The Zagreb Film Festival’s program Industry, aimed at the education and networking of film professionals in the region, once again offers a rich selection of masterclasses, workshops, presentations and two pitching forums for audiences of all ages and interests. Additionally, there is a new collaboration with the prestigious Talents and Short Film Market fair. The events take place from 6 to 11 November at three locations – Dokukino KIC, the Academy of Dramatic Art, and Kinoteka Cinema — and are open to all cinema enthusiasts.

Each year, Industry expands its network of collaborators with the aim of strengthening the visibility of regional cinema. This year, for the first time, in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute in Zagreb, the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, and the Film Agency of North Macedonia, it presents the workshop What’s the Story, Croatia? – a significant collaboration between ZFF and the prestigious Talents and Short Film Market (TSFM). During the workshop, esteemed experts from TSFM will work with seven Croatian and one Macedonian filmmaker over the course of five days to develop their short film projects. The results will be presented to the ZFF audience at the final public pitching session on Saturday, 11 November, at 11 AM at Dokukino KIC.

In collaboration with the Filmmakers Association of Croatia, a lecture by Renée Hansen Mlodyszewski, producer of “The Worst Person in the World” and member of this year’s Feature Film Jury, will be held at Kinoteka on Saturday, 11 November at 2:40 PM. The masterclass will cover the process of creating this film, and how to achieve the best possible collaboration with directors and screenwriters as a producer.

One of the guest professionals is the award-winning German editor Bettina Böhler, a frequent collaborator of directors Christian Petzold and Margarethe von Trotta, who the media have dubbed the “incredible invisible woman of German cinema”. The masterclass is held in collaboration with the Croatian Film Editors Society, Croatian Film Directors’ Guild, and the Academy of Dramatic Art on Friday, 10 November, at 5 PM in the Theater Hall of the Academy of Dramatic Art.

Thanks to the collaboration between ZFF, the Croatian Screenwriters and Playwrights Guild, and the MIDPOINT Institute, the audience will gain insight into the working process of director and screenwriter Olmo Omerzu. This Slovenian filmmaker, currently based in the Czech Republic, has already presented three of his films at ZFF (Family Film, Winter Flies, The Last Day of Patriarchy). During the masterclass, he will share his screenwriting experience and practical advice. The masterclass will take place on Wednesday, 8 November, at 6 PM at Dokukino KIC, along with the screening of the short film The Last Day of Patriarchy and excerpts from other Olmo’s films.

In collaboration with the Creative Europe Desk Croatia — MEDIA Office, two presentations will be held on Tuesday, 7 November, from 11 AM to 2 PM in the Theater Hall of the Academy of Dramatic Art. Anera Stopfer, head of the Creative Europe Desk — Culture office, will reveal everything you need to know about the call for Creative Innovative Lab within the Creative Europe program. As part of the event MEDIA Info Day – What’s in it for Me? Martina Petrović, head of the MEDIA Desk – MEDIA Office, will provide guidelines for submitting your own film project to the calls of the MEDIA Subprogram. Those interested in participating are kindly asked to fill out the registration form.

Regular workshop programs take place during the festival, which is something the Industry program has become recognizable for throughout the region. The longest-running among them is My First Script, where the screenplay for the film Seventh Heaven by director Jasna Nanut was developed, and which is featured in this year’s main program. In collaboration with the Croatian Film Directors’ Guild and the MIDPOINT Institute, under the expert guidance of directors Antonio Nuić and Pjer Žalica, filmmakers from Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, North Macedonia, and Serbia will develop their debut feature film screenplays, which you can learn more about at this link.

In collaboration with the Croatian Film Editors Society and the Croatian Film Directors’ Guild, for the second year in a row, the Trailer Editing Workshop is taking place, led by award-winning Croatian editors Vladimir Gojun and Tomislav Pavlic. Over the course of five intensive days, they will mentor young professionals in the skill of creating film trailers, and the audience will have the opportunity to see the results of their work after Bettina Böhler’s masterclass. The best among them will also receive a prize in the form of a professional engagement.

Students of six film academies from the region will once again come together in the Industry Youth! program, where they will develop their short feature films at intensive workshops, after which they will present them to the jury in a public pitching event. The pitching will take place on Friday, 10 November in Dokukino KIC, and the best project will once again receive services from our partners, Studio Šesnić&Turković, Eclectica and Poster.

The Industry workshop program offers something for every age group. It will kick off with the My First Video Game workshop, where elementary school children will learn the basics of programming using MIT Scratch in a fun and accessible way, and create their own video game. Applications are open until all the spots are filled, via email at infoindustry@zagrebfilmfestival.com. In collaboration with the Network of Festivals in the Adriatic Region, there will be a film critics workshop aimed for film enthusiasts over the age of 54. Participants will provide their reviews for films from the Network of Festivals in the Adriatic Region program.

In the Festivals in the Spotlight program, the program directors and selectors of ten European film festivals present selected titles from their respective lineups. Take a peek into the programs of the Sarajevo Film Festival, FMFS, Locarno Film Festival, International Film Festival in Riga, Vienna Shorts, Tampere Film Festival, Festival of Auteur Film, Herceg Novi Film Festival, Ljubljana Film Festival, and Sofia International Film Festival.