19/11/2007

The cornerstone of European theatrical distribution across the continent, the Europa Cinemas network headed by Claude-Eric Poiroux and presided by Claude Miller held its 12th annual conference in Bucharest (November 15 – 18), bringing together over 400 exhibitors, distributors and film professionals.

The event included several debates focusing on issues such as the industry’s future in the face of new technologies, ways to protect the diversity of movie theatres in the transition to digital projection and the all-important question of attracting new audiences.

Participants included Peter Buckingham (UK Film Council), Spain’s Enrique Gonzales Macho (Renoir Cinemas/Alta Films Producción), Germany’s Stefan Paul (Arsenal Filmverleih) and his compatriot Martin Kochendörfer (X-Film Verleih), Swiss distributor Monika Weibel (Frenetic Films), Romanian directors Cristi Puiu and Catalin Mitulescu, Italy’s Antonio Salvadori (Circuito Cinema), Christian Thomas (Imagine Film Distribution, Belgium) and Poland’s Jakub Duszynski (Gutek Films).

The programme also featured several screenings, notably Tricks [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Andrzej Jakimowski
interview: Tomasz Gąssowski
film profile] by Polish director Andrzej Jakimowski, which won the Europa Cinemas Label at the latest Venice Days.

Eight other notable titles were also shown: Abdellatif Kechiche’s The Secret of the Grain [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Hafsia Herzi
film profile] (France), Ragnar Bragason’s Children [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Iceland), California Dreamin' [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Cristian Nemescu and The Paper Will Be Blue by Radu Mutean (both Romanian), Ilmar Raag’s The Class [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (Estonia, Europa Cinemas Label at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival), Mataharis by Iciar Bollain (Spain), Gianni Zanasi’s Don’t Think About It [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (Italy) and Love Life [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Maria Schrader (Germany).

On Saturday, a selection of trailers was also screened, including the eagerly-awaited Paris [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Cédric Klapisch, along with animated titles Fear(s) of the Dark [+see also:
trailer
film profile] and Max & Co [+see also:
trailer
film profile]; the latest films by well-known directors (Roy Andersson’s You, the Living, Marc Caro’s Dante 01 [+see also:
trailer
film profile], Amos Gitaï’s Disengagement and Kevin McDonald’s My Enemy’s Enemy); those by young filmmakers, such as Jalil Lespert’s 24 Mesures() [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (“24 Measures”) and Nic Balthazar’s Ben X [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Nic Balthazar
interview: Peter Bouckaert
film profile]; and 2007 Europa Cinemas Label-winners Control [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Anton Corbijn and Summer Rain by Antonio Banderas.

(Translated from French)