As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the European Film Academy is expanding its scope and promoting European films from classics to contemporary titles, celebrating the richness and diversity of Europe’s incredible film heritage. From this year on, the Academy will also focus on special anniversaries and thematic programmes related to European film.
With this aim, it founded a new department for European film heritage, under the leadership of Pascal Edelmann. One of the first steps is to start building a pan-European network of film heritage that will connect cinematheques, film archives and institutions in order to exchange information about the anniversaries of film artists, individual films, institutions or specific topics relevant to the history of cinema in different European countries and regions.
22 new locations were added to the “Treasures of European Film Culture” list
One of the first activities of the new department, ahead of this year’s 35th European Film Awards, was to add 22 new places to the list of “Treasures of European Film Culture”, which will bring the total number of ”heritage locations” to 35. This is the Academy’s list of places of symbolic importance for European cinema, that is, places of historical value that should be maintained and protected, both in the present and for the benefit of future generations.
“Instead of limiting our activities to the organisation of the European Film Awards, the European Film Academy will also embrace European film history and individuals who have contributed to the European film scene. This will lead to new projects with exciting partners, but also become recognisable in all the programmes we’re going to organise during the year. I’m particularly proud of the ever-growing list of treasures of European film culture, especially in new locations in parts of Europe that haven’t been included before, such as Croatia, Denmark, Greece, Latvia and Scotland. Our desire is to find new locations every year,” says the director of the European Film Academy, Matthijs Wouter Knol.
The most famous Croatian street – Stradun – as a film set
In its hundred-year film history, Dubrovnik’s beautiful streets, walls and palaces have all been an inspiration to numerous creators and artists. The unique preservation of the architectural harmony of Dubrovnik, especially its main street, Stradun, known as the most famous Croatian street, easily allows for a variety of cinematic expression.
Although the most famous Croatian street of all has starred in many a ”moving picture” throughout many years, in much more recent times, the popularisation of Dubrovnik as a film location saw spaceships from a distant galaxy fly over Stradun (Star Wars: The Last Jedi, 2017) as well as rebels led by Nottingham’s hero Robin Hood march through it (Robin Hood, 2018). All of them were attracted by the warmth and light of Stradun, Dubrovnik’s living room, where everyone feels at home.
You can view all 35 locations from the “Treasures of European Culture” list here.
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