IN THE PALACE Day 4 by IN THE PALACE ISFF

Day 4 IN THE PALACE International Short Film Festival

Programme:

27.6 Stone Hall 10:00

Horse Rider, Macedonia, 84’38”, 2017

15:00 - 16:30

International Competition vol.5 Q&A Session & Discussions

17:00 - 18:30

International Competition vol.6 Q&A Session & Discussions

19:00 - 20:30

National Competition vol.2 Q&A Session & Discussions

Screening & Q&A Session

Open air 18.30 - 24:00 Radio Nula IN THE PALACE - official party vol. 3 DJ Funkusion 00.00 - 1.30

European Film Awards On Focus Vol. 2

Movie screenings

20.00

AN ORDINARY LIFE, fiction, France, 2016

19’11”

THE MALTESE FIGHTER, fiction, Malta, 2015

6’12”

BIG BUNNY AGAIN?, documentary, France, 2015

6’47”

SPEECHLESS, fiction, Germany, 2016

13’

WOOLEN COGWHEELS, animation, Poland, 2015

14’

REAL SOLDIERS, fiction, Australia/Germany, 2016

4’20”

WHAT IS YOUR BROWN NUMBER?, animation, India, 2016

25’

THE SOLOIST OF THE ORCHESTRA, documentary, Spain, 2016

25’52”

LITTLE SHOP, fiction, Germany, 2016

13’53”

BLUEY, documentary, Australia, 2015

14’

EDEN HOSTEL, fiction, Spain, 2016

9’10”

THE DRIVING SEAT, fiction, United Kingdom, 2016

26’58”

THE WHITE LOVER, documentary, Bulgaria, 2016

7’

THE ADDRESS, fiction, Bulgaria, 2016

20’56”

EAT ME!, fiction, Bulgaria, 2016

8’12”

BREAKFAST, fiction, Bulgaria, 2016

17’25”

STILL LIFE, fiction, Bulgaria, 2016

IN THE PALACE - DAY THREE Can you believe it, we are already on the fourth day of the 14th IN THE PALACE International Short Film Festival! So let’s see what happened yesterday, on the third day of the festival. We started the day at 10 o’clock with a lecture by Rastko Ciric, who is a Serbian multimedia artist and educator. He held a lecture on comic strips and the rules that define and restrict their language. At 3 o’clock we started with the Fifth International Film Competition block. We watched 6 movies: Deep waters, Potapov’s conjecture, A bit normality, Nirin, The last trick and Ms. Liliane. The public favourite was Potapov’s conjecture, a Russian fiction from director Mark Rasskazov. In the movie, we meet an ordinary security guard and his daughter. We then see Potapov’s character develop and he finds the solution to a famous mathematical puzzle. I really liked all the characters and relationships between them. I also enjoyed that the movie was quite unpredictable. We continued with the Sixth International Film Competition block where we again watched 6 movies: Time to die, Motherfuckers, Jacked, Balcony, (Otto), The missing knife and Somewhere else. Time to die, Motherfuckers was a documentary, (Otto) was animation and others were all fiction. The movie that touched and shocked me the most from these six was Balcony from British director and writer Toby Fell–Holden. The film is about a teenage girl from a neighbourhood with a racial tension, who falls in love with an immigrant girl

from Afghanistan. The movie has a big twist and it really shows us what rumours and prejudice can do to a person’s life. At the end, we also had the opportunity to meet Borbala Nagy, who is a Berlin-based filmmaker with Hungarian origin. She wrote and directed a short movie that we watched in the second part, Somewhere Else, so the audience was able to ask her in person all the questions that the movie brought up. But the day was not yet over, so we continued with Second National Film Competition block. We watched five Bulgarian movies: Pulse, The House, Red Light, Carnival Games, and Solstice, which were all fiction. From this part, the clear winner for me was Red Light, from director Toma Waszarow. The start of the movie was pretty slow but it really developed into a great comedy without trying too hard to be funny. The whole room was laughing and the movie left me feeling really good. At the end of the session, we also talked about the movies and different issues that were portrayed in the movies, specifically about euthanasia, which was also discussed in the movie Pulse. After that, it was time to have some fun! We enjoyed the party with DJ Angel Funkusion, who has been one of the most influential figures in the vibrant Sofia music scene for the last 10 years.

AN ORDINARY LIFE, FICTION, FRANCE , 20'26'', 2016 What is an ordinary life and what does ordinary mean? These are just two of the many questions raised by this powerful, and to some extent autobiographic, short movie directed by Sonia Rolland.Despite being young, 15-year old Nadia has a life already burdened by adult responsibilities and preoccupations. The money is scarce and everyday is a struggle to make sure an appearance of stability is kept. Social aversion to poverty, lack of communication but also weaknesses of the economic system in force: current and widespread topics are dealt with by this film where nothing is left to chance. A crude and effective picture of modern issues is effectively transmitted through emotional scenes and superb acting.

THE MALTESE FIGHTER, FICTION, MALTA , 19'11'', 2015 Victories which are not bringing the glory neither money; the desire to live a calm, satisfied life as an unreachable ideal and the dark side which we are maybe able to join forced by our missery with the hope for a better future. A story full of emotions begins on a boxing ring. Everybody is fighting for something. Boxing ring is an old metaphor for a life and it´s struggles. These days we are usually not forced to do something which goes against our faith and what we wouldn´t be able to do under normal conditions. But what would we do if we would face a critical situation and there wouldn´t be any escape? How far would we be able to go when desperate?

BIG BUNNY AGAIN?, DOCUMENTARY, FRANCE , 6'12'', 2015 Inspiration is in every single moment in our life. This is part of the message behind Big Bunny Again, an animated movie that takes start from the memories of the author about the dog she had during her childhood. This dog reminds a lot a rabbit for his long ears and in the kid’s mind this create a long chain of images, a sort of imaginative flow, that drive the protagonist in her life, until she become adult and left her house, and her beloved dog. This is a story that talks to everybody who has became adult, creating a little space to enjoy of our childhood fantasies e return children again. It tells us that when we are coming back in our home everything becomes smaller, but at the same time warmer.

SPEECHLESS, FICTION, GERMANY , 6'47'', 2016 Timeless, impactful and affecting, how short films should be. ‘Speechless’ is a simple story about a boy in a toy store. He is alone, he doesn’t understand; he is like all the other kids in the toy store - he just wants to play. True to its initial warning, the film doesn’t need any dialogue, as the story can be told visually. The audience is not supposed to understand the language, the same way characters in the film don’t understandeach other. The director Robin Polak successfully created a message of human interaction. No words needed, just emotions in a timeless story that will always find its audience because we can all be one day the boy in the movie, anywhere and anytime.

WOOLEN COGWHEELS, ANIMATION, POLAND , 13', 2015 How do you imagine coping with old age? As the last chapter of life, full of adversities, diseases and loneliness? Or the contrary, as a restful time that every one of us deserves after a lifetime of hard work? This movie is a praise of probity and everyday life, dealing also with the sensation of wasted time, longing for something that cannot be restored. Elderly people constantly try to reverse what is irreversible and even to outwit death. However, all these actions are doomed to fail and result in being trapped in grief. On the other hand, the life of the heroes are full of everyday challenges and thrills. Are they trying to tell us we shouldn’t focus only on the purpose of our lives, but also to especially enjoy the path leading to it?

REAL SOLDIERS, FICTION, AUSTRALIA / GERMANY , 14', 2016 Being a journalist is one of the most dangerous jobsin the world. Journalists are similar to real soldiers, they’re fighting for truth everywhere in the world and facing every kind of adventure each time something interesting needs to be reported. They are the ones who inform us and give us the news, an indispensable part of the power of information. But we have to be careful. Sometimes only an accident, or coincidence, can bring you a powerful story to tell, to share. The video maker in this film is working during an important meeting between the political leaders of Russia andthe United States. Accidentally, his camera fell down and stayed in the room after everyone is gone, or at least he thinks so...

WHAT IS YOUR BROWN NUMBER?, ANIMATION, INDIA , 4'20'', 2016 What is your brown colour? The colours are mainly basic colours like red, white, black and the different brown skin colours. We notice how the shapes of the characters are the shape of the colour pallets. The film plays with the basic black lines and there are no complex drawings. This short film is a critique about discrimination and even a kind of ‘racism’ in the same race of people. The same hatred shown to developed countries has started to permeate through their society. Instead of human beings we are just a brown number. Nothing else matters because since you are born the people tag you. After you are born you have fewer possibilities (or more) just for the fact of being more or less brown.

THE SOLOIST OF THE ORCHESTRA, DOCUMENTARY, SPAIN , 25', 2016 Only one in 10,000 peopleare born with perfect hearing. Yet one in 80 people have autism. The main character, Antonio Belmonte, has them both. This film leads us into his life, as told from his family’s perspective, because he himself doesn’t talk too much. He shares his story through the melody of the music he plays. It says a lot more about him than any other language ever could. It is a documentary about an exceptional prodigy of the 21st century, which tells us about his successes in the field of music and yet shows the difficulties he has to face when it comes to being a part of everyday society

LITTLE SHOP, FICTION, GERMANY , 25'52'', 2016 Time is the central character in this short movie. The sense of guilt on the son’s face, who has wasted time ignoring his father, touches everyone. Our lives are non-stop and time is constantly running, escaping from our hands. That is the lesson Constantin wants us to memorize: we should celebrate the good things, and even when it is too late, “it’s never too late to start over”. The little shop is where we all save our memories, the future, our past, our regrets and our hopes. It is a beautiful lesson about familial connection overcoming all else: it’s impossible to not fall in love with the father and his son, with their relationship and the rediscovery of each others after all those years.

BLUEY, DOCUMENTARY, AUSTRALIA , 13'53'', 2015 Bluey, the title character, is a rebellious young girl who wears only blue clothes. Whether she does that to show her independence, to hide her femininity or – maybe unconsciously - to show that she always feels blue; the young girl aggressively tries to hide the absence of something that was once very important to her. She rebels against a world that once treated her wrong and she can’t let it go. Bluey represents a whole generation of young people who feel misunderstood and need to find their own place in the world. In the end she finds her own path, but will it be right for her or will it cause her even more troubles?

EDEN HOSTEL, FICTION, SPAIN , 14', 2016 This light Spanish film sends a message of hope and equal opportunities for everyone through a special love story. In the old EdenHostel some people come and others go. In the crowd a guy in particular has a surprising experience. He arrived with the soul purpose of suicide but is soon interrupted by an exuberant hooker who tries to seduce him. This misunderstanding pushes these two strangers to talk each other and they find a little bit of compassion and empathy. Finally what connects these two people is the simplest and most visceral of pleasures: food. Eating something together reminds the protagonist of his childhood and as their hearts open they fall in love.

THE DRIVING SEAT, FICTION, UNITED KINGDOM , 9'10'', 2016 This short film talks about something difficult and widespread at the same time: what happens to an elderly couple when they lose attraction to each other? It’s not so easy to talk about this theme, precisely because it’s something that can happen to anybody, and everybody discovers different ways to figure it out. In this case the couple have decided to try a new experience - having sex in their parked car in their driveway. In this atypical situation the couple is having some problems, the feeling of being observant, being scared of some shadows, feeling bad for the pressure…soon doubts, thoughts and fears arise. This comedy, all set in the car, is well written, soft but clear.It touches the right parts, making theviewersmile and makesthem think about this daring theme.

THE WHITE LOVER, DOCUMENTARY, BULGARIA , 26'58'', 2016 ‘The White Lover’ is a 26 minute short documentary about the South Pole. It is showing not just nice pictures from the white continent but also makes us stop and think about the environmental problems and the specific way of life on this land. Bulgaria, one of the 30 countries managing this distant corner of our Blue Planet has a base there which is the home for the narration. This documentary does not bring much new information, shots, or messages. It is showing us the beauty of the South Pole from the view of the narrator and is more of an invitation for travellers and explorers rather than an informative document; it’s a tribute for Bulgarian role on the icy stage of the South.

THE ADDRESS, FICTION, BULGARIA , 7', 2016 In his first short film Asparuh Frangov looks up at David Lynch regarding the atmosphere and the aim of the direction. Frangov manages to create a dark and thick atmosphere while presenting the organ trafficking topic covering a deeper one, the regret. The idea is simple but full of suspense: a visit to a 15 years old crime scene… Using the colour scenes for the reality and the black and white ones for the dreams, the spectator is immerse in an oneiric scenario of crime and despair. Even if the film competes in as fiction, it has the essence of the experimental.

EAT ME!, FICTION, BULGARIA , 20'56'', 2016 Eat Me is a fictional musical story that focuses on people atttitude towards food, firstly, as a key element for our own healthy body and mind, then - the environment and food waste as a burden for it. In film, there is nothing about dialogue; rather than that it is a journey into the protagonist’s inner subconscious depths of mind where she faces her struggling relationships with food, because of an unhealthy obsession with her body shape and low self-esteem. The sound and high visual contrast in colors are perhaps the most characteristic elements of a movie, that catches a spectator’s attention. Even more, the musical approach – like a cherry on top of the cupcake!

BREAKFAST, FICTION, BULGARIA Dimitar Stratev decided to use a classic narrative to show to the audience how easy is in today society to lose trust in the person you love. The main character will experience in few minutes all the phases of the acceptance of his new situation looking to a bright future. Dimitar Stratev, class 1982, is a cinematography lover who recently decided to undertake filmmaking studies at New Bulgaria University. Breakfast is his first work, but a very good challenge probably also tank to the inspirations the director declares he had: as Antonioni, famous Italian director, Stratev pays a great attention to the photography and tends to keep the camera quite still in some meaningful scenes. A very good baptism of fire.

STILL LIFE, FICTION, BULGARIA ‘Still Life’ is a bulgarian short film by Emanuela Dimitrova about a very particular family trouble. The granddaughter is planning a robber along with her boyfriend as the last chance to change their life and start a new one leaving everything behind. Until here, it could be just another robbery story. But she is planning to steal to her own grandmother. The old woman is a collector, and has in her house an important collection of valuable stuff. With this interesting plot, Vasileva wants to talk about the meaning of life itself, about the family and memories. In the end, only one thing remains, that whatever it happens, right or wrong, it’s still life.

INTERVIEW WITH: VINNIE ANN BOSE

them. Every decision taken on the treatment style, character design and colour was to enhance the story and idea of the film. Indian animation is not very well known in Europe. Can you tell us a little more about this? Unfortunately Indian animation is not very developed, but it is a booming industry. There is a lot of talent in India animation, and also people who are extremely motivated to produce original content. But there is not enough money to produce animated films. Being a medium that is expensive to produce, and also one medium that does not have

What is your brown number is a graduation project you have worked on for a period of 10 months. Can you tell us more about the creative process behind it? How did you make the major decisions about how characters will look like, about what will be their color and shape? The project brief given to me was to make an animated short on a social cause. After a lot of thought and research, I decided to make a film on discrimination in India based on skin colour. The film’s intention was to portray the Indian mentality of seeing people in terms of the colour of their skin. So the colour palette of the film was decided to be justblack and white, and many shades of brown to show the people’s point of view of seeing each other in terms of their skin colour. To push the idea further, the heads of the characters looked like paint swatches with the numbers on

enough exposure to the Indian audience, producers don’t find the assurance to invest in animated films. If there is going to be a better production system, there are a lot of talented people with untold stories waiting to be brought to screen. What are the biggest challenges for a young animation filmmaker in India? Does the Indian government subsidize the animation industry? As I mentioned above, the biggest challenge faced by an animation film maker is to find the producer and the

budget to make the film. The Indian government does not give a financial support for the industry unlike many European governments. The only resort for a budget is from the producers and channels, who also hesitate as the Indian audience is not accustomed to animation films. Indian audience is only exposed to live-action films. And the belief that animation is for kids makes it very difficult for animation films to be taken seriously. If someone would ask you ´what is your brown number´, what would be your answer? Is the topic of discrimination based on skin color of personal relevance to you as well? The importance of skin colour in one’s life is something that almost all Indian people have grown up with, including me. In the subtlest of ways, this obsession has been engrained into our minds, creating major insecurities in one. It took me a while to realise the ridiculousness in the mentality and move away from it and embrace my colour the way it is. I didn’t have to face much of the discrimination directly as I am in the middle zone of the shade spectrum, but being around friends and family who discriminate and get discriminated, it did have a big impact on me.

EUROPEAN SHORT FILM 2016 - VOLUME III THE 29TH EUROPEAN FILM AWARDS Founded in 1988, the European Film Academy (EFA) now unites more than 3000 European film professionals with the common aim of promoting European film culture. Throughout the years, the EFA initiates and participates in a series of activities dealing with film politics as well as economic, artistic and training aspects. The programme includes conferences, seminars, workshops whose common goal is to build a bridge between creativity and the industry. These activities culminate in the annual presentation of the European Film Awards in Berlin. In the Palace International Short Film Festival is glad to present the nominated short movies from EFA’s 29th edition in its ON FOCUS programme for three days of screenings: for the third time tonight, June 27th, at MIDNIGHT in the beautiful Open Air Stage area and again the next day at 13 in the Stone Hall. Here’s the films that will be on tonight:

-WE ALL LOCE THE SEA SHORE (Spain, 2016) by Keina Espinera A group of men is waiting at the fringes of a coastal woodland for the journey to Europe. They get trapped in a temporal threshold. A film is shot there with the men playing themselves. The landscape changes and where they are is no longer their motherland. There are no beautiful beaches, the water is not transparent, not clear. Legends from the colonial past collide with the present time, memory survives. -SHOOTING STAR (Bulgaria/Italy, 2015) by Lyubo Yonchev Lilly is a divorced mother of two – Martin, who has recently come of age, and little Alexandra. One cold winter evening Martin picks Alexandra up from kindergarten. In the dark streets of the neighborhood they become a part of a tragic accident that can hardly be forgotten or erased. Lilly and her kids have to make tough decisions, the consequences of which will change their life for good. -9 DAYS FROMMY WINDOW IN ALEPPO (Syria, 2015) by Thomas Vroege One morning in August 2012, renowned Syrian photographer Issa Touma saw young men lugging sandbags into his street. It turned out to be the start of the Syrian uprising in the city of Aleppo. Touma grabbed his camera and spent nine days holed up in his apartment, recording what was happening outside. The result? An unprecedented glimpse into a war that has been raging for three years now. -LIMBO (France/Greece, 2016) by Kostantina Kotzamani The leopard shall lie down with the goat. The wolves shall live with the lambs. And the young boy will lead them. 12+1 kids and the carcass of a whale washed ashore... -IN THE DISTANCE (Germany, 2015) by Florian Grolig It’s calm and peaceful above the clouds. But chaos lurks in the distance and each night, it draws closer.

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