The Feast of the Wolf is one of ten titles from the entire world in the Doc@PÖFF International Documentary Film Competition of the prestigious Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. The first screening, which will mark its world premiere, is scheduled for 8 November. 

“The films in the Doc@PÖFF programme reveal a restless world where bold, author-driven works captivate with their search for balance and understanding – and demonstrate that documentaries can be even more engaging than fiction”, said program selector Marianna Kaat about the competition.

The Feast of the Wolf is a documentary about a region only a stone’s throw away from popular tourist destinations along the Adriatic coast and its forgotten local population. The roads there are neglected and public transportation, shops, medical care and social life are scarce. Sheep are a crucial source of income ensuring their survival, however, wolf attacks on herds are on the rise. As wind farms and quarries expand day after day, locals feel threatened, and it is rumoured that the European Union and the government are secretly bringing in the wolves by helicopter to drive them out and make way for new industries. Ana, the veterinarian in charge of assessing the damage caused by wolves, tries to reassure them, but met with strong resistance, she begins to wonder what her real mission is.

“Above all, I am happy and feel relieved that after such a long process of working on this film, we managed to create something that provokes reactions and draws interest, especially from such an important festival as Tallinn Black Nights. I would say the film is not typical in terms of form orcontent, just as its protagonists exist in a kind of blind spot of the typical views of Dalmatia”, said director Jadran Boban on the occasion of the world premiere.

The film’s script was penned by Dragan Grozdanić, with Iva Kraljević as editor, and Lav Kovač as music composer. The producer is Dana Budisavljević, with executive producer Noa Nikolić, and Serbian co-producers Milanka Gvoić and Nikola Spasić (Rezon).

The project was previously presented at numerous workshops, such as ExOriente Film, Dok Leipzig/Dok Preview Training, Doclisboa Nebulae, Astra Film Lab, Pula Film Festival/Work in Progress. The film was financially supported by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, Film Centre of Serbia, Creative Europe MEDIA, and City of Zagreb.

Just Film

The Black Nights festival in Tallinn organises two additional sub-festivals – Just Film, consisting of youth and children’s films competition programmes, which takes place from 7 to 23 November, and PÖFF Shorts, the international short film and animation festival of all genres, which takes place from 11 to 19 November.

In its international competition, the 25th Youth and Children’s Film Festival will feature the international premiere of The Second Diary of Paulina P., the sequel to the children’s blockbuster The Diary of Paulina P.

Directed by Neven Hitrec and written by Ivan Turković-Krnjak, the children’s hit comedy drama brings a new, witty, and touching adventure of Paulina P. as she starts fifth form. She will meet a strict geography teacher, a new pupil – the first school bully, but also face serious life challenges such as her grandmother’s illness. With recognisable humour, charm and imagination, she will discover that life is not only a series of victories – but also lesson in courage, friendship and growing up. The film arrives in domestic cinemas on 6 November, premiering on 2 November at CineStar Branimir Mingle Mall. 

The producer of the film is Jure Bušić (Jaka Produkcija), with co-producers Jure Vizjak, Maja Zupanc, Stefan Orlandić, Dimče Stojanovski and Mirko Bojović.

The Youth Programme section, which brings an overview of this year’s lauded youth films that have already received a lot of attention from audiences and critics at festivals around the world, will shine a light on the minority co-production DJ Ahmet.

It is the debut feature written and directed by Georgi M. Unkovski, made in co-production with Croatian company 365 Films (co-producer Katarina Prpić). Besides Prpić, other members of the Croatian crew who worked on the film include composers Alen and Nenad Sinkauz, while the visual effects were done at the Croatian studio Poster.

The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won two awards and was subsequently screened at festivals around the world.

PÖFF Shorts

The competition of student fiction films, Shorts New Talents Competition: Live-action, will showcase Jozo Schmuch’s Shallow Ground (Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb). The film had its world premiere at the Sarajevo Film Festival, while its producer is Ana Martinović.  

The Shorts New Talents Competition: Animation will, on the other hand, include Jelena Milunović’s Floating. The minority co-production is co-produced by Draško Ivezić in front of Adriatic Animation. The film premiered at this year’s 48th Annecy International Animated Film Festival, and will also screen at the upcoming DOK Leipzig this October. 

The same competition will also feature Spine directed by Marta Margetić (Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb). The film premiered at this year’s Animafest, after which it screened at a number of domestic festivals. 

Two more Croatian titles will screen in the animated film competition. The short How created by Marko Meštrović, produced by Kreativni Sindikat (Igor Grubić), had its world premiere at Animafest, where it won a Special Mention, going on to screen at almost 20 international festivals.

The second animated short is Fachuk by Maida Srabović, which also embarked on a rich festival tour following Animafest and Annecy, counting almost 20 festivals to date. The film is a Tetrabot production, with Maida Srabović, Janja Pilić and Vedran Štefan as producers.

Since its launch in 1997, Black Nights has grown into one of the biggest film festivals in Northern Europe, annually receiving 80 000 visitors. Since 2014, its international competition programme boasts the FIAPF – International Federation of Film Producers Associations accreditation, making it an A-list festival on a par with Berlinale, Cannes, Venice, San Sebastián, Karlovy Vary and others. More details are available on its official website.