SEEfest 2023 Ends With World Premiere of Ukrainian Documentary

Closing Night for the 18^th Annual South East European Film Festival, took place on Wednesday, May 3^rd, at the James Bridges Theater at UCLA. The evening began with the world premiere of a new documentary from Ukraine, “KING LEAR: How We Looked for Love During the War,” by Dmytro Hreshko. Taking a step back from the frontlines, the film focuses on internally displaced people in a small town who are transformed into Shakespeare’s characters, which in turn gives new meaning and purpose to their shattered lives. This year’s SEEfest Resident Producer, Polina Herman, who is also the producer of the film, attended the screening for a Q&A with Vera Mijojlic, Festival Director.

Prior to the screening, this year’s awards were announced (see the full list below). Irina Maleeva (star of Peacock’s Paul T Goldman, Six Feet Under, and The Gilmore Girls), SeeFest’s Honorary Chairwoman, accepted the MOZAIK Bridging the Borders Award for THE GOOD DRIVER on behalf of director Tonislav Hristov, a Bulgarian filmmaker who works in Finland and Bulgaria. The film is a Finnish-Swedish-Bulgarian production.

BEST FEATURE

MEN OF DEEDS by Paul Negoescu

Honorable Mention: SONNE by Kurdwin Ayub

BEST DOCUMENTARY

SCENES WITH MY FATHER, by Biserka Šuran

Honorable Mentions: JUVENILE by Jovan Todorović

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN FEATURE FILM

Cinematographer Giorgos Karvelas, SILENCE 6-9

Honorable Mention: Cinematographer Orlin Ruevski, THE GOOD DRIVER

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN DOCUMENTARY FILM

Cinematographer Hirotoshi Takeoka, ADAMIANI

Honorable Mention: Cinematographers Stefan Đorđević and Jovan Todorović, JUVENILE

SHORT ANIMATION

GRANNY’S SEXUAL LIFE by Urška Djukić and Émilie Pigeard

Honorable Mentions: 

THE LEGEND OF GOLDHORN by Lea Vučko

MONEY AND HAPPINESS by Ana Nedeljković and Nikola Majdak Jr

BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY

THE SCORE by Aleksandra Bilić

BEST SHORT FICTION

CHIATURA by Toby Andris

Special Jury Mentions: 

ON XERXES’ THRONE by Evi Kalogiropoulou

THE EAGLE’S NEST by Milija  Šćepanović

Two additional Awards:

MOZAIK Bridging the Borders Award

THE GOOD DRIVER by Tonislav Hristov

Honorable Mention: THE HAPPIEST MAN IN THE WORLD by Teona Strugar-Mitevska

Barco HDR Master LightSteering Color Grade Prize

MEN OF DEEDS by Paul Negoescu – BEST FEATURE FILM

SILENCE 6-9 by Christos Passalis – BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN FEATURE FILM, Giorgos Karvelas

Audience Awards

Feature Film: MEN OF DEEDS, by Paul Negoescu

Documentary Film: LIGHTS OF SARAJEVO, by Srdjan Perkić

Photos:

• Irina Maleeva accepting  MOZAIK Bridging the Borders Award (THE GOOD DRIVER by Tonislav Hristov)
• Vera Mijovlic Q& A for “KING LEAR: How We Looked for Love During the War
• Mijojlic with LIGHTS OF SARAJEVO crew

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