Editor

The European Coordination of Film Festivals will promote 9 European films at next Sao Paulo International Film Festival.
This project is part of the framework of the action in Third Countries
festivals, with the support of MEDIA.

The European Coordination of Film Festivals, a European Economic Interest Group (EEIG) brings together more than 230 festivals of varying scale and with a wide range of special interests, all of whom are committed to the defense and promotion of European cinema. All Member Countries of the European Union are represented as well as several other European countries.
The Coordination develops common and collective activities for its Members, through cooperation in the broadest sense, in the aim of promoting and improving the circulation of European films.

The Coordination also lobbies on behalf of film festivals and the audio-visual industry with various European institutions, representing their concerns in the policy development and implementation process. The Coordination compiles reports and guidelines to these institutions, and various other international organizations, on a number of issues concerning Film Festival activities.
The Coordination publishes Eurofilmfest, a quarterly review providing information about its activities and projects and news concerning member festivals. The Coordination is also an information centre and a focal point for Festivals to meet and exchange ideas and experience.
The MEDIA Programme aims at strenghtening the competitiveness of the European audiovisual industry with a series support measures. MEDIA co-finances training initiatives for audiovisual industry professionals, the development of production projects, as well as the distribution and promotion of European audiovisual works.
In the framework of the MEDIA support program of the European Commission to European films, the European Coordination of Film Festivals sets up actions to help promote European films in 5 festivals outside of Europe.

At 2005 Sao Paulo International Film Festival, the 9 European films promoted by the European Coordination of Film Festivals are:
- Delivery by Nikos Panayotopoulos (Greece)
- Oh Happy Day by Hella Joof (Denmark)
- Stranger by Malgorzata Szumowska (Poland)
- Sleeper by Benjamin Heisenberg (Austria)
- The District by Aron Gauder (Hungary)
- The Iceberg by Dominique Abel, Fiona Gordon, Bruno Romy (Belgium)
- The Remains Of Nothing by Antonietta De Lillo (Italy)
- The Three Rooms Of Melancholia by Pirjo Honkasalo (Finland/Germany/Switzerland/ Denmark)
- Willenbrock by Andreas Dresen (Germany)

Find out more on The European Coordination of Film Festivals at http://www.eurofilmfest.org/