The MIDPOINT Editing Room is a post-production programme tailored to the needs of specific film projects. Through script consultations and editing supervision, the programme addresses the challenges and concerns that may crop up during the making of a rough cut and offers an effective plan for moving forward to help the filmmakers finalise their films. For this edition, the Editing Room has a focus on Ukraine.

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Barbora Struss, MIDPOINT Institute CEO, explained: “Since we started the MIDPOINT regional focus, Ukrainian talents and projects have been consistently present in our programmes. Of course, it is only natural that we would support our Ukrainian colleagues at a time like this. In total, we have nine Ukrainian talents participating in our programmes, with scholarships included, this year. In the Editing Room workshop, we aim to assist in the area of dramaturgical consultations in the post-production phase in a way that will meet the needs of the Ukrainian projects. This year, we have collaborated with two Ukrainian feature-film projects, which have received in-depth and continuous dramaturgical guidance both physically in Prague and online. The support will also continue in the coming year.”

One of the projects is The Glass House, directed by Taras Dron and produced by Igor Savychenko. The story follows a young girl who disappears with her older boyfriend. Victoria, the mother of the missing girl, has a seemingly perfect life. It is suspected that the daughter is involved in drug trafficking, but Victoria is less frightened by the dangerous world of drugs than she is of losing her picture-perfect reputation.

Regarding their experience in the MIDPOINT Editing Room, the team stated: “Our film was shot on 35 mm, so there is not much material to add. Also, we worked almost without playback, and that affected the shooting process. The director worked almost like people did in the olden days, and kept the whole script and his creative idea in his head, not relying on the help of playback. Nevertheless, Editing Room mentor Tomáš Doruška came up with some exciting overall ideas that would change the film's direction. In the last few sessions, he helped with minor but important details. In addition, it’s good that we had an outsider's view of our film – this is our ‘first viewer’.”

Meanwhile, Forever, Forever [+lire aussi :
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bande-annonce
interview : Anna Buryachkova
fiche film], directed by Anna Buryachkova and produced by Natalia Libet and Vitalii Sheremetiev, focuses on Tonya, who is the new girl at school. Dealing with her sexuality, as well as past abuse, she is learning to accept loneliness while trying to find her place in the adult world.

As for their experience with Editing Room mentor Ivo Trajkov, the team mentioned: “Having a film in the final-edit stage means you are over-involved and sometimes don’t see what is wrong in your story any more. You may be missing some parts, some emotional connections might not be working correctly, and sometimes, you have basic storytelling problems that are difficult to see without taking a step back. Ivo is giving us a lot of valuable pieces of advice, and together with his passionate involvement in the material, it’s providing a super workflow. I’m grateful for such an opportunity.”

As for the next steps after the Editing Room, The Glass House is already being submitted to festivals, and negotiations with sales agents have started. In terms of distribution, everything is up in the air regarding the Ukrainian market, and the team is focusing on international streamers. In contrast, the team behind Forever, Forever is in the final stages, with the edit being polished, and after the programme, they will start the post-production process in Amsterdam and Brussels, aiming for a festival release next summer.