The international tourist film festival – the 11th Zagreb Tour Film Festival – began on Wednesday, October 12, with the opening ceremony at the Kaptol Boutique Cinema. Organized by Balduči Film and the Zagreb Tourist Board and under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Croatia Zoran Milanović, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports and the Croatian Tourist Board, the festival returned to the big screen after two years of virtual holding due to the coronavirus, and the selected program met with positive reactions from the audience. among which were many famous Croats, tourism workers, media representatives and other numerous guests.
11th ZAGREB TOURFILM FESTIVAL from 12th -15th October, 2022 from ZAGREB TOURFILM FESTIVAL on Vimeo.
“This year’s edition of the Zagreb TourFilm Festival meant a lot to us, especially after two pandemic years that significantly changed the trends in tourism. As many as 106 films were submitted to the Festival, of which 32 were tourist films from Croatia, which is the largest number ever. We are also pleased that we have films submitted from 29 countries around the world, from exotic destinations such as Fiji, Madagascar, Uganda, Australia, Japan and Iceland” – said Spomenka Saraga, director of the Zagreb TourFilm Festival, announcing the winners. Tourist reportages, documentaries and vlogs competing for prizes in the mentioned categories and the Grand Prix for the best film of the Festival will be specially evaluated.
The second day of the festival was marked by free film screenings for all interested citizens, who had the opportunity to watch the best domestic, European and world tourist films at the Kaptol Boutique Cinema from 15:00 to 18:00. Foreign visitors were introduced to the magical Zagreb with a tourist guide, Josip Siklić, better known as Purgerica, who revealed to them several seductive faces of the Croatian capital – the one mysteriously filled with legends and stories, medieval, wacky and humorous.
In addition to the rich film and tourist program, accompanying activities were also prepared for festival guests, such as a tasting workshop that showed how wine and extra virgin olive oil are the perfect accompaniment to film art and tourism. In partnership with the Zagreb Tourfilm Festival and the ART&TUR Tourism Film Festival and the support of the Tourist Board of the Istrian County and Vinistra – the association for viticulture and winemaking of Istria, a workshop with wine and olive oil tastings from Portugal and Croatia was held.
Portuguese sommelier Bebiana Monteiro, professor at the Polytechnic of Porto, presented three wines from Bairrada: Aliança (sparkling), São Domingos (white) and Messias (red). Regarding olive oils, three olive oils stood out: Azeite Fátima and Cabeço das Nogueiras (Premium Cobrançosa and Premium Cornicabra) from Sociedade Agrícola Ouro Vegetal, from Abrantes.
Istrians, sommelier Emil Perdec and Ivan Marić director of Vinistra, presented sparkling wine Festigia Blanc de Moi Vintage Brut, Vina Laguna from Poreč, dry Malvasia Santa Lucia from 2017, Kozlović wine from Momjan and Teran Il Primo from 2018, Fakin wine from Motovun and olive oil – Ipša Istarska Bjelica 2022 from Livada, Meneghetti’s selection Buža 2021 from Bala and Salvela Aurum blend from 2021 from Vodnjan.
Given that this tasting workshop was a success and has great cultural significance for both countries, sommeliers Bebiana Monteiro and Emil Perdec will repeat this event, with the same wines and olive oil, on October 25 and 26 in Ourém, during the 15 ART&TUR Festival. This cultural bridge between Croatia and Portugal has the technical and scientific mentoring of the Portuguese team as part of the European Olive4All project, which aims to preserve and promote the olive heritage.
The guests of the festival also visited the most famous medieval fortress in Zagreb, which shone in its full splendor last year after a major renovation and became even more attractive to visit. For years, the Medvedgrad fortress was a favorite meeting place and location for summer film and music festivals, and now it is possible to discover its interior through the Medvedgrad Visitor Center. The restored walls delighted visitors, as well as the impressive center and one of the most beautiful views of the Croatian metropolis.
The well-coordinated team of Balduči Film and the Tourist Board of the City of Zagreb ensure that the gathering of the world’s best filmmakers, top experts on tourism and the audience goes perfectly. “This year, we have prepared for the guests of the Festival a superb tourist experience and a tour of the city, with great tastings, but above all phenomenal films. The audience thus had the opportunity to enjoy the best tourist films in the world that talked about various types of attractiveness. The best ones tonight were chosen by relevant domestic and international experts, led by the president of the jury, Boško Grubić (Bobby), an Emmy award winner,” said Saraga, director of Balduči Film and the Zagreb Tour Film Festival.
The Zagreb TourFilm Festival has been supported by numerous media sponsors for years, and this year we were joined by our academic partner Edward Bernays University College and the gold sponsors of the festival Podrumi Kolar and Chic IB bags leather goods.
The Grand Prix was won by Spain!
At the gala dinner at the Esplanade Hotel Zagreb, where the participants of the three-day gathering of filmmakers and tourism experts, professionals dealing with this, one of the most lucrative branches of the economy, and lovers of attractive destinations gathered, awards were presented to the best films as judged by an expert jury, namely:
GRAND PRIX – for the best film of the festival
NO JOY IN LIFE IS SMALL, Spain
No Joy In Life Is Small.mp4 from Filmservice International on Vimeo.
The best tourist film in the category TOURIST DESTINATION – city
1st place TIME SWITCH AVEIRO, Portugal
2nd place 10 PLANS TO LIVE MADRID, Spain
3rd place CANNES IS STILL STANDING, France
The best tourist film in the category TOURIST DESTINATION – region
1st place NO JOY IN LIFE IS SMALL, Spain
2nd place LOVE RIAS BAIXAS. A LOVE STORY WITH THE PROVINCE OF PONTEVEDRA, Portugal
3rd place JUST BETWEEN US, Portugal
The best tourist in the category TOURIST DESTINATION, country
1st place EXPERIENCE A WORLD BEYOND, Qatar
2nd place THE NAMELESS CALL – INSIDE COSTA RICA, Italy
3rd place (shared) EXPLORE UGANDA – THE PEARL OF AFRICA, Uganda
3rd place (shared) INTRODUCING THE ICELANDVERSE, Iceland
In the TOURIST PRODUCT category
The best Wellness & Spa travel film
LITHUANIA. FIND YOUR SAUNA SELF, Lithuania
The best Gastro film
WORLD PAELLA DAY, Spain
The best heritage presentation film
CROATIA: THE INTANGIBLE HERITAGE, Croatia
The best event Film
WHY CHOOSE PORTO & NORTH OF PORTUGAL FOR YOUR EVENT? The Majestic Adventures of Ofelia de Souza, Portugal
The best film about wine tourism, Croatia
A TASTE ABOVE, Croatia
Best film – Hotel and Resort
HOTEL BOHINJ – MEET YOUR SPIRIT, Slovenia
Special award – Cultural tourism
BOL & CULTURE, Croatia
In the category BEST TOURIST FILM and TV REPORT
Best documentary film
1st place THE HOUSES OF LIGHT, Croatia
2nd place NATURE WITHOUT BORDERS, Slovenia
3rd place MAMODY, THE LAST BAOBAB DIGGER
Special jury award – Ethnography and society
LILANJE IN LOZNICA, Serbia
The best environmental film
FOREST RIVERS, Poland
The best TV reportage
IT DOESN’T MATTER WHERE I’M FROM, Serbia
In the category the best CROATIAN TOURIST FILM
Tourist destination – city
MEET. FEEL. EXPLORE. ZADAR, Croatia
Tourist destination – region
AUTHENTIC ISTRIA – GOOD MOOD/GOOD FOOD, Croatia
In the category TOURIST COMMUNICATION, advertising
UTOPIA, Greece
The best video blog – vlog
1st place JORDAN, Croatia
2nd place THE REAL EGYPT, Croatia
This year, the STUDENT’S CHOICE AWARD awarded by a student jury composed of students from Edward Bernays University College – an academic partner of the festival, went to BUDAPEST MICE image film, Hungary.
You can watch some of the selected films here.
