MIDPOINT 2023
Country Focus: Czech Republic
The MIDPOINT Institute wraps up its first workshops of 2023
- The institute’s two flagship programmes, Feature Launch and Series Launch, are continuing to nurture a handful of emerging talents in their selections
The MIDPOINT Institute has recently completed the first residential workshops for the 2023 edition of its flagship programmes, MIDPOINT Feature Launch and MIDPOINT Series Launch. These courses aim to provide emerging filmmakers with the necessary tools and guidance to develop their projects to their full potential.
MIDPOINT Feature Launch is the leading feature-length film programme designed specifically for filmmakers working on their first and second movies. The programme has selected nine new feature-film projects and three script-consultant trainees. The selection process for these projects was multi-stage and began earlier this year, with a total of 20 creative teams given the opportunity to receive feedback on their projects and improve them.
The selected teams are guided by group leaders Pavel Jech, Pavel Marek and Ivo Trajkov, and by the script consultant trainees' mentor, Gyula Gazdag. The producers are led by mentor Danijel Hočevar and numerous guest tutors, such as Ada Solomon, Christian Routh and Katarina Tomková. They are all experts in their fields and have a wealth of experience to share with the participants.
The first residential workshop was held in Bratislava in March, and the programme will continue with online workshops in May. The third residential workshop in Prague in June will be immediately followed by the Works in Development - Feature Launch project showcase at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) in July. The showcase will feature the selected projects, and the main financial KVIFF & MIDPOINT Development Award of €10,000 for the best project will be granted within the Eastern Promises Industry Days at Karlovy Vary IFF.
The MIDPOINT Series Launch programme is designed for writers, directors and producers who want to develop their series projects and meet international decision makers. This year, the programme has selected nine series projects and three development-executive participants. The first residential workshops wrapped in Prague in early April, and a second workshop will be held in the Czech Republic in June.
The course welcomes back head of studies Gabor Krigler, who acts as a group leader alongside Tatjana Samopjan and Steve Matthews. The new development executive mentor is Christopher Haug, a Norwegian screenwriter, consultant and executive producer who currently serves as head of Drama Series Development for the Nordics at HBO Europe.
The MIDPOINT Series Launch programme will conclude in November with a third residential workshop at Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, including the Season Finale presentation platform. This event provides an opportunity for the participants to showcase their projects and receive feedback from industry professionals.
Both Feature Launch and Series Launch provide emerging filmmakers with the guidance and support they need to bring their projects to life. The programmes offer a platform for filmmakers to connect with industry professionals and receive feedback on their projects from experts in the field.
Here is the full list of participants in this edition:
Feature Launch 2023
The Boy Who Saw in the Dark (Latvia)
Writer: Rasa Bugavičute-Pēce
Director: Pauls Ķesteris
Producer: Kristians Alhimionoks
Excavators (Cyprus)
Writer/director: Argyro Nicolaou
Producer: Constantinos Nikiforou
Flight from Kabul (Slovakia)
Writer/director: Sahraa Karimi
Producer: Wanda Adamík Hrycová
God Break Down the Door (Czech Republic)
Writer/director: Vojtěch Novotný
Producer: Tomáš Pertold
Paperplanes (Greece)
Writer/director: Selini Papageorgiou
Producers: Iro Aidoni, Mina Dreki
Shadow Play (Iceland/Belgium)
Writer/producer: Kristian Van der Heyden
Writer: Pauline Baert
Director: Ýr Þrastardóttir
Soft Hours (Hungary)
Writer/director: Anna Gyimesi
Producer: Genovéva Petrovits
The Portuguese House (Portugal)
Writer/director: Avelina Prat
Producer: Gerard Marginedas
whatever, lol (Slovakia)
Writer/director: Gabriela Gažová
Producer: Katarína Krnáčová
Script consultant trainees
Tomáš Janáček (Czech Republic)
Elena Lyubarskaya (Germany)
Kevin Meul (Belgium)
Series Launch 2023
Arizona Joe (Latvia)
Writer: Matīss Kaža
Producer: Dace Siatkovska
Behind the Wall (Czech Republic)
Writer: Lia Berger
Director: Vasco Viana
Producer: Iuliia Mamaeva
Brain Drain (Serbia)
Writers: Matija Dragojević, Ljubica Luković
Producer: Maja Popović Milojević
I Seek a Kind Person (Germany)
Writer: Romina Ecker
Writer/producer: Gabriele Simon
Kilwater (Poland)
Writer: Małgorzata Piłacińska
Producer: Kaja Jalocha
Love Is a Pitch (Slovakia)
Writers: Michaela Klanicová, Hana Hančinová
Producer: Lukáš Teren
Palace of Worries (Switzerland)
Writer: Luka Djikanovic
Writer/director: Fiona Ziegler
Rainbow Gravity (Serbia)
Writer/director: Sara Šarić
Producer: Andjela Lazić
Vertebrae (Romania)
Writer: Andrei Epure
Producer: Ioana Lascar
Development executive participants
Klara Follová (Czech Republic)
Jon Gojani (Kosovo)
Elif Özsüt (Turkey)
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