03/10/2023 - On this year’s festival menu, there will be new film productions from Eastern Europe, a master class with Patrice Leconte and a taste of Ukraine

The 16th edition of CinÉast, the Central and Eastern European Film Festival in Luxembourg, will take place from 5-22 October. Over 18 days, more than 60 features and 40 short films by directors hailing from 21 countries will be screened in venues in Luxembourg City, as well as in Vianden and Dudelange. Like last year, the festival is collaborating with the German border town of Saarbrücken, which will host a number of screenings. Moreover, there will also be online screenings, available for viewers in Luxembourg only, for which tickets are available here.

The festival offers a rare opportunity to sample the culture of Eastern European countries. This year’s central theme will be "Adaptations": there will be a dedicated photo exhibition and a debate about "Adapting to Living Abroad", which will follow the screening of Victim [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Michal Blaško
film profile] by Slovak director Michal Blaško. The thriller follows Ukrainian immigrant Irina, who fights against xenophobia in her new town in the Czech Republic.

This brings us to the second focus of the festival: Ukraine. CinÉast will kick off with a concert by Ukrainian band Yagody and will screen several films from and about the war-torn country. Amongst others, they include In the Rearview [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], in which Polish director Maciek Hamela documents his experiences helping with the evacuation of Ukrainian civilians; Eastern Front [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Vitaly Mansky, Yevhen Titar…
film profile] by Vitaly Mansky; and Photophobia [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ivan Ostrochovský, Pavol Pe…
film profile] by Ivan Ostrochovský and Pavol Pekarčík, the winner of the Europa Cinemas Label in Venice’s Giornate degli Autori this year.

The screenings will be complemented by a "Ukraine Now" debate with directors Iryna Tsilyk and Elwira Niewiera, as well as by an event serving traditional dishes from the country. The proceeds will go to the charity project CinEast4Ukraine, launched by CinÉast in 2022.

The Croatian evening will see the international premiere of Seventh Heaven [+see also:
film review
film profile] by Jasna Nanut, a comedy-drama about a middle-aged man struggling to come clean to his wife about a crush he has had on another woman.

This year, Cercle Cité will organise a new screening series with short films addressing different aspects of inclusion and discrimination: for example, Tempo Home by Kamil Bembnista (Poland) shows life in a refugee camp at the former Berlin Tempelhof Airport.

The main competition is composed of seven films: the Tallinn Black Nights competitor and Bergamo Film Meeting winner A Cup of Coffee and New Shoes On [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Gentian Koçi
film profile] by Gentian Koçi; Bread and Salt [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Damian Kocur
film profile] by Damian Kocur, a drama about a young pianist who ends up in xenophobic circles; Blaga's Lessons [+see also:
film review
interview: Stephan Komandarev
film profile] by Stephan Komandarev, about a retired teacher falling prey to a phone scam, which has just won Best Film at Bulgaria’s Golden Rose Film Festival (ex aequo with Dyad [+see also:
film review
interview: Yana Titova
film profile]); Citizen Saint [+see also:
film review
interview: Tinatin Kajrishvili
film profile] by Tinatin Kajrishvili, a satire about a saint coming back from the dead; North Macedonia’s Oscar submission Housekeeping for Beginners [+see also:
film review
interview: Goran Stolevski, Alina Serban
film profile] by Goran Stolevski; the Sundance Directing Award winner Smoke Sauna Sisterhood [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Anna Hints
film profile] by Anna Hints; and the Locarno FIPRESCI Prize winner Stepne [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Maryna Vroda, about a Ukrainian man returning home to take care of his dying mother. The seven movies are competing for the Grand Prix, the Special Jury Prize and the Critics’ Prize.

The international jury is led by French director Patrice Leconte, who will also hold a master class at CinÉast. The other jury members are Croatian writer-director Andrija Mardešić, Ukrainian author and filmmaker Iryna Tsilyk, Luxembourgish actress and director Sophie Langevin, and Luxembourgish producer Vincent Quénault.

More information about this edition’s line-up can be found here.