Sunday | 21. July. 2013
24 films for the 6oth birthday
Press Conference: Festival’s Management and National Programme Jury
At the first press conference of this year’s jubilee edition of the Pula Film Festival director Zdenka Višković-Vukić remembered her work with the Festival from 1977 to 1987. Excited because of the Festival’s 60th anniversary, she remarks that this year we will have the opportunity to enjoy even more programmes and novelties. She is impressed with the work of Croatia’s filmmakers, who contributed fourteen films to this year’s National Programme. Furthermore, there are ten minority co-productions, which amounts to as many as 24 films in total. The director thanked the Croatian Audiovisual Centre for the digital technology that will be left for the citizens of Pula to enjoy after the Festival. She pointed out that the 60th anniversary is not the only anniversary to celebrate because it’s been five years since the Valli Cinema opened its door.
Artistic director Zlatko Vidačković is proud that the International Programme Europolis on Kastel achieved a record attendance once again although the admission fee was charged for the first time. The European Programme affirmed itself fully this year, which is particularly pleasing also because of the fact that for the first time its partner country is the European Union. Vidačković stressed that Croatia should be proud of having the longest-lived and most visited national festival in the world!
Maja Weber of Hrvatski Telekom is proud of the fact as well. She thanked the entire organization for excellent cooperation during the last eleven years. Stela Prislan Fujs from Croatian Post points out that a postage stamp was issued marking the 60th anniversary of the Festival. The quantity is 100,000 stamps. The first day cancellation was on July 2, one day after Croatia’s accession to the European Union.
Finally, the director emphasized that we can expect nice weather, without rain, during the course of the entire Festival.
After the director’s and entire festival management’s address, the national programme jury presented itself to the journalists. The jury is presided over by screenwriter and director Petar Krelja and its members are producer Stanislav Babić, actress Gordana Gadžić, director of photography Slobodan Trninić and director and editor Damir Čučić. Krelja mentioned how he was brought to the first, founding Festival in Pula in 1953 by his parents and he joked about his memories of Pula reaching far back in the past. He pointed out that this year there are many films and the jury has a rather difficult task but that he doesn’t doubt their readiness to select the best films.
