Press Release
7 December, 2016
The anniversary edition of Tallinn Black Nights attracted a record number of guests and an audience of 80 000
The 20th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival – aka PÖFF – and its film industry summit Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, welcomed a record number of film and industry guests with the total number of accredited professionals exceeding 1000 for the first time. The festival had a total attendance of 80 000.
Black Nights, including the three sub-festivals - Animation Film Festival Animated Dreams, Children’s and Youth Film Festival Just Film and International Short Film Festival Sleepwalkers - showed 246 feature length films and animated films and 367 short films and animations, originating from 72 different countries. Out of the 613 films 14 had world, 34 international and 17 European premieres. Two of the sub-festivals broke their attendance records, with Just Film having 16 500 and Sleepwalkers 2 500 attendances.
The festival director Tiina Lokk commented: “I’m very content with the fact that our sub-festivals have really come of age and found their audiences. But even more important than the numbers is the support we got from the international industry: the festival and Estonian film industry are more relevant in the world than ever before. We were extremely proud to host events like the European Film Forum Tallinn in partnership with the European Commission, discussing the future of audiovisual and digital industries in Europe, and the annual conference of Europe’s biggest sales and distribution companies - Europa International.”
Speakers of the European Film Forum included Jörgen Gren, Cabinet Member, Digital Single Market and copyright for VP of European Commission; Milissa Douponce, Vice President, Marketing, Sony Pictures Entertainment; Nusrat Durrani, Senior Vice President of MTV World; Ville Heijari, Vice President, Games, Rovio amongst many other industry leaders.
The festival also saw the launch of Storytek Forum - a new initiative bringing together global storytellers with technology developers and venture capital investors exploring new business models, held in partnership with regional investment fund Head Capital and in partnership with the Estonian Ministry of Culture and Enterprise Estonia. “Audiences across the world are calling for stories simultaneously on multiple digital platforms and the first edition of Storytek proved that there is a growing interest from regional venture capital business in directing investments to this rapidly developing area. Based on the Forum's success we are committed to launch Storytek's accelerator program for pilot projects in 2017”, comments Sten-Kristian Saluveer, Head of Development & Special Projects at Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event.
It was also the first time for Black Nights to screen the European premiere of a Hollywood film on the same weekend that it started its theatrical run in the states. That film was the US comedy The Edge of Seventeen, distributed by Sony Pictures Entertainment.
PÖFF sparks first deals
Multiple films shown at Black Nights have already been confirmed in the programmes of other festivals and have also found sales agents. To name a few, Slingshot Films acquired Lines that was in the Main Competition programme, and Cockroach from First Features Competition programme.
Manuela Buono, Slingshot Films commented the decision: "The work of Vinko Tomičić and Francisco Hevia (directors of Cockroach), is extremely mature, and we were very much intrigued by the story and the direction. We are also proud to work with Vassilis Mazomenos and Horme Pictures (director and production company of Lines). We were deeply touched by the concept of the film, and the universal way of bringing on screen the Greek crisis as a human tragedy." She added that they believe this film is an important warning for all Europe - and beyond, to the ultimate consequences of the long lasting crisis the continent experiencing.
Eye on Films, the label and support platform dedicated to the promotion and circulation of first and second European films, which presented its 2016 selection and activities at Industry@Tallinn, and an industry screening programme of new films looking for distributors, festivals and programme partners reports that the film Glory sold to distribution rights to the following companies Starlet Media (Sweden), Urban distribution (France) and Menufilmid (Estonia). KT Films acquired the rights for Macedonia and Albania for films Clean Hands, Pretenders, Pseudonym and Go Home, while Arskino gained the Bulgarian distribution for seven titles: Maiko: dancing child, The graduation, Summer solstice, This ain’t California, One of us, Those who jump, Panama (in partnership with Sofia International Film Festival).
It was also announced in Tallinn that the Russian sci fi blockbuster Attraction (to be released in 2017) which was presented in the Art Pictures Studio showcase at Industry@Tallinn, sold the German territory rights to Capelight.
The 21st edition of Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival will take place from 17 November until 3 December 2017.
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