Q&A session with Jorge Navas

On Friday afternoon Harrison and I attended a Question & Answer session with Jorge Navas, the director of "La Sangre y La Lluvia." The session was set up so that there was a woman asking questions, Jorge, and a translator all sitting at a long table in front of the audience. The woman would ask questions in English and then Jorge would respond in Spanish and the translator would translate to the audience. All of the questions pertained to the making of his movie "La Sangre y La Lluvia," which exposed the dark sides of life in Columbia. Towards the end of the session, the leading actor in the movie came into the session, and he joined the rest at the table and was asked questions as well. Then the session was open to the audience, and many people asked questions of their own.

I found the session to be quite interesting because it really took you behind the scenes of the making of the film. We were able to learn the directors motives behind all of the creative choices he made while shooting, and we were also able to learn what inspired him to create this movie.

The Director and Producer of "Mother of Asphalt" making their presentation.

One of the chief officials of the Balkan Fund

A second Balkan Fund official, she also served as a translator.

Balkan Fund Presentations

The Balkan Fund is an organization which raises money to provide potential film projects with some funding to enhance and finalize their scripts. Katie and I had the opportunity to sit in on the presentations made by each project, of which there were nine in total. The presentations consisted of the director, producers, and the chief writer(s) of each film, and were roughly 20 minutes long each. Some directors chose to show a brief video which highlighted their work and gave the audience an idea of their potential, while others chose to keep it to a discussion. There was a panel of 3 judges which critiqued the script and the film in general, and to be honest, they were brutally honest and did not hesitate to tear a potential project apart. Once the judges were done scrutinizing each piece, they continued to hold private meetings with each director, producer, and writer, these were not open to the public, but were simply an extended discussion to followup the critique they already received and discuss how they would utilize the funding if they were chosen.

Following the presentations, on monday, a celebratory cocktail party was hosted at the Agora. Everyone involved in the production of the films was present, as well as the judges, and the Agora/Balkan Fund staff. The cocktail party was sponsored by Bacardi rum, and was also catered with some finger foods. Brief speeches were made by the lead officials of the Fund, and they congratulated each candidate for a good effort and encouraged them to enjoy themselves and of course, they wished them good luck.

After the cocktail party, the group made their way to an auditorium which was full of eager viewers. Once again the executives of the Fund made speeches, and were preparing to announce the three films which they selected to receive funding. In no particular order, they awarded the money to "Mother of Asphalt" which is a project about a young woman who is beaten and leaves her husband, and must provide for her child while living on the streets. The second film was "Orange Gardens" and the third was "Roman Spring". Some of the directors were so surprised to have been chosen that they had already dismissed their producer and burst into tears while trying to formulate a speech on the stage. It was a very touching ceremony to witness people being rewarded for being so passionate about film.

Immediately after the awards were presented, a film called "Here and There" was projected in the auditorium. This film was about an American who is asked to travel to Serbia to marry his friend's younger sister, so that she can obtain a visa to travel back to America with him. However, the main character falls in love with the girl's mother which creates some conflict among the characters. The movie was alright, but felt very long and some of the scenes seemed pointless or unnecessarily long.

Once the film was finished, the Balkan Fund officials and all of the applicants for the money went out to dinner at one of Thessaloniki's nicest restaurants, and celebrated the evening. Whether they won the funding or not, everyone seemed happy to have participated, and the experience itself was very rewarding.

From my point of view, the whole process seemed very well organized. The applicants followed a rigorous schedule which took up the majority of the day, and involved everyones presence. The presentations in particular consumed a lot of time. Overall, it was a very interesting experience, it showed me how these people interact with one another, and especially how valuable money such as that from the Balkan Fund can completely change a directors project, and make things possible which they never imagined could happen.

Balkan Fund Awards/Cocktail Party

from left- right: Harrison, Me, and Mettie at the award ceremony
Before showing "Here and There," and on the far right the director and the leading lady
"Orange Gardens"
"Roman Spring"
"Mother of Asphalt"
The cocktail party!


On Monday, November 16, Harrison and I attended the cocktail party and award ceremony for the Balkan Fund. The cocktail party was held at the Agora and was packed with directors, writers, and producers, who were anxiously awaiting the award ceremony. From an American's perspective the cocktail party seemed very different to Harrison and I. Rather than everyone wearing cocktail dresses and suits, most people were dressed in a more "casual yet cute" attire. It was interesting to see this because it really expressed the laid back Greek culture, something that we are both very fond of. Also people were drinking mostly wine and soda rather than cocktails, something else we picked up on as being very different from American cocktail parties. The food served was similar though, many little finger foods such as cheese, crackers with ham, mini pastries, and very delicious pudding cups.

After the cocktail party we headed over to warehouse 1 for the awards ceremony. The winners of the Balkan Fund Workshops were "Mother of Asphalt," "Roman Spring," and "Orange Gardens." Hopefully their films will be available for viewing within the next few years! After the awards we watched the movie "Here and There." This movie had won the Balkan Fund Workshop Award back in 2006. The leading lady and the director were present during the film.

Balkan Fund Workshop - "Mother of Asphalt"

The director and writer for "Mother of Asphalt" sitting with the panel
The director and writer of "Mother of Asphalt"
The opening of the Balkan Fund Workshop

Today at 10:30am Harrison and I went to the Agora building to attend the Balkan Fund Workshop. The Balkan Fund Workshop is where several scripts are presented to a panel of judges by their writer, producer, and director, and critiqued. A short clip is shown introducing the film and then the discussion session begins. On Monday, November 16^th, the award ceremony will be held during which the winning script will be chosen and given a cash prize to be used to further develop the script and begin filming.

Today we sat in on the workshop for the Croatian film “Mother of Asphalt,” which was written and directed by Dalibor Matanic, co-written by Tomislav Zajec, and produced by Ankica Juric Tilic. This film is the story of Mare, a young mother who decides to take her son and leave her abusive husband. The story portrays the obstacles Mare must overcome while living on the city streets with her son. The director said that his inspiration for this movie came from a newspaper article he read about a woman and her child who were thrown out of their home and survived by living in their car in city parking lots.

As the session began the panel expressed concerns about the melodramatic elements of the script. They told the creators of “Mother of Asphalt” that if their intentions were to show life as it really is, then they should make a documentary and not a film. Also much of their constructive criticism was about the development of the characters and the suggestion of making the young son Bruno the main character, rather than his mother Mare.

Sitting in on this workshop was fascinating. Neither Harrison, nor I, had ever experienced the behind the scenes creation of a script. I had never been aware of how much work it takes to develop a script, and the dynamic thought processes that go into creating the characters. Watching this discussion take place made me aware that screen writing is more than just creating the words an actor will say, but an intricate art of its own, in which a virtual world is developed and every minute detail is mentioned.