Five Days of International Film in the City of Dubrovnik

The 2005 Libertas Film Festival kicks off its inaugural season August 26th through August 30th with a palate of intelligent and provocative cutting edge films from around the world. Nestled in the breathtaking sea-side city of Dubrovnik, this cozy and intimate festival will offer 20 features and a number of short films from cultures and countries dedicated to enriching the spirit of freedom (LIBERTAS) in independent film. With strong support from one of the most beautiful and enchanting settings in the world, festival-goers are will discovering some of the most intriguing films of today while exploring the richness and majesty of this historical city built in the 7th century.

The festival will open its doors in the old art performance theatre “Marin Drzic” with the Croatian premiere of Night Watch, Russia’s highest-grossing film of all time, directed by Timur Bekmambetov and set for US release later this year. Other films scheduled to make their Croatian debut at the festival include Walter Salles’ Dark Water, Ira Sach’s Forty Shades of Blue, Wong Kar Wai’s 2046, Andrew Wagner’s The Talent Given Us (European premiere), Neil Dela Llana & Ian Gamazon’s Cavite and Antonio Campos’ Buy It Now (European premiere). Groundbreaking documentaries such as Seoul Train, Deep Blue, McLibel and Broadway: The Golden Age round out the program which will also showcase films from Croatian filmmakers.

This year’s jury will include Trevor Groth, senior Program Director for Sundance and Program Director for CineVegas Film Festivals; Peter Bowen, Senior Editor of FilmMaker Magazine; Albert Kapovic from the Croatian Producer’s Association and Vinko Bresan, Croatian director of the award-winning film Witnesses.

The Program Director of LIBERTAS, Kevin Lau has worked previously in the programming department of the Sundance Film Festival. He currently manages distribution of Tartan Films’ eclectic slate of theatrical releases.

Originally from Zagreb, Croatia, Festival Director Mia Pecina has worked for film distributors such as First Look Entertainment and Tartan Films. She previously worked as a Production Manager on the feature film Stateside and as Producer for weekly television programs in Chicago and Croatia.