*In Central European Time (GMT+1)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 17TH
10.00 – 12.00 EUROPA DISTRIBUTION, closed event, part 1
14.00 – 16.00 EUROPA DISTRIBUTION, closed event, part 2
14.00 – 16.30 EUROPEAN TRAINING PROGRAMMES
MIDPOINT, Karolina Voráčková, Czech Republic
SCRIPTEAST, Dariusz Jablonski, Poland
FIRST FILMS FIRST, Stefan Arsenijevic, Serbia
EAVE, Satu Elo, Luxembourg
MEDITERRANEAN FILM INSTITUTE, Eleni Kalogeropoulou, Greece
TORINO FILM LAB, Mercedes Fernandez Alonso, Italy
LESS IS MORE, Antoine Le Bos, France
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5dMpZIJEQSSZ6IgqwDdT7Q
17.00 – 18.00 INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING: PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES OF MEDIA-EXPERIENCE, a talk with Steye Hallema, Creative Director, Netherlands
Composer, director and inventor. His laboratory WildVreemd (Wild[framed]) pushes the boundaries of a media-experience and creates Virtual Reality experiences and their own concept The Smartphone Orchestra.
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gXzGncXxRq-37N6CWaUNVg
THURSDAY, MARCH 18TH
10.00 – 11.30 OPENING OF THE 18th SOFIA MEETINGS & PITCHING SESSION: SECOND FILMS
11.30 – 11.50 BREAK
11.50 – 13.00 PITCHING SESSION: PLUS MINUS ONE PITCHING, part 1
13.00 – 14.00 LUNCH BREAK
14.30 – 15.00 ‘TEN DOTS’ FILM & TV VIRTUAL PRODUCTION STUDIO PRESENTATION by Ivan Gradinarov, Bulgaria
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hECksw95RIuZXRlXnCAJEg
16.30 – 18.00 Virtual Round Table: HERITAGE ONLINE - OPTIONS FOR EASTERN EUROPEAN CLASSIC FILMS DISTRIBUTION
In Partnership with Locarno Pro
Markus Duffner, Head of Locarno Industry, Switzerland
Mira Staleva, Managing Director of Sofia IFF, Bulgaria
Antonia Kovacheva, Director of Cinemateque, Bulgaria
Iris Elezi, Director, Albanian National Film Archive (AQSHF), Albania
Rastislav Steranka, Director, National Cinematographic Centre, Slovak Film Institute, International Promotion and Sales for Heritage Films for Slovak Films
Nina Pehlivanova, CEO, Filmira / VOD Platform, Bulgaria
Ivan Doykov, Content Manager, Neterra. TV+/ VOD platform, Bulgaria.
18.30 – 19.30 HAPPY GO LUCKY: Virtual get together.
FRIDAY, MARCH 19TH
10.00 – 10.40 PITCHING SESSION: PLUS MINUS ONE, part 2
10.40 – 11.00 PROJECTS IN BANK PRESENTATION
11.00 – 11.20 BREAK
11.20 – 12.30 PITCHING SESSION: FIRST FILMS FIRST
12.30 LUNCH BREAK
14.00 – 15.00 SUCCESS STORIES AND A LOOK TO THE NEW CREATIVE EUROPE – MEDIA PROGRAMME, with Kamen Balkanski, Head of CED Media, Bulgaria, Martina Petrovic, Head of CED Media, Croatia, Matea Milić, World Festival of Animated Film - Animafest Zagreb & Neda Milanova, Balkan Documentary Programme & AGITPROP
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_MfJfyl2FTnygc33ZgiI9Vg
15.30 – 16.30 CASE STUDY. MAKING CAREER IN CINEMA, a talk with Zeynep Atakan, Producer, Turkey
Zeynep Atakan was awarded the European Film Academy’s Best European Co-Producer award. Vice President of the European Women’s Audiovisual Network. In 2014, her production Winter Sleep won the Palme d’Or at the 67th Cannes Film Festival.
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_FnQLI3ETTSKzCPP2BvPg0Q
17.00 – 18.00 INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING: FELT EXPERIENCES AND THE CROSSROADS OF HUMAN CREATIVITY, a talk with Sandra Rodriguez, Creative Director, USA
Involved in immersive storytelling in VR/AR/AI. Director/producer of DoNotTrack, Deprogrammed VR, Big Picture VR, Manic VR, Chomsky vs Chomsky: First Encounter, Future Rites.
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_GhgdpMiORRmHFpReGtP8tg
18.30 – 19.30 HAPPY GO LUCKY: Virtual get together.
SATURDAY, MARCH 20TH
10.00 – 19.00 ONE TO ONE MEETINGS
16.00 – 18.00 THE MYTH: CASTING DIRECTOR. EVERYTHING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT CASTING BUT WERE AFRAID TO ASK with Beatrice Kruger, Casting Director, FBI CASTING, Italy
Since 1992 she has cast, amongst many others: The Book of Vision (C. Hintermann), Grain (S. Kaplanoglu), The Cut (F. Akin), To Rome With Love (W. Allen), The American (A. Corbijn), Letters to Juliet (G. Winek), My Mother’s Smile (M. Bellocchio), Not of This World (G. Piccioni), El Alamein (E. Monteleone), Ten Winters (V. Mieli), Elvis & Marilyn (A. Manni), Gladbeck, The Divine Order, Spectre, Inferno, Dreamland, Nine, Casino Royale.
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Zn_ekrn2RBWoA3-Raiw_iA
18.30 – 19.30 HAPPY GO LUCKY: Virtual get together
SUNDAY, MARCH 21ST
10.00 – 19.00 ONE TO ONE MEETINGS
13.00 – 15.00 HOW TO WRITE A PROJECT with Martin Kisselov, Bulgaria
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_6IrMsUkkQzibYE9ZUA2K3A
16.30 – 17.30 INDEPENDENT TRANSMEDIA: THE RISE OF STORY WORLDS, SHARED UNIVERSES & OPPORTUNITIES IN EUROPE, a talk with Jeff Gomez, CEO of Starlight Runner Entertainment, USA
Expert in story and narrative design. Jeff has teamed with top creators on such properties as Avatar, Pirates of the Caribbean, Transformers, and Magic: The Gathering and Spider-Man.
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_p2zmBR5oSXOoSx_zYLAgfg
18.30 – 19.30 HAPPY GO LUCKY: Virtual get together
MONDAY, MARCH 22ND
10.00 – 19.00 ONE TO ONE MEETINGS
11.00 – 12.30 TV SERIES PROJECTS at SOFIA MEETINGS
14.00 – 17.00 AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT & INNOVATION ONLINE LAB with "LONGING FOR THE BIG SCREEN", EUROPA CINEMAS ONLINE LAB, part 1 (closed event)
Frank Groot, Programmer, KINO Rotterdam, Netherlands
Metka Daris, Director, Kinodvor, Slovenia
Mustafa El Mesaoudi, Director, Cinema and Rex Filmtheater, Germany
14.30 – 15.30 CASE STUDY: THE PLEASURE PRINCIPLE – TV series produced by Poland’s Apple Film Production in co-production with Canal+Poland, the Czech Television and Star Media Ukraine with Dariusz Jablonski and Izabela Wojcik, Producers, Apple Film, Poland
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_HZn-yF7oRLSO-qNfi5uk1Q
16.00 – 16.30 COCO CAFÉ, with Marjorie Bendeck, Head of COCO, Germany
17.00 – 18.00 WHAT AV INDUSTRY CAN LEARN FROM THE GAMING, with Martin Kadilov & Momchil Alexiev
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Sgo7EvFUTcCMNuGZom2WGw
18.30 – 19.30 HAPPY GO LUCKY: Virtual get together
TUESDAY, MARCH 23RD
10.00 – 19.00 ONE TO ONE MEETINGS
10.30 – 12.00 SERIE SERIES INTERVIEW ON EASTERN EUROPEAN LANDSCAPE IN TV SERIES PRODUCTION with Agnieszka Holland, director, Poland
In Partnership with Serie Series
12.00 – 12.00 MIDPOINT INTENSIVE SOFIA MEETINGS with David Pope, Script Consultant, UK (closed event)
In partnership with MIDPOINT Feature Launch
14.00 – 17.00 AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT & INNOVATION ONLINE LAB with "LONGING FOR THE BIG SCREEN", EUROPA CINEMAS ONLINE LAB, part 2 (closed event)
Frank Groot, Programmer, KINO Rotterdam, Netherlands
Alen Munitic, Director, Kino Mediteran, Croatia
Wiktoria Pelzer, Programmer, Stadtkino im Künstlerhaus, Austria
15.00 – 18.00 SCRIPT CONSULTING, part 1, with Licia Eminenti (closed event)
15.30 – 16.30 MINORITY COPRODUCTION FUND WITH CATALONIA. PANEL AND CASE STUDIES
Mar Medir Benito, Coordinator, Catalan Films, Spain
Marieke van den Berseelaar, Polar Star Films, Spain
Alba Sotorra, Alba Sotorra S.L., Spain
17.00 – 17.45 THE MISTERY OF SOUND by Dennis Wheatley, sound designer and composer, UK (Bengali Detective, Love Hotel, Laurence of Belgravia)
18.30 – 19.30 HAPPY GO LUCKY: Virtual get together
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24TH
10.00 – 18.00 ONE TO ONE MEETINGS
11.00 – 12.00 COOPERATIVE, COLLABORATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY: VOD IN THE POST-COVID WORLD
In Partnership with EVROVOD
14.00 – 15.00 SCRIPTWRITING: THE HIDDEN DANGERS by Steven Goldsmith, screenwriter/script doctor, Ireland
Link to the event: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_-CwmWpQFR621RgCSnDfVJw
15.00 – 18.00 SCRIPT CONSULTING, part 2, with Licia Eminenti (closed event)
16.30 – 17.30 COPRODUCING DOCUMENTARIES. SUCCESS STORIES, a talk with Hanka Kastelicova, HBO Europe, Czech Republic
18.30 – 19.30 18TH SOFIA MEETINGS AWARDS: FINGERS CROSSED!
EASTERN LIGHTS – EMERGING ACTORS FROM THE REGION