June 26, 2022 - In one of its most ambitious and successful editions, the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split closed its spectacular program at the Bačvice Open-Air Cinema with an awards ceremony.

From its official announcement a few months ago, until its opening ceremony last Thursday, June 16, the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split promised to carry out a more special edition this year compared to the previous ones. Reasons were not lacking -  after a couple of years conditioned by the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus pandemic, the 15th edition of one of the most important film festivals in Croatia gave the feeling that attendees would enjoy normality once again.

In the last 14 years, the Mediterranean Film Festival Split has been the most visited cultural event in Split, and each year it has been innovating more with the aim of continuing to position itself as one of the main film festivals in the region. This year, one of the main goals of Alen Munitić and the organizers was the promotion of emerging Croatian talents through the Croatian short film program, the first Children and Youth program, as well as the film showcase beyond the Mediterranean, with films from other parts of Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

Artistic Director of the Mediterranean Film Festival, Alen Munitić. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

Last night the official closing ceremony of the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split was held at the Bačvice Open-Air Cinema, where in addition to the screening of the British film ''Brian and Charles'', about an eccentric and lonely inventor and his new robot friend, there was also an award ceremony for the winners of the following prizes:

• FMFS Hook for Best Official Competition Feature Film and 1.000 EUR in cash
• FMFS Hook for Best Croatian Short Film and 15.000 HRK in cash
• FMFS Hook for Script from Croatian Short Film Competition and 5.000 HRK in cash
• Audience Award for Best Croatian Short Film and 5.000 HRK in cash
• FMFS Hook for Best International Short Film and 1.000 EUR in cash
• Audience Award for Best Feature Film from Out of Mediterranean and Latin American Competition and 1.000 EUR distribution support

Up next, we review what the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split and the award night left us.

A new venue

To be one of the most special editions, it is not enough to simply say it. Precisely, the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split brought novelties that demonstrated the intention of the organizers to continue positioning itself as one of the main events in the country to celebrate the seventh art. This year, a new venue joined the Bačvice Open-Air Cinema, the Kinoteka Zlatna Vrata at Diocletian's Palace, and the Plato Doma Mladih: the Gripe Fortress, where attendees were able to enjoy the best of the Out of Mediterranean Competition film program, as well as films of the Latin American Feature Films Competition.

This year, the Gripe Fortress became the newest and fourth venue for the FMFS. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

Cinema for the youngest

Additionally, the 15th edition presented its children and youth program for the first time at the Kinoteka Zlatna Vrata, with the aim of encouraging a cinema passion for the little ones. Each film in the program aimed at a different age group, and in this way it sought to awaken a love for cinema in its young audience with international films such as ''Mamma Moo Finds Her Way Home'' (Sweden, 2021), ''Comedy Queen'' (Sweden, 2022) and ''Dear Future Children'' (the UK, 2021).

The Croatian Short Films Competition

The 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split also sought to reinforce its commitment to supporting emerging Croatian cinema and showcasing young and talented Croatian filmmakers, presenting not only a great program of Croatian short films before each feature film shown at the Bačvice Open-Air Cinema but the Mediterranean Film Festival Split would also be the one to offer the largest cash prize in Croatia for a short film in its Croatian Short Films Competition. 

''A Moving Target'', dir. Marko Dugonjić

One of Total Croatia News's favorite Croatian short films in the program was ''A Moving Target'' (Ne pogađa svaka), in which a pregnant Gaga, who lives in Gunja, must make a risky 60 km journey to Vinkovci to give birth, in the winter of 1993 and in the midst of wartime. Director Marko Dugonjić received a special mention for his short film.

The other one was ''Funeral'' (Sprovod), which focuses on a young man from Split, Mario, who helps his father with the unpleasant tasks to be carried out after the death of his grandfather, with both disagreeing on the best way to honor his memory. The latter had a great night at the award ceremony, as director Šimun Šitum not only took home the award for Best Screenplay for a Croatian Short Film and 5,000 kunas in cash prize but also won the Audience Award for Best Croatian Short Film and other 5,000 kunas in cash prize. ''This film of very strong but subtle emotions, shows us skillfully and concisely deep family relationships authentic to this hard Balkan-Mediterranean region,'', explained the jury's recognition for "Funeral''.

Director Šimun Šitum received two awards: Best Script for Croatian Short Film and the Audience Award for Best Croatian Short Film (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

The jury prize for Best Croatian Short Film went to ''Carpe Diem'', by director Filip Antonio Lizatović. ''Carpe Diem'' shows the tensions between two neighbors and private landlords in a paradisiacal and quiet bay when one of them welcomes a group of young guests who are looking for nothing more than fun. Producer Maja Gros attended the awards ceremony, and in addition to receiving the 15,000 kuna cash prize, she took the opportunity to thank the jury and the public for their support and recognition. ''Because of his skillful play with the dynamics that maneuver the viewer's attention, comic relationships between the characters, and satirical presentation of the challenges of the tourist season'', explained the jury regarding the award to ''Carpe Diem''.

Producer Maja Gros received the award for Best Croatian Short Film. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

The International Short Films Competition

In addition to an excellent program of Croatian short films, the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split also sought to bring its attendees closer to the best of the category in the Mediterranean region. Twelve international short films were chosen from more than 300 submitted and were screened at the Plato Doma Mladih, in addition to competing for the Best International Short Film and a prize of 1,000 euros in cash.

The winning short film for the Best International Short Film award was ''This is Not My Mom'' (Esta no es mi madre), by director Javier Loarte. In a documentary format, the director deals with the difficulties of returning to his mother's house. In a video shown on the big screen of Bačvice, director Javier Loarte thanked the jury and the public for the recognition. He also shared about the dark moments during the production of the film, that quickly vanished when his son was born, just a week after finishing the recordings, and who made an emotional appearance in his gratitude video.

Spanish director Javier Loarte received the Best International Short Film Award. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

Official Feature Films Competition

The official program showed the best of Mediterranean cinema from this and the past year. It should be noted that the nine films in the competition had their premiere in Croatia and competed for the Best Official Competition Feature Film and 1,000 euros in cash prize. The diverse program featured spectacular works from non-European countries such as ''Huda's Salon'' (Hudin salon), a Palestinian-Egyptian film, which was one of the main highlights for Total Croatia News. Renowned Palestinian director and two-time Oscar nominee Hany Abu-Assad tells the story of Reem, a young mother who finds herself between a rock and a hard place after being blackmailed by a secret agent of the occupying forces in Palestine with a compromising photograph. Without a doubt, a powerful feminist thriller, inspired by real events, that caught the attention of the entire audience.

''Huda's Salon'', dir. Hany Abu Assad

Another of TCN's favorites and a film that was one of the great sensations of the official competition program was the Spanish ''Piggy'' (Cerdita), by director Carlota Pereda. The film is an ambitious thriller drama with great elements of horror, and it centers on young Sara, who in the middle of a hot summer in a small town in Andalusia, must endure constant abuse and bullying from her peers. When the appearance of a stranger threatens the tranquility of the town, Sara finds herself the only one capable of saving the lives of those who harassed her. Director Carlota Pereda made a special appearance on the day of the screening, and at the end of the film, she went up on stage to thank both the organizers and the audience for their warm reception and confessed her nerves as it was the first time she had premiered her film with a live audience.

Spanish director Carlota Pereda at the screening of her film ''Piggy''. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

Total Croatia News had a brief conversation with the Spanish director at the end of the film, who revealed her joy that "despite the difference in languages, the Mediterranean climate and environment helps the audience to connect with films from other parts of the region''. At last night's award ceremony, Carlota Pereda received a special mention for ''Piggy'', and in a video shown on Bačvice's big-screen she thanked everyone for the recognition.

The Audience Award for Best Film in the Official Competition went to ''Life Suits Me Well'' (La vie me va bien), a Moroccan film by director Al Hadi Ulad-Mohand, who was present last night to receive the award and took the stage to thank the audience for their support. In a very honest and emotional way, and in his feature film debut, the Moroccan director tells the story of Fouad, the only worker in a post office, who lives in a small town in northern Morocco with his wife and three children, and who also teaches Spanish in his spare time. His good spirits and cheerful personality are suddenly affected when he learns that he suffers from a neurological disease, which will present a great challenge for the family as they try to maintain the dynamic between them.

Moroccan director Al Hadi Ulad-Mohand took home the Audience Award for Best Feature Film. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

Undoubtedly, the highlight of the festival and last night was the Croatian feature film ''Kick and Scream'' (Baci se na pod), produced and directed by actress Nina Violić in her directorial debut, which opened the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split on June 16 in Bačvice and had a second screening the next day at the Kinoteka Zlatna Vrata. The Croatian film was the big winner of the Best Official Competition Feature Film Award and took home 1,000 EUR in cash prize. The esteemed Artistic Director of the Festival, Alen Munitić, presented the award to Nina Violić, who joyfully took to the stage to recognize the great work of Alen and the organizers after an excellent 15th edition of the Festival. Nina Violić stars alongside Goran Bogdan, Lee Delong, and Bruno Frketić Bajić in a film that portrays the last moments before the final breakup of marriage from the perspectives of a wife, husband, and their six-year-old son. ''Because of the creativity and innovative concept of finding objective truth and its relationship with human nature, through powerful and convincing acting. Fantastically portrayed the destructive power of subjective viewing of the story, as well as the depth of intimacy, as joyful as it is difficult if we are not honest with each other.'', the jury justifies its decision to award the grand prize to Nina Violić.

Actress, producer, and director Nina Violić won the Best Feature Film award for ''Kick and Scream''. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

A great closure

Alen Munitić took advantage of the great occasion to talk about another FMFS initiative, which is that in addition to making Split the capital of Mediterranean cinema for ten days, it also seeks to promote cinema and culture in different parts of Dalmatia through Kino Mediteran, with open-air cinemas in Bol, Hvar, Imotski, Jelsa, Komiža, Lastovo, Mljet, Supetar, Ploče, Podgora, Korčula, Omiš, Tribunj, Trogir and many other places.

The Bačvice Open-Air cinema. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival/Facebook)

The 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split was a resounding success, with a spectacular film program including screenings at four venues, workshops, and more that put Split on the cultural map not only in Croatia but throughout the Mediterranean. The attendees were able to enjoy not only very good cinema with the participating feature films and short films, but they also enjoyed very good moments and the hot summer nights. Every night, after the screenings of the movies, a different DJ was in charge of putting together the party with very good music, and the attendees could enjoy dancing or at the bar drinking a Stella Artois, the official beer of the festival.

Definitely, there is nothing like a summer night in Bačvice, 100 meters from the sea, with the starry sky, the breeze on your face, and watching the best of Mediterranean cinema.

You can see more photos and videos of the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split on their official Facebook account.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

June 3, 2022 - Two weeks before its start, the complete programme was announced and now the tickets for the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split are on sale, marking its long-awaited return in the biggest edition of the festival to date, with new programmes and a fourth cinema location.

The 15th edition of the Mediterranean Film Festival in Split, which will be opened by the world premiere of the film "Throw yourself on the floor" by director and actress Nina Violić on June 16 at the Bačvice Open Air Cinema, will screen 72 films from 30 countries at the Golden Gate's Cinematheque (inside Diocletian's Palace), on the plateau in front of the Youth Centre, and the Gripe Fortress.

''We're proud that the Mediterranean Film Festival is going to be held for the first time with the support of Creative Europe subprogramme MEDIA, through which the European Commission encourages a selected number of European film festivals, and thanks to which we're going to be able to bring new things, both in the organisational sense and in terms of the programme itself. We are introducing a new programme that focuses on films from outside of the Mediterranean basin, but which we believe our audience should see. We're going to be receiving four regional festivals, as well as the European Film Academy with its own short programmes, a special part of the programme has been adapted for children and young people; and in addition to the script workshop for film professionals, we'll focus on video games and film dubbing'', announced the Mediterranean Film Festival Split director, Alen Munitić.

A number of feature films will be shown, coming from the official selections of the Cannes, Berlin, Venice, and Toronto film festivals, and all of the films will have their ''Croatian premiere''. Back in the main competition programme will be Hany Abu-Asad, a Palestinian director remembered for the Oscar nominees "Omar" and "Paradise Now", this time with his new film "Hood's Salon", a tense feminist thriller whose plot is inspired by real events.

From Spain comes the film "Piggy", a tense combination of thriller and drama with elements of horror, and from France comes the drama "Full Time" about a single mother struggling for a better life, approached by director Eric Gavel as a thriller, creating tension that doesn't subside until the very last second of the film. The beautiful Moroccan landscapes and picturesque backdrop town are the bold feature film debut ''Life Meets Me Good'' in which director Al Hadi Ulad-Mohand showcases his personal story in an honest, gentle, and warm way. The powerful debut film "Between Two Dawns" by Turkish director Selman Nacar deals with class issues, labour, and the moral dilemmas and responsibilities of those in positions of power.

You can find the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival's complete program HERE. (Image: Mediterranean Film Festival Split/Facebook)

The dark psychological thriller "America Latina", brought by the D'Innocenzo brothers, gave the esteemed Italian actor Elijah German another chance to shine in the lead role. Two more films from the competition programme are set in Italy. "Rimini", a new achievement by renowned director Urlich Seidl, brings a depiction of the debauched and lonely life of a forgotten pop star at the end of her career, who finances her debauched lifestyle by holding hotel concerts and providing sexual services to fans. ''Silent Land'' follows a seemingly perfect married couple renting a vacation home on a sunny Italian island, but their vacation is marred by the realisation that the pool isn't functional.

''The programme "Ješke" has gained great popularity among our audience over the years, so not only do we continue to give a short Croatian film a prime time term, but we put the main competitive focus on it as well. The authors of these films are the future of domestic cinematography, and at the Mediterranean Film Festival Split, they're competing for the biggest cash prize in Croatia for a short film. The winner will receive HRK 15,000, and another winner will receive HRK 5,000 according to the choice of the audience and also for the author of the best screenplay'', announced Munitić.

The new festival programme of feature films "Parangal" at the northeastern bastion of the Gripe Fortress brings titles from productions outside the Mediterranean, especially "Lunana", an enchanting film from Bhutan, nominated for an Oscar for Best International Feature film. At the same location, as part of the "Other Side of the Mediterranean" programme, films from Latin America are set to be shown, of which "Sunset" stands out as an unpredictable thriller drama by Mexican director Michael Franco, starring Charlotte Gainsbourg and Tim Roth.

The free cinema remains on the plateau in front of the Youth Centre, where the best short films from the European Film Academy, Animafest Zagreb, the Sarajevo Film Festival, Belgrade's Free Zone, and FeKK from Ljubljana will all be shown. The Golden Gate's Cinematheque, along with reruns of films from Bačvice, will host the "Little Mediterranean" programme for children and young people, and the "Industry" programme has never been richer, with a focus on video games and film dubbing.

A limited number of tickets went on sale online on June 1, and after the opening of the festival box office on June 12, all remaining tickets will go on sale on the webshop.

Individual ticket prices are the following:

• Bačvice Open Air Cinema: 30 kuna
• Gripe Fortress: 30 kuna
• Golden Gate Cinematheque: 20 kuna
• Youth hostel: free entrance (no need to pick up tickets)

Find the complete festival's complete program HERE.

You can buy your tickets for the 15th Mediterranean Film Festival Split HERE.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

May 20, 2022 - The Guardian has included a Croatian film festival on the list of the 10 best European summer film festivals! The Mediterranean Film Festival Split (FMFS) starts in less than a month. 

"Croatia’s second-largest city has plenty of historic sights, museums and nightlife, and its stunning coastal setting makes for a particularly scenic film festival. During the day, screenings are at a cinema inside the walls of the 1,700-year-old Diocletian’s palace, a perfect base for sightseeing. As the name suggests, they focus on Mediterranean films that might be hard to access elsewhere. This is a festival that prides itself in its positive, friendly vibe and its parties, many held at the open-air cinema on Bačvice beach," writes The Guardian, which names Split in the company of other cities such as Venice, San Sebastián, Locarno, Annecy, and Karlovy Vary.

FMFS announces the biggest festival so far, with new programs and locations. The jubilee 15th edition of the favorite Dalmatian cultural event brings more films than ever screened at the Bačvice Open Air Cinema, Zlatna Vrata (Golden Gate) Cinema, on the plateau in front of the Youth Center and a new location - the northeastern bastion of Gripe Fortress.

FMFS is held from June 16 to 25. Split designer Karlo Kazinoti presented its visual identity.

"I wanted this year’s poster to be different in design from the previous years, but I wanted it to still tell its Mediterranean story. The poster is dominated by beach sand, a great inspiration to kids and grown-ups. It’s a fun material with which one can play games, build castles, and it can be mischievous if you let your hair down. The most popular activity is to bury ourselves in the sand and then emerge like a troublemaker, and since FMFS always covers us in films, like the sand, it will be a great pleasure and a challenge to see the entirety of this year’s program," said Kazinoti.

The Mediterranean Film Festival Split is held with the support of Creative Europe and its strand - MEDIA, for the first time, which the European Commission uses to support film festivals. 

"It is extremely important to us that this support is multiannual, and that means we have financial support for 2022 and 2023, which allows us to expand our program. So we have created “Parangal,” a program for films outside of the Mediterranean area, and we will offer films for all ages in our program for kids and young adults. Thanks to the support from Creative Europe, we will strengthen the industry program with a series of workshops and lectures for film industry professionals that are coming to Split for FMFS. All of this is guaranteed to bring back the ‘hubbub’ we have missed for the past two years," says director Alen Munitić who thanked FMFS partners, the Croatian Audiovisual Center, the city of Split, and the Split Tourist Board.

Festival tickets with access to multiple screenings can be purchased from May 26. Individual tickets will be released once the program is announced at the beginning of June. All ticket info can be found at www.fmfs.hr.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

Dalmatinski Portal announced on May 31, 2019, that the features program of the 12th Mediterranean Film Festival in Split (FMFS) was released, and a new festival venue was announced - an open cinema in front of Dom Mladih (Youth Home) where short films from the international competition will be shown.

This year's Mediterranean Film Festival opens on June 13 in the beautiful summer cinema 'Bačvice' with the Italian film 'Piranhas’, awarded the Silver Bear for the best screenplay at the last Berlinale. It is an adaptation of the novel ‘Paranza dei bambini’ by Roberta Saviana, who for a long time has been under police protection for his book on the infamous Mafia organization.

The people of Split and their guests will first be in the region to see the films featuring the most famous French actresses - ‘Celle que nous croyez’ with Juliette Binoche and ‘Une jeunesse dorée’ with Isabelle Huppert. In the competition for the best feature film is the latest addition by the recently deceased European filmmaker Agnes Varde, the winner of the second FMFS.

The Greek ‘To thávma tis thálassas ton Sargassón’ is a thriller that premiered in Berlin, which will be presented at Bačvice by the main actress and screenwriter Youla Boudali. Two excellent documentaries ‘Lissa ammetsajjel’ and ‘Yom Adaatou Zouli’ come from Syria and Lebanon, both of which were rewarded in Venice, while Spain will be represented with ‘El reino’, an oppressive political thriller on corruption that won seven Goya national awards.

Italy also released great titles this year, and in the program is the documentary 'Selfie' that accompanies growing up in the south of the country, while the real treat for the audience is Loro' by Paolo Sorrentino. The ‘I Leoni di Lissi’, an Italian-Croatian co-production inspired by the Vis battle of 1866, will be presented by director Nicolo Bongiorno, who has already received a number of awards and praises in his native Italy for this title.

“In the accompanying feature film program this year we are focusing on South American cinematography. The program we called 'The Other Side of the Mediterranean' has inspired our viewers and this year we bring five films from this continent. I would point out the Colombian ‘Pajaros de Verano’, a film that was among the nine Oscar nominees, and the Argentine trilogy 'Rojo' and 'Acusada’, rewarded at the festivals in San Sebastian and Toronto. We continue the small tradition of closing FMFS with a Scandinavian film. This year, we decided to display the synchronized animated film 'Gordon and Paddy'. We continue with the film 'Koko-di Koko-yes' and the 12th FMFS will close the romantic drama 'Eld & lågor' signed by famous authors the 'Most' mini-series,” said director of the festival Alen Munitić, who announced 15 Croatian short films for the 'Ješke’ contest, which are competing for a 12,000 kuna cash prize, announced for next week.

The international short film program returns to FMFS at the new third location, in front of the Youth House, where the movies will be shown free of charge every night.

“We are partners of the Youth House Platforms on the project 'Build a House together' that has been supported by the European Social Fund and we are delighted to host this program at the center of the project, which will make this project an unavoidable cultural point of our city,” Munitić said. 

The Spanish-Swiss film 'Those Who Desire' and the Spanish 'Watermelon Juice' premiered in Berlin and the great Greek 'Patision Avenue' was featured in more than 20 festivals including Toronto, Sundance, and Venice. Also worth a look is the Greek film 'Hector Malot', the best film of the critics week in Cannes. From the neighboring Bosnia and Hercegovina comes 'Dah', the winner of the best short film 'Heart of Sarajevo', and the Portuguese 'Casa de Vidro', the public’s choice winner at the Rotterdam Film Festival.

The audience will also have a chance to watch the selection of short films from South America and Sweden, featuring the Chilean 'Summer of Electric Lion' and the Peruvian 'Debris' winner of the largest short film festival in Clermont Ferrand. One of the terms is also reserved for 'Kino Circus', in collaboration with partners from ROOM100, which bring 'Circus Post' a series of short films directed by Deborah May, which contextualizes the development of contemporary circus over the past 40 years.

The author of the visual identity of the Mediterranean Film Festival in Split this year is designer Karlo Kazinoti.

“The irresistible urge to throw stones into the sea is possessed by every man at least once in his life while walking along the beach or shore. This liberating enjoyment sometimes turns into a competition or just a question of one's own strength, who will continue or who will make a greater number of skips. A similar excitement possesses someone who finds themselves with a heap of movies and they have to pick the best 'stone' that will bounce off the surface the most times,” explained Kazinoti of his idea.

The work of the association behind the organization of the festival is institutionally supported by the National Foundation for Civil Society Development and the Foundation for Culture Nova, the Croatian Audiovisual Center, the City of Split, Society of Croatian Film Directors, and the partner of the 12th FMFS is Addiko Bank.

Ticket packages for the FMFS and Kino Mediteran are already on sale and individual tickets are on sale on Monday, June 3rd. Tickets are 25 kuna for the films at the Bačvice summer cinema, and 20 kuna for screenings at the Golden Gate Cinema. 

You can find the full program and ticket info here. 

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