Author: SEE Cinema Network

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DON’T LET ME DIE by Andrei Epure receives 9 nominations at the 20th Gopo Awards

After its very impressive festival and theatrical run, Don’t Let Me Die, the debut feature film by Andrei Epure, is now a major contender at the 20th Gopo Awards, securing 9 nominations, including Best Feature Film.

The Gopo Awards are the national Romanian film awards, honouring the best Romanian cinematic achievements of the previous year. Trophies are awarded after the vote of more than 600 professionals from all sectors of the domestic film industry. They select the nominees in each competitive category, previously nominated by a jury of personalities in the field.

Don’t Let Me Die has received the following nominations:
● Best Feature Film
● Best Debut Film
● Best Director for Andrei Epure
● Best Actress for Cosmina Stratam
● Best Supporting Actress for Ozana Oancea
● Best Screenplay for Andrei Epure & Ana Gheorghe
● Best Cinematography for Laurențiu Răducanu
● Best Sound for Nathalie Vidal
● Best Original Music for Dale Cooper Quartet & The Dictaphones

Winners will be announced at the 20th Anniversary Gopo Awards Gala on May 4, 2026, at the National Theatre in Bucharest.

The film is produced by Saga Film, with co-production by Handplayed, Tomsa Films, Arrogant Films and Conceptual Lab by Theo Nissim. It has received funding support from SEE CINEMA NETWORK during its 2023 Funding Round, as well as through the Romanian Film Centre and the Bulgarian National Film Center.

Congratulations to the team of Don’t Let Me Die for their outstanding work and much deserved achievements thus far. We wish good luck to all the nominees!

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SEE Cinema Network Announces the 2025 Funding Round Recipients

On Friday 7 November 2025, SEE Cinema Network unveiled a total funding of €72,000 for its 2025 Funding Round candidates, during its 38th General Assembly in Thessaloniki, coinciding with the 66th Thessaloniki International Film Festival.

Each awarded project will receive 9.000€ in funding for its development purposes.

The selected projects are the following:

ALBANIA
COLD SUN
Director: Gentian Koçi
Delegate Producer: Artlab Film Productions
Albania / Greece / Romania / France

BULGARIA
D’ARTAGNYANA
Director: Valeri Milev
Delegate Producer: Agitprop
Bulgaria / Romania

CYPRUS
EXCAVATORS
Director: Argyro Nicolaou
Delegate Producer: Caretta Films Ltd.
Cyprus / Greece / Serbia

GREECE
THE HERMIT
Director: Nicolas Kolovos
Delegate Producer: Homemade Films
Greece / Bulgaria / Sweden

KOSOVO
LUCKY US
Director: Anita Morina
Delegate Producer: Buka Production
Kosovo / Montenegro / North Macedonia / Croatia

MONTENEGRO
TEACHERS’ UPRISING ON A NUDIST BEACH
Director: Siniša Cvetić
Delegate Producer: Artikulacija Film
Montenegro / Serbia / Bulgaria / Croatia / Italy/ Slovenia

NORTH MACEDONIA
THE POT, THE LID AND THE NURSE
Director: Vardan Tozija
Delegate Producer: Minimal Collective
North Macedonia / Bulgaria / Croatia / Slovenia

ROMANIA
BELIEVERS
Director: Tudor Giurgiu
Delegate Producer: Libra Films
Romania / Bulgaria / Hungary / Germany

In a commitment to transparency and in line with European statistical recording standards, SEE Cinema Network will also announce gender percentages for main contributors — namely, directors, producers and scriptwriters. This year, female participation stands at an impressive 43% of the total confirmed contributors.

Our Network congratulates all the recipients and wishes good luck and many more exciting achievements for each supported project.

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DON’T LET ME DIE by Andrei Epure to compete in TiFF66!

Great update for DON’T LET ME DIE by Romanian director Andrei Epure. After its world premiere at the 78th Locarno Film Festival, it was announced that it will also participate at this year’s 66th Thessaloniki International Film Festival, one of the major film events of the South Eastern Europe region and Europe, in general.

The film, which was supported by SEE Cinema Network during its 2023 Funding Round, will be participating at the Meet the Neighbors+ competition section of the festival along other 11 feature films.

The 66th edition of the festival will run through 30 October until 9 November 2025. The 38th General Assembly of SEE Cinema Network is slated to take place on Friday 7 November at Thessaloniki, within the framework of TiFF66.

Congratulations are in order for the team behind ‘Don’t Let Me Die’. We sincerely hope this participation gathers great recognition for the project, with both audiences and jury members, as well as forge a path towards a forthcoming wide international theatrical release.

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DJ Ahmet Wins at 31st SFF & IFF ART Film 2025

An impressive update for DJ Ahmet, the debut feature film of Georgi Unkovski. Soon after announcing its sales in over 15 territories worldwide, it received 2 wins at the 31st Sarajevo Film Festival (Special Youth Perspectives Award, Cineuropa Prize). The film previously received distinctions during the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and scored 3 major wins at IFF Art Film 2025 in its International Competition Section (Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor).

It was also recebtly announced that the film will participate at the 38th edition of the Montenegro Film Festival, competing in the International Feature section.

DJ Ahmet is bound to open in Hungarian cinemas on August 28th and it is scheduled to premiere in various other countries in the coming months.

DJ Ahmet received development support from SEE Cinema Network during its 2021 Funding Round. Do not miss the chance to be among the next Funding Round recipients: Submit your project now!

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’17’ by Kosara Mitic Wins at CineLink Work In Progress Awards of 31st SFF

backstage still from the shooting of 17 by Kosara Mitic

The latest project of Kosara Mitic, ’17’ has just received a great recognintion during the latest Sarajevo Film Festival. As part of the Work In Progress Awards, It was awarded 30,000€ in post-production services from company Avanpost Media towards the film’s completion.

Kosara Mitic, the project’s director, presented the film and accepted the award, which was part of the 23rd CineLink Industry Days, the industry section of the 31st Sarajevo Film Festival.

A recepient of our 2022 Funding Round, ’17’ is strongly entering its festival circuit and having a bold presence in international film markets and industry events.

We congratulate Ms Mitić and all the team for bringing forward an impressive result. We eagerly anticipate for a swift completion and subsequent festival run and theatrical distribution.

Do not miss the chance to be among the next Funding Round recipients. Submit your project now!

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DJ Ahmet Aimed for Theatrical Release; Sold to 15+ Territories

DJ Ahmet, the debut feature film of Georgi Unkovski, has managed to secure film sales in more than 15 territories globally by Berlin-based company Films Boutique.

This news comes shortly after its impressive run at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, where it garnered both the World Cinema Dramatic Audience Award and Special Jury Award for Creative Vision.

A co-production between North Macedonia, Czech Republic, Croatia and Serbia, it is slated to have its Hungarian premiere on 28 August 2025. Other scheduled theatrical relases include the Czech Republic (4 September 2025), Turkey (31 October 2025), Sweden (5 December 2025), UK & Ireland (early 2026), Norway (27 March 2026), Switzerland (1 April 2026) and Denmark (9 April 2026).

An astounding achievement for a very deserving film. Congratulations are in order for all the team behind the creative process and distribution management.

Still from the movie DJ Ahmet.

The project was among the selected awardees of our 2021 Funding Round. Do not miss the chance to be among the next Funding Round recipients. Submit your project here.

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2025 Funding Round: Applications are Open!

It’s that time of year again: SEE Cinema Network has just announced its 2025 Funding Round call for applications. The Network calls for fiction feature film projects in development stage, which have the form of international co-productions between at least two (2) SEE Cinema Network member states. Find out more information about the call rules and regulations below:

Rules & regulations

Project submissions are possible through the online application form found on our website. Do not miss the chance to apply and be placed among a wide list of 200+ highly-esteemed projects of the South Eastern Europe region that have been selected for funding by SEE Cinema Network! 🎉

SUBMIT YOUR PROJECT

Deadline of applications ends on 15 September 2025.

Good luck to all applicants. Feel free to spread the word by sharing the news with your peers and networks.

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DON’T LET ME DIE by Andrei Epure set to premiere during the 78th Locarno Film Festival

Artwork by Andreea Cristea

Locarno Film Festival just announced its lineup for the Cineasti del Presente and Piazza Grande sections. Among the former, we find Don’t Let Me Die by Romanian director Andrei Epure. The film is set to have its world premiere during the 78th edition of the festival, which is one of the most popular European and global film events that attracts over 150,000 spectators on a yearly basis.

Still from the film.

The film was among the 2023 Funding Round awardees of SEE Cinema Network. A co-production between Romania (Saga Film), Bulgaria (Handplayed) and France (Tomsa Films), it has received, among other distinctions, national funding support from all three countries. World sales are being handled by Lights On.

We want to congratulate the film’s producers and crew on their astounding work and express our excitement for the upcoming premiere of ‘Don’t Let Me Die’. We hope that this will be the starting point of a successful festival run and a forthcoming wide theatrical release to international audiences.

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‘Spring Cleaning’ by Marija Apcevska selected for funding through HFAC

Hellenic Audiovisual and Film Center – Creative Greece (HFAC) recently announced its funding pre-approvals under its Minority Co-production scheme.

Among the selected awardees, SPRING CLEANING by Marija Apcevska is confirmed to receive 65,000€ for its co-production purposes. The film’s delegate producer is North Macedonian company Kino Oko. Its Greek co-producer is Foss Productions.

Marija Apcevska – Director of SPRING CLEANING.

Spring Cleaning was among the 2023 Funding Round recipients of SEE Cinema Network. Additionally, the project has previously received funding support through the Creative Europe MEDIA programme of the European Commission.

SEE Cinema Network congratulates the team behind Spring Cleaning for another major milestone for the completion of a strong film project from South Eastern Europe. We eagerly await for any exciting update and the eventual release of the film in the near future.

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‘Wake’ by Thelyia Petraki receives support from FCS; Q&A with producer Kostas Tagalakis

Kostas Tagalakis - Producer of WAKE

Film Center Serbia (FCS) has announced its latest production grants, and among the recipients is WAKE by Thelyia Petraki, the Greek awardee of the 2024 Funding Round of SEE Cinema Network. The project has secured €55,512 under the Minority Coproductions program, supporting its production.


But that’s not all! Producer Kostas Tagalakis (Out of the Box) was selected to present WAKE at CineMart, the prestigious co-production market of the 54th International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR). Following his participation, we caught up with him for a quick Q&A to hear about his experience, the challenges of production, and the next steps for the project:

What does participating in IFFR Pro mean for your project?
Participating in IFFR Pro means that WAKE is gradually getting international visibility. Furthermore, it is attracting new collaborators and this is always a good sign for the project.

How would you describe WAKE in three words?
Girlhood. Awakening. 1999.

How was the experience of presenting WAKE to industry professionals?
It was a valuable networking experience. It is always special to see how people perceive the project and this is something that made me love it even more. 

What’s the next step for WAKE after Rotterdam?
Next stop for WAKE is the Berlinale Script Station 2025 where the director Thelyia Petraki is presenting the project to the industry.

And finally, if IFFR had a soundtrack, what song would fit it best? 🎶
It’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ at the CineMart Karaoke Party!