The Ukrainian director Sergei Loznitsa has accepted the honour of becoming the president of the international jury of the 7th edition of CinEast, the Central and Eastern European Film Festival in Luxembourg, held from 9 to 26 October 2014.

The CinEast (pronounced “ciné-East”) festival specialises in showcasing and promoting the latest cinematographic works by directors from the post-communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe. CinEast also strives to become a platform for meetings, discussions and exchanges within the multicultural society of Luxembourg.

The 2014 edition will be held from 9 to 26 October 2014 in a dozen venues in Luxembourg City and other towns in the Grand-Duchy, with most screenings hosted by the Cinémathèque de la Ville de Luxembourg, the Centre Culturel de Rencontre Abbaye de Neumünster and Ciné Utopia. The festival will offer around 100 screenings of more than 50 features and 40 short films from 18 countries, as well as many accompanying events (concerts, exhibition, culinary events, debates, etc.). Over 20 guest filmmakers are expected to attend the festival, including Ivan Ikić, Igor Cobileanski, Helena Sujecka, Jiří Mádl, Gábor Reisz, Sonja Prosenc and many more.

Sergei Loznitsa will not only head the festival’s jury evaluating the seven films in the official competition, but will also give a masterclass (23 Oct) and attend the screenings of his two latest features – Maidan and In The Fog. His attendance forms part of this year’s focus on Ukraine, featuring a special Ukrainian evening (14 Oct) as well as a concert given by the band Zapaska (25 Oct). Many other special programmes are planned, including an evening dedicated to the 25^th anniversary of the fall of the totalitarian regimes in CEE countries and an event exploring the cinematography and cultures of the Balkan countries.

Moreover, a forum for film professionals “CinEast Pro” exploring co-production and cooperation possibilities between producers from CEE countries and Luxembourg (and the greater region) will take place on 20 October.

Full details and the complete programme of CinEast 2014 will be announced at the press conference held on 23 September at 10 am at the Cinémathèque de la Ville de Luxembourg.