues. He and Aram Saeed of the Institut KurdoFrancais talked to us about a similar workshop they will be organising in Kurdistan, Iraq, in 2008.

Could you describe the workshop?

A – It’s a training course organised by the Institut Kurdo-Francais in cooperation with AlterDoc. During 4 weeks, 20 young participants will be trained in documentary writing, production, filming, sound, editing, and direction. The trainees will form 5 groups, each producing a film by the end of the course, all to be shown within public events at different venues in the Iraqi Kurdistan region and France.

Why is the project important?

B - We have met a lot of talented young filmmakers who are unable to show their films abroad. They have the desire to be part of a network of artists, without borders, but it’s very difficult for them to travel.

A - The country lacks a local capacity for training. Yet the many tragic events of the past and the current social, economic and political transformations hold abundant material for documentaries. Building up this important area of filmmaking allows for documenting the past, present and future.

What kind of results do you hope for?

A - We hope that the participants will acquire basic skills in documentary filmmaking and create opportunities for further capacity-building and the establishment of a cultural bridge between the Kurdistan Region and the European Union.

B - Our ambition is to be able to make a public screening at the end of the 3 weeks. I hope that the quality of these films will enable them to take part in some festivals. www.alterdoc.org www.kurde-francais.com

European Documentary Network (Denmark) The EDN is a well-established organisation (initiated in 1996) based in Copenhagen, Denmark, for professionals working in documentary film and television in Europe. A veritable epicentre of documentary activity, according to its website it “supports, stimulates, and creates networks… provides documentary consulting and informs about possibilities for funding, financing, development, co-production, distribution and collaboration across borders”.

Its initiatives are indeed mind-bogglingly varied - from individual consultancy to events like workshops, seminars and conferences. Recent projects have even extended to Asia and the Middle East.

Designed for a wide remit of filmmakers, producers, distributors, associations, institutions, universities, festivals, broadcasters and film & TV agencies, the EDN already boasts over 900 members. It is open to both newcomers and established filmmakers, but membership does comes at a cost – 110 euros subscription per year to get the full benefits. Yet even if you find yourself lacking the cash, the website is still a great source of information on upcoming doc events and news. Its bi-monthly publication, ‘Dox Magazine’, is equally all-encompassing, with articles ranging from film reviews to in-depth industry analysis.

Visit the world of EDN at: www.edn.dk/art

Documentary In Europe (Italy)

You may never have heard of Documentary in Europe, but in fact NISI MASA has close ties with the team behind it, which includes several Franti members.

An Italian non-profit association, they work towards the growth of documentary culture. Focusing on European productions and their diffusion and promotion around Italy, they organise meetings amongst industry insiders and promotes activities in schools, cinemas, associations and clubs. They also propose training and refresher classes, and professional courses oriented to larger audiences.

The main event however takes place every July in the picturesque mountain region of Bardonecchia. An international 3-day workshop, it promotes documentary production and co-production, usually hosting master classes, debates, case studies and screenings of selected Italian and international documentaries. There are also pitching and matchmaking sessions, and workshops taught by international filmmakers.

For more information see: www.docineurope.org

Thanks to Maud Corino

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Special Focus: Documentaries

Eurodoc Training (France) Ever wondered if a Script&Pitch style project could work for documentaries too? Well here is a well-established course which has been doing exactly that for many years already.

In a similar structure to our very own initiative, the Eurodoc programme consists of 3 one-week residential workshops dedicated to development, financing and ‘packaging’, and pitching respectively. Each training programme is of course attended by a range of relevant experts in the field - from script analysts and producers to lawyers and bankers.

Geared towards independent producers and commissioning editors, Eurodoc has a focus on internationally-orientated projects from small and medium-sized companies, and a

Any Media Documentary Course The Netherlands Mediamatic is a cultural institution based in Amsterdam.

In the realm of documentary, its activities specialise in the innovative use of new digital media practices.

Many of their workshops involve the ‘Korsakow System’ which is surprisingly less sinister than it sounds. A software which, following a database structure, allows you to edit text, images, film and sound, it can produce interactive works to be published online or on DVD. The user can then navigate independently, making each experience unique.

The 6-day Any Media Documentary Course has already taken place during the International Documentary Film festival Amsterdam in 2006 and 2007. It involves both lectures and the development of participants’ own projects, investigating the possibilities of mobile phones, computer games and even virtual communities such as Second Life.

All this playing with new formats may sound like just a bit of fun. However, there is even a section on the possibilities for gaining financing and income from such new hybrid productions. The future may be closer than you think…

Check out Mediamatic’s amazing website at: www. mediamatic.net. We think that this is exactly the kind of tool NISI MASA has been wanting to create!

DFG - Documentary Filmmakers Group (UK) The DFG is a non-profit organisation based in the UK, which offers screenings, training courses and networking for professional and aspiring documentary filmmakers.

Although their own courses are somewhat pricey, more interestingly their website www.dfgdocs.com is packed with useful information – especially the section on festival submission deadlines.

special interest in countries which have a low production capacity. The organisation also has a distinct Mediterranean f lavour, welcoming a select number of professionals from Algeria, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia and Turkey within the EURODOCmed programme.

In a special screening held every year after the last workshop, all graduates have the opportunity to come together to watch and discuss films produced as a result of previous years’ sessions. Importantly, it also allows them to debate the overall changes occurring in the independent documentary production sector.

Detailed info available on: www.eurodoc-net.com

Some documentary film festivals in Europe DocPoint - Helsinki Documentary Film Festival (Finland) 23rd – 28th Jan 2008 www.docpoint.info Thessaloniki (Greece) 7th – 16th March 2008 www.filmfestival.gr/docfestival/uk Cinema du Réel (Paris, France) 7th – 18th March 2008 www.cinereel.org Visions du Réel (Nyon, Switzerland) 17th – 23rd April 2008 www.visionsdureel.ch DocumentaMadrid (Spain) 2nd – 11th May 2008 www.documentamadrid.com Dok Leipzig – International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Film (Germany) Oct/Nov 2008 www.dok-leipzig.de IDFA - International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (The Netherlands) Nov 2008 www.idfa.nl

Latest news JOB SHADOWING IN THE EO

Ex-President Elena Mosholova was recently welcomed in Paris to undertake a period of ‘job shadowing’ in the European Office, until early February. Elena will be helping out, amongst other things, with the designing of a summer event aimed at producing simultaneously the three winners of the script contest 2007.

DVD RELEASES ISTANBUL & SNOW WORKSHOPS

WORKSHOP WITH ARTUR ARISTAKISYAN

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o ease your aching minds and souls after the events of the new year’s festivities, a veritable feast for the eyes is available this January! NISI MASA has decided to coincide the release of the long-awaited “Visions of Istanbul” DVD with that of the freshly completed “Snow” workshop film compilation.

© Photo by Salvatore Laurenzana

The Potenza International Film Festival Association and Noeltan Film Studio are co-organising an international filmmaking workshop which will take place from 1st - 9th February 2008 in the Southern Italian town.

Entitled ‘Truth and Beauty’, the course will be under the guidance of Russian director Artur Aristakisyan. The programme encompasses script-writing, direction and production techniques.

The deadline for applications is 21st January 2008.

Regulations and entry form on www.potenzafilmfestival.it

For those of you who have had your heads in the sand in 2007, “Visions of Istanbul” was a workshop organised back in April as a followup to the Parisian adventure. 5 groups of young Europeans made short films on the city on the basis of their own perceptions, and following one given primary colour.

The results are a fragmented series of impressions on life on the shores of the Bosporus.

Our most recent filmmaking project took place on the other side of Turkey, in the Eastern city of Kars, setting of the Nobel-prize winning novel “Snow” by Orhan Pamuk.

Participants were free to explore both their individual reactions to the book and their real experience of Kars, producing a rich and varied set of very personal films. They will certainly be winging their way to Mr. Pamuk shortly! If you would like to order a copy of either DVD, please contact the European Office.

DOCS IN THESSALONIKI

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n international documentary project development workshop and pitching forum, organised by the EDN (see p. 5) in collaboration with the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival – Images of the 21st Century, will be held in the Greek city from the 12th - 16th March 2008.

The first three days will focus on the structure, style and focus of the project content, before 2 days of presentations to a panel of financiers representing international broadcasters. There will also be in-depth individual discussions for each project. The workshop is aimed primarily at producer-director teams who already have some experience, and who already have a well-developed film idea to bring to the table.

The deadline for applications is the 25th January. More information is available on the EDN website:: www.edn.dk/a

Seedox.Org Online Platform

Seedox.org is a new initiative formed at the 7th goEast Film Festival, aiming to research and analyse the situation of contemporary documentary film in Southeast Europe, with essays on Albania, Bosnia, Croatia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia, and UNMI Kosovo.

Online already since the beginning of November, the site fills the existing gap in the public availability of information on the field. The database is still a work in progress, and will continue to grow. The website also provides additional texts, a bibliography, and interviews with documentary professionals as well as extensive contacts for producers, festivals and organisations.

Seedox.org makes information on documentary film in Southeast Europe available to international festivals, programmers and individuals for the first time, offering user-friendly search facilities. www.seedox.org

kino5 is a member of the international Kino network which has its roots in Montreal.

Launched in 2004, there are 15 members at present, who enthusiastically strive to provide a platform for independent filmmakers in Austria.

«We realize that there are young talents who are not promoted by funding programs, and aim to give them the opportunity to meet and work together on projects.»

In the spotlight Some members Stefan Boessner

Stefan has been a member since 2005. At present, he is studying Theatre, Film, and Media Studies at the University of Vienna. For kino5 he has been producing a TV programme every month, in which he presents the winners of the screenings. He proved to be a very good reporter! Since he is going to spend some months in Paris from January 2008, we are looking forward to some nice stories about the French “joie de vivre”.

Philipp Kaindl

Philipp is one of the founder members of kino5. He came across the Kino movement at a screening in Paris. Soon after, kino5 came to life in Vienna. Today he is the chairman, in charge of administration as well as keeping an overview on organisational matters. After graduating in Business Administration he started working as a member of the editorial staff at the Austrian Press Agency. Besides all that, he even finds time to make his own movies that have been screened successfully in Austria, as well as at international festivals. The list of his films is remarkable!

Zsuzsanna Kiràly

Zsuzsanna has been part of the kino5 organising team for nearly 2 years. She has been working in PR-agencies and for film festivals in Vienna and Berlin. This year she is planning to write her masters thesis in communication sciences on blogs and trend-scouting - one of her major interests, alongside cinema, from early films to short-films and Art house.

Katharina Posch

Kathi contributes to managing funds. She is a graduate in Journalism and Communication Science and has acquired a lot of work experience abroad.

She has gained management skills by assisting in various cultural events and film festivals and has been managing her own projects as well. Her knowledge and international connections are of great value for us.

Julia Sternthal

Always striving for a new challenge, Julia has been acting in short films whenever she has the opportunity. Her real life kino5 tasks cover writing newsletters, sampling appropriate films for the monthly screenings, co-moderating them with Philipp and handling NISI MASA issues. Thanks to Julia, kino5 members have a place to meet. Her living room somehow became a hangout for us all. She is an excellent host and serves a very good “Çay”.

Anu Wanasinghe

When the first screenings took place in 2004, Anu was observing the new movement in town from the back row of the cinema. After getting in touch with the young and committed gang and presenting his own films, he joined kino5 as a member in 2007. He is currently in charge of finding sponsors for KinoDynamique and carrying out tasks connected to it. He turns into a film maker whenever inspiration strikes. Unfortunately that hasn’t occurred often recently, as he is spending more time on graduating in Business Administration next year.

Pictures on the left from the top: Stefan, Philip, Zsuzanna, Kathi, Julia & Anu.

Monthly Screenings In cooperation with a film theatre, we provide talented filmmakers with the opportunity to show their works of art in public. The audience is asked to vote for the best two movies, which then will be broadcasted on a local cable channel and via webstreaming (see www.okto.tv - look for “kino5 zeigt…”) To support international filmmakers we also screen films from other Kino members, as well as NISI MASA productions.

KinoKabaret… …is dead! Long live KinoDynamique! The concept is the same. Only the name has changed.

Every year we invite people from around the world to Vienna to take the challenge of a KinoDynamique, which is to produce a film within 60 hours. In three sessions of 60 hours each, participants find an idea, then shoot and edit a film.

Each session ends with a screening of the films handed in.

The next KinoDynamique in Vienna will take place from the 15th - 23rd of May 2008.

Website http://www.kino5.net

Kino’s Moto ‘‘Do well with nothing, do better with little, but do it right now!’’

Information compiled by Anu Wanasinghe Thanks!

Portrait

Helena Mielonen

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ecember. The fields are lacking their usual white blanket. A different kind of silence; no snow crunching under your shoes. The missing sounds are making everything kind of unfamiliar. This strangeness gives you an opportunity to observe your home town in a new light; the buildings seem unusual, the colours so pale.

Meanwhile, documentaries are giving Helena a rear window from where she can observe other unknown cultures.

Like Asger Leth’s document Ghost Of Cité Soleil, which pulls viewers into the middle of stormy violence; “I wouldn’t have the courage to go there and seek a life, so different from my own” she says.

She is moved by the figurative language, and the way the story was told.

25-year old Helena Mielonen is working for the fourth time as Festival Coordinator for the DocPoint - Documentary Film Festival in Helsinki. The permanent working community also includes the artistic - and executive - director and the organiser of a children’s documentary event. When the festival draws nearer the crew grows with ten extra staff members, and at the festival itself in January there will be around a hundred volunteers. However, as the core team is so small, you need to be able to control several different things at the same time. Helena is, alongside general coordinating tasks, taking care of various assignments - she is part of the programming team, oversees some of the finances, the ticket sales, the master class and targeted marketing. Like she says, her strength is in the ability to organise and coordinate. It’s a good job, considering all the multi-tasking she needs to do.

The festival is fast approaching. I saw the bud of a leaf in the middle of this period of darkness. Helena has paused her last-minute Christmas shopping trip to proofread the DocPoint festival catalogue. If she had the possibility to make a documentary film, she would want to tell stories about collective daily life around her. Like the man who was reading Blue Song, a book which discusses art in Finland at the dawn of the 20 th century. He was sitting alongside two other passengers in a tram who, unusually, started to make remarks about the book. Funny to watch, this little act. A conversation about art, with a total stranger, in the middle of rush hour.

Documentary is far more creative than fiction, says Helena. She feels that the representation in documentary films is much more plentiful than in imagined narratives.

A chain of events develops each story, which drifts toward its own harbour. You can reflect upon yourself and your environment through film. Helena claims that she didn’t know much about motion pictures when she started as a trainee at DocPoint. However, these kinds of front row seats naturally promote a wide perspective in the area of documentary films. She is interested in topical issues – thinking out loud “it would be fantastic to be a part of this kind of film group” – and feels that documentary film doesn’t have to be bogged down with formality. Oh no, it should be more spontaneous! It’s of a nature to be incalculable. Just film your own snowless winter, don’t be stuck in the process of applying for funding, she says.

© Photo by Jon Gronvall (2007)

Amongst the many previous guests of DocPoint, Frederick Wiseman and Hubert Sauper were the most memorable for Helena. Wiseman with his politeness, and Sauper in his own vivid way. The latter got entertainment a bit out of hand by getting drunk and inviting some other guests to come to Paris. But that’s the spirit of a film festival. Or is it? For the approaching festival Helena is simply eager to see how the audience accepts the films – she has already seen more than in previous years, and reveals that this time there are more stories in which the line between fiction and documentary is thinner than usual.

A sunset, a sweater and jacket, sweating because you’ve dressed like you should in wintertime. Helena doesn’t wear a hat. She has given in to climate change. She wants to hear stories about everyday life in Africa by local people. How different a standpoint it would be.

Being modest, working at a film festival teaches you to be less prejudiced. I like Helena, she has a good heart and that’s a great deal, if you ask me.

Johanna Kinnari