Estonia, 2009, 35 mm, 100’ (Italian premiere)

Director: Hannu Salonen
Actors: Mehmet Kurtulus, Mart Muurisepp, Tim Seyfi
Editing: Julia Dehring
Music: Peter Nordsrtom
Production: Philipp Homberg Filmproduktion – Allfilm – Juonifilmi – Wide Eye Films

Synopsis
Tom, a wide-eyed innocent sixteen year-old ends up in a hospital with a Chechen man Artur, after accidently having saved his life in a car bomb explosion downtown Tallinn. Artur is a mysterious man who seems to have a mission of his own in Estonia. Fascinated by this quiet stranger, Tom helps him to escape from the hospital. Slowly he begins to realize that Artur is haunted by the memories of his family he tragically lost in war. Tom finds himself an unwitting accomplice in a lethal game of vengeance and death…

Biofilmography
Hannu Salonen was born in Pori, Finnland in 1972. As he was 16, he founded an association in order to produce his amateur short films. After he’d spent a year in the US at the end of the golden 80’s and graduated from the Kallio High School for performing arts in Helsinki he got accepted to the Berlin Film Academy. With his prize winning short film “Moments in Monochrome” he smoothed the way to his first feature “Downhill City” that won amongst others the prize for the Best Europen First Feature in Angers, France.

Serbia, 2009, XD-CAM, 89’ (Italian premiere)

Director: Marin Malešević
Actors: Milivoje Obradović, Aleksandar Djurica
Editing : Branislav Klasnja
Musics : Milan Kerezović
Production: NFC Kino Klub Novi Sad

Sinossi
“The Heart of the Wise Lives in the House of Sorrow” is based one two well-known biblical stories about Jacob and Yona. It shows a modern adaptation of those two biblical stories adjusted to a modern public. The main character is Jacob, a young man in his late twenties. Jacob is trying to find his place in today’s society and create a life-goal for himself, a mission that he can make himself useful for. The fact that Jacob is somewhat of an outcast in today’s society creates an obsessive and unrealistic mission and goal in his life. In his mind an ordinary salesman and con-artist becomes an angel that has to bless Jacob.The man Jacob has chosen tries to fight Jacob’s ideas, which results in conflicts. Whilst working on his mission Jacob finds an “other world” in which he finds himself. This world, paradoxally, happens to be the cities’ graveyard.

Biofilmography
Marin was born in Novi Sad in 1975. He lives and workes in Novi Sad, Serbia. He studies in Academy of Arts (drama department, film and theatre directing), Novi Sad.

Canada/USA, 2009, HD, 75’ (World premiere)

Director: René Brar
Actors: Makinna Ridgway, Quincy Newton, Craig Patton
Editing: René Brar
Music: Richie Kulchar
Production: Sarah Brar, Will Kinsella, René Brar, Chris Kinsella

Synopsis
A girl drinks alone at a bar. There she meets a handsome stranger who lures her away for the adventure of a lifetime. Together, they journey deep into the lush rain forests of the Pacific Northwest where she becomes intoxicated by the beauty of the land and by her mysterious companion. For her it is a journey of self-discovery and growth. Little does she know that she is hurtling closer to a tragic fate.

Biofilmography
René Brar has two degrees from Yale. A bachelor’s in film and a master’s in theology. He worked as a story editor for Ridley Scott.
Once pulled a man from a burning building while vacationing in Toronto.