IBF Europe Selection 2021
Film still: Rising Up At Night, dir. Nelson Makengo
Encouraging European Co-productions
IBF Europe aims to stimulate the collaboration between independent European producers and producers from the IBF regions.
Selection IBF Europe — International Co-production
Dir. Sarvnik Kaur India, France
Rakesh (30) is a guardian of Bombay's Koli fishing tradition. His beloved cousin Ganesh (32) has faith only in technology and chases tuna using satellite geo-positioning. Swept up in the turmoil of an overexploited sea, of the climate change and the health crisis, will their friendship survive?
Dir. Nicolas van Hemelryck, Clare Weiskopf Colombia, Romania, Chile
How to project your destiny when you’re born without opportunities? Eight teenage girls who lived on the unforgiving streets of Bogota close their eyes and dream up a fictional classmate. Their soulful narrative reveals an amazing perseverance to break the cycle of violence and embrace the future.
Dir. Nada Riyadh, Ayman El Amir Egypt, Denmark
In a conservative village in south of Egypt, dominated by patriarchy and full of despair, a lively group of Coptic girls refuse the traditional roles forced upon them by forming an all-female street theatre troupe. A coming-of-age portrait of girls at the crossroads of their lives.
Dir. Vladlena Sandu Russia, The Netherlands, Kosovo
Vladena Sandu, a survivor of the war in Chechnya between 1994 and 1998, studies her memories in order to transcend and transform them via cinema.
Dir. Nelson Makengo Democratic Republic of the Congo, Belgium, Burkina Faso, Germany
As Congo launches the construction of Africa’s largest power plant on the Congo River, Kinshasa finds itself in darkness and its people struggle for access to light.
Selection IBF Europe — Distribution of International Co-productions
Dir. Rami Farah Palestine, Denmark, France
10 years after the start of the Syrian revolution, 3 Syrian activists reunite on a stage in Paris. With director Rami Farah, confronted with life-size projected footage, they reflect on the events that changed their destinies forever. A unique window into the complexity of the Syrian situation.
Dir. Iryna Tsilyk Ukraine, Lithuania
With bombs falling all around their home in Ukraine, Anna and her four children manage to keep the chaos of war at bay by making a film about their experiences.
Dir. Aicha Macky Niger, France, Germany
Returning to her home city of Zinder in Niger, Aicha Macky shows how her young compatriots are faring there. A powerful, candid, and surprisingly hopeful glimpse into the world of the local gangs.
Selection NFF+IBF Co-Production Scheme
The NFF+IBF Co-production Scheme is a collaboration between the Dutch Film Fund and IBF aimed at stimulating Dutch producers to get involved in projects that have already received an IBF grant.
Dir. Alfredo Pourailly Chile, The Netherlands
Every piece of land has its own resources. People who inhabit the land use them in different ways to survive as well to take advantage of them for a better way of living. Some people drill the land to get oil, others hunt wild cows in the mountains and others believe in god. The film pursue the stories of the people who inhabit the Land of Fire island because there, in the isolated and almost uninhabited land, we can see more clearly the way we build our world.
Dir. Inadelso Cossa Mozambique, France, Germany, Portugal, Norway
Concerned with the fragmented memories of my childhood during the civil war in Mozambique, I return to my grandmother’s village to reveal the untold stories, which still hunt my generation.
IBF Europe Selection Committee
IBF Europe Co-production Henrik Underbjerg - IMS, Stray Dogs Productions Adriek van Nieuwenhuijzen - Head of Industry, IDFA Armi Rae Cacanindin - Cinematografica Films Estelle Robin You - Point du Jour - Les Films du Balibari Isabel Arrate Fernandez - Managing Director, IDFA Bertha Fund
IBF Europe Distribution Andrea Hock - Director of Sales at Autlook Filmsales GmbH Liselot Verbrugge - CEO at Deckert Distribution Maëlle Guenegues - Festivals and Acquisitions, CAT&Docs Mélanie de Vocht - Project Manager, IDFA Bertha Fund Isabel Arrate Fernandez - Executive Director, IDFA Bertha Fund