Editor

Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF)
November 28 - December 9 (Estonia)

Estonia’s largest film festival, the 5th Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) will take place from November 28 to December 9 opening with Cool and Crazy (Heftig & Begeistret) by Swedish director Knut Erik Jensen, an European Film Academy nominee for best documentary film.

From year to year, more and more people have come to see the festival's films - 36,800 last year - while the film selection has widened. The last festival showed 196 films (71 animated films, 5 documentaries, 3 short feature films, 117 full-length feature films). This year's festival will not fall short, showing approximately the same number of films. The 5th PÖFF will include, for the first time, a children's film festival, where the best children and youth film is voted by the audience.

PÖFF is not a red carpet festival for stars; but a festival in which to enjoy films. A free and friendly atmosphere permeates the festival, creating ideal conditions for social interaction between filmmakers and the public and amongst film professionals themselves.

The festival presents several awards; the Public's Award is decided by a general vote, while the Estonian Film Critics Award and the Best Animated Film Award are chosen respectively by local film critics and animated studio employees.

The festival line up includes 20 films competing for this year’s European Film Academy (EFA) awards on December 1 in Berlin. Six films are up for best film: Intimacy by Patrice Chereau; Italian for Beginners by Lone Scherfig (Italiensk for begyndere); The Piano Teacher by Michael Haneke (La Pianiste); Amelie from Montmartre by Jean Pierre Jeunet (Le fabuleux destin d’Amelie Poulain); The Others by Alejandro Amenábar; and The Experiment (Das Experiment) by Oliver Hirschbiegel.

Of the candidates for the best European short film, PÖFF will show: Svitjod 2000+; Copy Shop; Super 8 Stories by Emir Kusturica. Films competing for the best non-European film in the PÖFF line-up include: The Believer by Henry Bean; Millenium Mambo; and Monsoon Wedding by Mira Nair. The festival is also showing the Estonian film Heart of Bear, nominated for the best cinematography. Others EFA nominated films to be seen at PÖFF are: Under the Sand (Sous le Sable) by Francois Ozon; The Bench (Baenken) by Per Fly; Sexy Beast by Jonathan Glazer; Time Out (L’Emploi du Temps) by Laurent Cantet; Come on! (Jalla! Jalla!) by Josef Fares and Jessica Hausner's Lovely Rita.

Highlighted at this year's event will be a screening of Taurus, the second film in a trilogy about 20th century leaders by legendary filmmaker Aleksander Sokurov (Moolok, Mother and Son) that premiered in Cannes. Film fans have the opportunity to meet Leonid Mozgovoi, the Russian actor who portrayed the senile Lenin in Taurus, on December 5 in the Russian Drama Theater at 18.00 after the Tallinn showing of Taurus. Citizens of Viljandi will also be able to see the film because it will be shown at the “Ugala” on December 3 at 19.00.

Black Nights 2000