10 Women Filmmakers to Watch at the Sydney Film Festival June 8

European Cinema: MAKING WAVES DOWN UNDER

WILD by Nicolette Krebitz (Germany)

European Film Promotion has launched a new initiative. For the first time, EFP, the Sydney Film Festival and Variety have joined forces to initiate European Cinema: 10 Women Filmmakers to Watch presenting ten exceptional European women storytellers. All films come fresh from their premieres at A-list festivals around the globe, some of them having been in competition and won awards.

ll films come fresh from their premieres at A-list festivals around the globe, some of them having been in competition and won awards.

For Renate Rose, EFP’s Managing Director, it was important to set a positive sign for the ongoing discussion about gender equality in film: “With the support of our respective members, we are very happy to showcase an exciting variety of European women filmmakers ranging from Serbia’s acclaimed actress-turned-helmer Mirjana Karanović, who will present her directorial debut “A Good Wife” to Spain’s experienced, award-winning Iciar Bollain and her family drama “The Olive Tree”. And we are deeply honored and proud that world-famous producer Jan Chapman is underlining the importance of the project by becoming the ambassador of European Cinema: 10 Women Filmmakers to Watch and investing valuable time to share her great experience with our filmmakers."

For Jan Chapman supporting the new initiative is absolutely in line with her many years of experience as a producer of films by exceptional talents: “Having been involved in a number of films directed by gifted Australian women such as Jane Campion, Gillian Armstrong, Shirley Barrett, Cate Shortland and Jennifer Kent I am well aware of the different voices and subject matter women explore in comparison to their male counterparts. Yet, we are increasingly aware that the huge gender imbalance in the numbers of female to male filmmakers in the world means that we are unable to fully experience this variety. The Sydney Film Festival is delighted to be partnering with Variety and the EFP to celebrate Europe's 10 Women Filmmakers To Watch and to be able to welcome representatives from many of their exciting films. We relish this opportunity to recognise the wealth of new cinema by women directors and to meet and share experiences and vision with Australian women filmmakers as well as the film community in Sydney as a whole.”

Following the suggestions of EFP’s member organizations, the Sydney Film Festival in cooperation with Variety chose the ten most interesting films to be presented in the program. Festival Director Nashen Moodley states: “European Cinema: 10 Women Filmmakers to Watch is an important new Festival initiative that provides a platform for showcasingwomen’s voices and storytelling. Audiences will discover a range of exciting and diverse films from these emerging filmmakers including stirring documentaries, sensitive character portraits, moving family dramas, and even a mermaid-vampire musical.”

In addition, Variety will dedicate a special feature to the women filmmakers. Steven Gaydos, Vice President and Executive Editor, explains the magazine’s strong interest in the initiative: “Having partnered with European Film Promotion for nearly 20 years on our new European filmmakers curation ‎program known as Variety Critics Choice at the prestigious Karlovy Vary Film Festival in the Czech Republic, we were excited at the opportunity to help this dynamic organization in their efforts to highlight the bold and bracing achievements of Europe's women filmmakers at a world-renowned festival such as Sydney.”

The supporting EFP members are: AFC Austrian Films, Association of Filmmakers of Bosnia & Herzegovina, Danish Film Institute, German Films, Greek Film Centre, EYE International / The Netherlands, Polish Film Institute, Film Center Serbia, ICAA / Spain, Swedish Film Institute