Fueled by independent spirit and passion for the cinema of south-east Europe, the team behind Los Angeles-based SEE Fest (South East European Film Festival) has announced its fifth annual showcase to take place at the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles, and UCLA, from April 29 through May 3.
On May 3 from 9am through 1pm at the Center for Managing Enterprises in Media, Entertainment & Sports (MEMES) at UCLA Anderson SEE Fest is hosting its 2nd annual Business Conference on South East Europe’s cinema, a half-day seminar on packaging and financing international productions, producing in South East Europe, and the role of new media in distribution of foreign films.
“We bring to light innovative, different films that create an in-depth portrait of south east Europe, where countries are sandwiched between defunct empires and mixed legacies”, says Vera Mijojlic, festival director. “They are the voices of a wonderfully expressive diversity, something south east Europe and Los Angeles have in common.”
Some of the films slated for this year’s SEE Fest include stories that explore how to stay “Alive!” when confronted with ancient blood feuds (Albania), seeking “Bells, Threads & Miracles” between Muslims and Orthodox Christians (Greece), about people taking “A Step into the Darkness” of radical ideologies (Turkey) or remarkably enduring their fractured existence thanks to the subversive genius of Balkan humor in “Goodbye, How are you?” (Serbia).
The South East European Film Festival is the only festival in the United States devoted exclusively to south-east Europe. Its message is not only to show films but to educate about the South East Europe’s region, its troubled history, and cultural diversity.
Fifth annual SEE Fest runs from Thursday, April 29 through Monday, May 3, 2010. Screenings April 29 & 30 start at 6:30pm, May 1 & 2 start at 1:00pm and are held at the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles, 5750 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 100, Los Angeles, Ca. 90036. The closing night of the festival is held on Monday, May 3rd at 6:30pm the James Bridges Theatre on UCLA campus in Westwood. Business conference takes place on Monday, May 3 at UCLA Anderson. For tickets and further information go to www.seefilmla.org, or www.itsmyseat.com (SEE Fest).
The Greek movie that participates in the festival is BELLS, THREADS & MIRACLES, Greece 2008, doc, 65 min. Directed by Marianna Economou.
The film is about the claims of miraculous events at the St. George Monastery on the Princes’ Islands of Turkey. Every year, on the Saint’s name day, over 100,000 Muslims visit the Greek Orthodox monastery to pray for a miracle. Are miracles possible in our times? Can Christians and Muslims meet and bond through a common faith? Bells, Threads & Miracles explores the seemingly universal human need to believe in miracles.
For tickets and further information go to www.seefilmla.org, or tickets can be bought through www.itsmyseat.com
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