Karlovy Vary Eastern Promises Winners Include ‘Virtual Girlfriends,’ Turkish Sports Drama

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ’s Eastern Promises industry section and film market, focusing on works in progress or development handed out its awards Tuesday evening.

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KVIFF Eastern Promises describes its mission as “bridging the gap between talented filmmakers and their potential partners, festivals and audiences.” The awards are open for producers and directors from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East and North Africa introducing new films that will premiere after the Karlovy Vary festival.

This year, 39 projects competed for awards with a total value of 110,000 euros ($118,000) in three programs: Works in Progress, Works in Development – Feature Launch and First Cut+.

“This year has once again brought a diverse selection of strong creative voices, and we were pleased to showcase them to their potential production, distribution and festival partners in the beautiful setting of the Imperial Spa, the new KVIFF Industry venue,” said Hugo Rosák, the head of the KVIFF Film Industry Office.

Last year , Klára Tasovská’s I’m Not Everything I Want to Be , about a female photographer on a journey towards freedom after the Soviet invasion of Prague, and Assel Aushakimova’s Bikechess , which explores government influence and journalistic ethics, won key Works in Progress honors. I’m Not Everything I Want to Be is part of the Special Screenings program of this year’s 58th KVIFF .

The 58th edition of the Karlovy Vary fest runs June 28-July 6. Its competition will be judged by a jury including indie film producer Christine Vachon and Geoffrey Rush .

Check out the complete list of winners below.

Works in Progress

Works in Progress Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Award

Virtual Girlfriends (Czech Republic, Slovak Republic), directed by Barbora Chalupová and produced by Pavla Klimešová, Monika Lošťáková and Simona Hrušovská.

The winner gets a cash prize of 5,000 euros ($5,360), sponsored by Barrandov Studio.

Jury statement: “A revealing, touching, and complex depiction of individuals in the Czech Republic who have turned to the world’s oldest profession (with a twist) on today’s online and social marketplace, questioning identity, sexuality, normality, performance, and more in the effort to make a living.”

Works in Progress Visual Post-Production Award

Amedspor (Turkey), directed by Rezan Yesilbas and produced by Ahmet Gurata.

The award consists of a tailored post-production services package provided by UPP.

Jury statement: “An important and enthralling look at the intersection of sports and politics in modern-day Turkey as a minor league [soccer] team works to reclaim its identity despite the conflict and likely repercussions. It is an important reflection of the Turkish-Kurdish conflict, telling the story not in a direct political way but through [soccer].”

Works in Progress Sound Post-Production Award

Lover, Not a Fighter (Slovak Republic, Czech Republic), directed by Martina Buchelová and produced by Michaela Kaliská, Erika Paulinská and Julie Marková Žáčková.

The award consists of a tailored post-production services package provided by Soundsquare.

Jury statement: “The award goes to a young and talented team for their fresh and honest depiction of young love and for a tender, cruel and crazy coming-of-age trip.”

Works in Development

Feature Launch & Intensive Queer; KVIFF Talents

The winner of the first award gets a cash prize of 10,000 euros ($10,720) , jointly sponsored by Midpoint Institute, Barrandov Studio and KVIFF .

Klára is Here (Hungary), directed and written by Dávid Csicskár and produced by Balázs Zachar.

Jury statement: “We were impressed by the level of the projects that were presented to us, and we are thankful to all teams for sharing them. We would like to award a project that explores the poignant story of a man’s quest for happiness amidst a heartbreaking reality, capturing the tragedy of letting go of love and the bravery to start over at any age.”

Eurimages Co-production Award

The winner gets a 20,000 euros ($21,485) cash prize for further development, sponsored by the Eurimages fund.

Antonie (Czech Republic), directed and written by Rozálie Kohoutová and produced by Martina Knoblochová and Martin Hůlovec.

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Jury statement: “The Eurimages Co-Production Development Award goes to a project that challenges conventional ideas about parenthood with humor and heart and motivates us to rethink societal norms. We are proud to support a rising female director with a unique vision, as she embarks on a promising career in the industry, aspiring to reach an international audience.”

Connecting Cottbus Award

Eli and Them (Czech Republic), directed and written by Petr Pylypčuk and produced by Kryštof Burda.

Statement: “For a complex coming-of-age story as well as a quietly bold portrait of a rural village undercut by racial tension, we would like to invite the team of Eli and Them to this year‘s edition of Connecting Cottbus.”

Rotterdam Lab Award

Martina Knoblochová, producer of the film Antonie (Czech Republic).

Statement: “The team has shown a solid vision for a project that aims to break down decades-old prejudices about social belonging and modern parenthood. The producer will certainly benefit from sharing practices with an international group of fellows, and we want to encourage her to work with the director to bring this modern story to life.”

KVIFF Talents

Feature Pool (120,000 Czech krona, or $5,123, for further development):

Inbetween Worlds (Czech Republic, Slovakia), directed by Diana Cam Van Nguyen, written by Diana Cam Van Nguyen, Milada Těšitelová and produced by Karolína Davidová and Jakub Viktorín

Letters to the Future (Czech Republic), directed and written by Myro Klochko, produced by Marek Čermák, Karolína Fránková

Rusalka (Czech Republic), written by Hana Neničková.

Creative Pool (50,000 CZK for further development):

Casting (Czech Republic), limited series directed by Terézia Halamová, written by Jan Černý and produced by Natália Pavlove

Into the Endless Unknowns (Czech Republic), miniseries written and directed by Veronika Jelšíková and Petr Vlček

Spectrum (Czech Republic), dramedy series directed by Igor Smitka, written by Adél Škvrna, produced by Klára Mamojková, Wanda Kaprálová and Matej Sotník.

First Cut+ Works in Progress Award

The award comes with a cash prize of 5,000 euros ($5,360).

Numakage Public Swimming Pool (Japan), directed and written by Shingo Ota and produced by Kyoko Takenaka

Jury statement: “A fresh, surprising and personal portrait of loss that brings us into the fascinating, unexpected rhythms of a unique place and its people, Numakage Public Swimming Pool invokes the five stages of grief to create a beautiful meditation on the death of a public space, a community place, a queer space and a workplace.”

Special mention: Mayflies (Hungary, Slovak Republic), directed and written by Emília Goldberg and produced by Ferenc Pusztai and Linda Pfeiffer.

KVIFF Eastern Promises – Marché du Film Producers Network Award

Lover, Not a Fighter (Slovakia)

Patryk Sielecki, producer of Anxiety of the Heart (Poland)

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