The jubilee 25 th Motovun Film Festival opens in celebratory atmosphere at packed Motovun square, with the screening of Aki Kaurismäki’s Fallen Leaves.
Entire histories are written in 25 years, and the history of Motovun is filled with unforgettable stories and people to which this year’s quarter-century anniversary celebration is dedicated. The festive occasion was marked by the presence of numerous long-time friends of the festival, along with the reappearance of the famed, and until recently lost, festival propellers, the trademark of the festival for quarter of a century.
The story of the propellers goes back to the earliest days of the festival, when those big, colourful signposts spread good vibes from the top of the hill every year, inviting travellers to join the small film oasis created there by lovers of film and having a good time as an escape from busy daily life. After twenty years of faithful service, the propellers disappeared. But for this edition, when old friends come together, couldn’t happen without them, so the renegade propellers finally returned to the hill of Motovun. “It’s time to put the wind back in their wings!” exclaimed festival director Igor Mirković and main program selector Milena Zajović, recalling the festival’s beginnings with nostalgia.
They also used the opportunity to thank numerous legendary and beloved people who, over a quarter of a century, breathed character and soul into our joyful festival, as well as some new friends. The honoured guests who have supported the festival since its earliest days were MFF founder Rajko Grlić, famous actor Zlatko Burić Kićo, producer Nenad Puhovski, and Slovenian director and prominent name of the Yugoslav black wave Karpo Godina.
The organizers extended a particularly warm thank you to the festival visitors and campers “who, despite all the storms, put up their tents to be here with us one more time”. “It is now time to wake up the sleeping giants together”, said Milena Zajović, inviting the cheering audience to raise their propellers in the air and color the square with Motovun colors. “It’s time to let them spin again, for the 25 years of Motovun and for all new adventures ahead!” said Igor Mirković greeting the crowd and officially opening the festival.
Finnish actor Jussi Vatanen climbed on stage next, introducing the opening film, Fallen Leaves directed by Aki Kaurismäki, whose film Juha inaugurated the first Motovun edition in 1999. This romantic comedy is the fourth instalment of the working-class trilogy directed by the master of Finnish absurdity and melancholy, crowned with the Jury Prize at Cannes this year.
For the impatient ones who couldn’t wait for the official start of the festival, the program kicked off the night before, on Friday, with a sold-out screening of cult German flick Run, Lola, Run, while the cinematic get-together continued the next day with Cinehill Shorts screenings, and Indian drama Seventeeners directed by Prithvi Konanur, screening in the main program. The side program was launched with the opening of the photograph exhibition Motovun: 25 Years in a Flash, which you can visit every day during the festival in Motovun.
“The festival is always people. And I am the happiest when all of these people are here us. Dear friends, and those who were with us before, leaving their mark on the festival. I believe their presence here is guarantee that the upcoming days will be filled with the same kind of emotion as the last 25 years”, said Igor Mirković.
This year’s festival takes place 22 – 24 July in Motovun and 26 – 29 July in Petehovac, Gorski kotar. Tickets are on sale for both locations, while more detailed information is available on the festival website and in our downloadable information booklets.
