Nine films have been selected for C EU Soon, the work-in-progress program dedicated to European films in production and post-production, seeking international distribution.
The finalists of C EU Soon 2024 (including four feature film debuts) were chosen by an international selection committee composed of:
Laure Caillol | Head of Film Acquisitions, Haut et Court (France)
Eve Gabereau | Founder and CEO, Modern Films (UK)
Vanja Kaludjercic | Artistic Director, IFFR – International Film Festival Rotterdam (Netherlands).
The selected films will be presented to an audience of sales agents, distributors, and industry professionals, followed by one-on-one meetings.
The films are competing for the Screen International Award, which includes dedicated coverage of the winning film on Screen International.
The selection reflects a diverse array of innovative styles and perspectives, tackling recurring themes such as the bond with nature, personal and collective identity, social dynamics, love in all its forms, and society’s judgment.
Adapted from Alberto Capitta’s novel, VANDERING TREES, the new film by award-winning director Salvatore Mereu tells the intertwined destinies of three very different families. Set in Sardinia, the magical, fairy tale-like yet realistic story reflects on love, escape, family, and man’s relationship with nature, featuring Alessandro Haber, Massimo Popolizio, Lorenzo Richelmy, and Giulia Maenza.
Maren-Kea Freese’s third feature, THE ADVENTURES OF WILMA KUMMEL, explores Wilma’s journey of self-emancipation and reconnection with her roots, intertwining her personal story with a broader reflection on Germany’s socio-economic changes after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Emerging filmmakers Mireia Labazuy, Àlex Serra, Clàudia Vila, Eva Picazo, Carla Sánchez, and Miquel Roig, members of the Espurnes Collective, have directed RAINY SUMMER DAYS. Biel invites his two closest friends to his grandparents’ village in the Pyrenees for a holiday, hoping to reconnect with nature and escape some bad news. However, the growing tension, lies, and difficulty in confronting fears will put their friendship to a test.
JOIN ME FOR BREAKFAST is the feature debut of Iván Morales, based on his play of the same name. Set in chaotic, crowded Barcelona, the film follows the lives of four characters united by their quest for love and a second chance.
After his debut feature Tilva Roš (winner at Sarajevo Film Festival, selected for Locarno and Rotterdam, and nominated for an EFA Discovery Award), Nikola Ležaić returns with HOW COME IT’S ALL GREEN OUT HERE?. This autobiographical road movie tells the story of a son and his father traveling to Croatia to return his grandmother’s remains. The film, a love letter to family, explores with humor the subjective, shifting nature of memories and the father-son bond.
After the success of Nightsiren (winner of the Eurimages Development Award at MIA Film Co-production Market in 2018 and the Golden Leopard at Locarno in 2022), Tereza Nvotová is completing her fourth feature, FATHER . Based on a tragic real-life incident, the film tells the heartbreaking story of a father who accidentally forgets his two-year-old daughter in the car, leading to her death. Through long takes, the film delves into the father’s emotional turmoil, his relationship with his wife, and society’s judgment, offering a reflective view on grief, guilt, compassion, and loss.
SEA OF GLASS is a psychological thriller about two women trapped off-season in a run-down resort village. They find themselves forced to confront their past, fight against patriarchal violence, and face a closed-minded, backward provincial community. A co-production between Greece, Bulgaria, and Cyprus, directed and produced by Alexis Alexiou, a prominent figure in Greek New Cinema. His debut film Istoria 52 (Tale 52) screened at over 40 festivals, including Rotterdam, Toronto, and Sitges, where it won Best Screenplay, while Wednesday 04:45 was selected for Tribeca and Karlovy Vary in 2015.
In her directorial debut, A PLACE OF THEIR OWN (A Place of Their Own), renowned Romanian writer and screenwriter Cecilia Ștefănescu reunites with Tudor Giurgiu, who directed the film adaptation of her acclaimed novel Love, sick (a box office hit in Romania and selected at various international festivals). A quiet seaside vacation with her husband, son, and friends tests Lucie’s limits when a mysterious man from her past reappears, triggering events and choices that force her to reassess her entire life. The film is produced by Tudor Giurgiu, a key figure in the Romanian New Wave and founder and director of the Transilvania Film Festival.
Twelve-year-old Anna is ready for middle school, but her new classmates are different. In addition to coming from a different social background, Anna’s mother is deaf, and Anna feels ashamed. IF YOU ARE AFRAID YOU PUT YOUR HEART INTO YOUR MOUTH AND SMILE, the debut film by Luise Lehner, sensitively explores the mother-daughter relationship from the perspective of marginalized characters, challenging several taboos about disability.
C EU SOON 2024 | OFFICIAL SELECTION
VANDERING TREES (ALBERI ERRANTI E NAUFRAGHI) (Italy)
Directed by Salvatore Mereu
Produced by Viacolvento
THE ADVENTURES OF WILMA KUMMEL (DIE ABENTEUER DER LAUSITZERIN WILMA) (Germany)
Directed by Maren-Kea Freese
Produced by Ma.ja.de. Fiction GmbH
RAINY SUMMER DAYS (DIES D’ESTIU I DE PLUJA) (Spain)
Directed by Espurnes Collective
Produced by The New Flesh
JOIN ME FOR BREAKFAST (ESMORZA AMB MI) (Spain)
Directed by Iván Morales
Produced by WKND / Distinto Films / Dos Soles Media
HOW COME IT’S ALL GREEN OUT HERE? (KAKO JE OVDE TAKO ZELENO?) (Croatia)
Directed by Nikola Ležaić
Produced by Nukleus film / PR QCE / premierStudio
FATHER (OTEC) (Slovakia / Czech Republic / Poland)
Directed by Tereza Nvotová
Produced by Danae Production / Moloko Film / Lava Films
SEA OF GLASS (THALASSA APO GYALI) (Greece / Bulgaria / Cyprus)
Directed by Alexis Alexiou
Produced by Tugo Tugo Productions / Portokal / Bark Like A Cat Films
A PLACE OF THEIR OWN (UN LOC SIGUR) (Romania)
Directed by Cecilia Ștefănescu
Produced by Point Film
IF YOU ARE AFRAID YOU PUT YOUR HEART INTO YOUR MOUTH AND SMILE (WENN DU ANGST HAST NIMMST DU DEIN HERZ IN DEN MUND UND LÄCHELST) (Austria)
Directed by Marie Luise Lehner
Produced by Nikolaus Geyrhalter Filmproduktion
