Why Sarajevo Remains ‘Place to Be’ for Industry Tastemakers Looking for Fresh Voices From Balkans and Beyond

variety.com:

Christopher Vourlias Across more than two decades as the parallel arm of the Sarajevo Film Festival, CineLink Industry Days has grown into the leading film and TV industry event in the Balkan region, an incubator of talent from Southeast Europe — and, increasingly, beyond — and a crucial stop for globetrotting industry executives looking to discover fresh cinematic voices.

The mid-summer event, which this year takes place Aug. 17 – 22, traditionally comes on the heels of the Locarno Film Festival and wraps in the run-up to Venice and Toronto, occupying a perhaps fitting slot in the calendar. “Not too big, but not small at all,” is how Maša Marković, now in her third year as the festival’s head of industry, characterizes it.

As a result, Sarajevo “manages to create this sense of being the place to be.” Marković credits the event’s “curational approach” for ensuring that both the selection of projects for its influential CineLink Co-Production Market and the lineup of invited guests allows filmmakers, distributors, programmers and other industry tastemakers to make the most of their time in the Bosnian capital. “[It’s] the place where you have the chance to be present and dedicate your time to people and projects that you want to do.

This is central to us,” she says. While that tried-and-true approach has won Sarajevo its share of devoted fans and longtime regulars, this year will see a host of changes to both the festival and its industry arm.