Zagreb Film Festival and Partners Present a Selection of New and Intriguing European Films

As part of the program, a documentary about the environmentally conscious animated universe of Hayao Miyazaki will also be screened, and ZFF’s commitment to the principles of sustainability and reducing its negative impact on the environment continues this year with a series of actions

At the upcoming 23^rd edition of the Zagreb Film Festival (ZFF), which will be held from November 10 to 16, the audience will once again have the opportunity to cast their votes and help decide the winner of the award of the program created within the Network of Festivals in the Adriatic Region. Launched in 2020 on the initiative of the Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF) with the mission of strengthening regional cooperation in promoting shared film values, this platform brings together six key film festivals in Southeast Europe. In addition to the ZFF and SFF, the network includes the Auteur Film Festival (Belgrade), the Ljubljana Film Festival, the Herceg Novi Film Festival (Montenegro), and most recently, the “Manaki Brothers” International Film Festival (North Macedonia). The five European films competing for the Adriatic Audience Award, which will go to the one with the most audience votes, will also be the subject of analysis at the ZFF’s film criticism workshop intended for film lovers over the age of 54. Information about the workshop is available at the following link.

Among the five selected films is Adam’s Sake, a skilfully directed hospital drama about a young mother whose son is hospitalized for malnutrition. With its dynamic observational approach to the story of repressive public institutions – already affirmed in her Cannes-awarded debut Playground (2021) – Belgian director Laura Wendel has been hailed as the heir to the Dardenne brothers. Also steeped in social realism is Christy, an Irish drama by Brendan Canty and the winning film of the Generation 14plus program at this year’s Berlinale. This moving story of two brothers, who try to reconnect years after being separated by the social welfare system, does not shy away from either humour or Irish hip-hop, resulting in a vibrant portrait of adolescence on society’s margins.

Inspired by a true and harrowingly gruesome crime from the 1990s that exposed the rotten core of Belgium’s police system, Maldoror is a crime thriller directed by Fabrice du Welz. At its centre is young police officer Paul, assigned to a secret unit tasked with monitoring dangerous sexual predators. But when their operation collapses, Paul decides to take justice into his own hands. The era behind the Iron Curtain is explored by Alexandra Makarová in Perla, a layered family-political drama and psychological portrait of its titular protagonist, torn between past and present, motherhood and her professional ambitions, the repressive climate of early 1980s Czechoslovakia, and the seemingly boundless freedom of Vienna. Themes of personal and inner turmoil also resonate in Renovation, the feature debut of Lithuanian director Gabrielė Urbonaitė. Set in contemporary Vilnius, where a woman on the cusp of thirties moves into a new apartment with her partner, this charming character study simultaneously addresses the weight of unrealistic social expectations looming over the millennial generation as well as the current socio-political climate in Eastern Europe.

As part of the Ecoscope program, the Network of Festivals in the Adriatic Region, in cooperation with the Green Visions Film Festival in Potsdam, will present a documentary that approaches the fascinating, anthology-like opus of animation virtuoso Hayao Miyazaki from the perspective of ecology. Miyazaki: The Spirit of Nature by Léo Favier reveals how beloved characters such as Totoro, Chihiro, and Princess Mononoke reflect the deep ecological awareness of the world-renowned, Oscar-winning Japanese auteur. With this screening, as well as a series of concrete measures, ZFF continues its long-standing ecological mission to help reduce negative environmental impacts. With the support of its partners Carwiz and FED, along with the bio&bio shops and Zrno restaurant, the festival will work on lowering its own carbon footprint and promoting sustainable development. By integrating sustainability strategies into various organizational and operational processes, ZFF aims to encourage responsible ecological practices not only within its own team, guests, and collaborators, but also among its audiences.

The Zagreb Film Festival is held with the support of the Zagreb City Office for Culture and Civil Society, the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, Creative Europe – MEDIA sub-programme, the Kultura nova Foundation, and the Zagreb Tourist Board. Follow all ZFF updates on the official website, Facebook, and Instagram.