Black
Nights Film Festival

December 3 - 10 (Estonia)



"Black night is falling, the sun is going down," sings Björk in
Lars von Trier's musical Dancer
in the Dark. It would have been difficult to find a more
appropriate film for the opening night of the 4th Black Nights Film
Festival.

Drawing
the largest crowds and winning the Audience Award for best film,
the film's success also affirms that a festival which began as a
Scandinavian film week has found its niche with audiences. Black
Nights brings more works to Estonia in one week than reach the country
in an entire year through regular distribution channels in one year.

Despite
its success, every year the same question is asked: can a film festival
be organized in a city with three working cinemas and a budget so
small even the most independent of independent films could not be
made with it? Well, yes ... Theaters and the Soviet-era Officer's
Club became cinemas during the festival. Prevailing conditions have
turned the cultural palace known as Karl's Cathedral into the festival's
headquarters.

With
a few minor mishaps, the festival was organized smoothly. German
films and Iranian films of the past decade were highlighted in addition
to works that have appeared at major film festivals. The Swedish
border guard did not allow The Bride of Fire director Khosrow
Sinaid to depart Stockholm for Tallinn and he was subsequently sent
back. Sinaid's misfortune did not affect reception for Iranian films,
and ultimately an Iranian film won the prize of the Estonian Association
of Film Journalists: The Wind Will Carry Us by Abbas Kiarostami.



Tom Tykwer's Princess and the Warrior received the most attention
of the interesting and representative films in the German film program.
Interest was strong for shown in Wim Wenders' documentary Buena
Vista Social Club that, along with O
Brother Where Art Thou and Being
John Malkovich, -- films for which tickets were nearly impossible
to get. Another documentary, Julien Temple's The Filth and the
Fury was cut short by the police due to the overly enthusiastic
antics of an zealous moviegoer. Directors Roy Andersson (Songs
form the Second Floor), Fridrik Thor Fridriksson (Angels
of the Universe) ja Thorsten Schmidt (Snow on New Year´s
Eve) were among those who visited the event.

The
Black Nights Film Festival is primarily a public festival and many
guests remarked on their ability to interact with others and attend
films - a luxury for film professionals. Medieval Old Town Tallinn
with its cafes provided stress-free surroundings for the festival.
Its growth has also been astounding. Last year's third annual event
drew an audience three times larger than before. This year, organizers
were forced to print additional tickets in the first days of the
festival and initial estimates show that the audience grew by another
50%, reaching 37 000. The level of interest in non-Hollywood films
was a surprise to festival director Tiina Lokk. Festival organazers
can only hope that films can be shown in real cinemas next year.
The first multiplex is slated for construction next to the square
where scenes from Andrei Tarkovski's film Stalker were filmed.
The future of the Black Nights Film Festival looks brighter than
ever before.

Karlo
Funk