The International non-profit Barents Ecology Film Festival (BEFF – 2013), dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Barents region and the 20th anniversary of the cooperation between the Republic of Karelia and the Kingdom of Norway, will be held in Petrozavodsk (the Republic of Karelia) in April, 24th–28th, 2013.
The international competitive professional program of full-length fiction and documental films, short films and animations will last 5 days. The films for the contest came from 4 continents and 23 countries of the world, such as Russia, Germany, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Latvia, USA, Canada and also Australia, Turkey, India and Cameroon. Lots of films are co-produced and have already won at the prestigious contests. The festival program presents different genres, styles and moods. The required terms and conditions of the contest were: films had to be made only in 2012 and 2013, not posted in the internet and also films had to be in their native language with English and Russian subtitles. This year the contest program includes new awards: "Nature and minority nations”, "Films about Karelia”, "Karelian vision” and "Debut”.
The festival concept and symbol of this year is Sampo, the magic windmill from Karelian and Finnish epic poem "Kalevala”, Sampo is the source of happiness and welfare, abundance and fertility. The style and colour of the ecology film festival 2013 emblem is inspired by the unusual, philosophical and bright paintings of Karelian artist Vladimir Fomin.
The festival will be the ground for All-Russia and the world premieres. Russian and foreign directors and producers will come to present their films. Among the special events hosted by the Festival there will be Norwegian "Films from the North” from Tromsø International Film Festival (TIFF), Finnish ecological films from Midnight Sun Film Festival and French films from Festival international Signes de Nuit.
The international professional jury will define the winners. The best film will be awarded with the Grand Prix of the festival, 9 winners will be chosen in other nominations, including the popular vote award. For the first time ever there will be a special nomination – "The most active audience”.
The Festival will offer lots of unusual and creative events: discussions and meetings, roundtable discussions with ecologists, people and authorities. The cultural programme will be held in the two cinemas of Petrozavodsk: photo exhibitions, retrospective showings, intensive workshops on film-making and master-classes on EcoFashion, shows of designers from Finland and EcoArt for anyone who feels like it.
The hosts of the festival prepared a special film program for kids, children’s painting competition on the pavement, an interactive exhibition of the BEFF logotypes made from natural materials.
There will be free shows for certain social groups, i.e. for senior citizens and orphanage children "Let’s go to the cinema!” and "Make Good!”.
The founders of the film festival are the International Youth Club "Solveig” with Karelian Republic social movement of friendship "Karelia-Norway” and LLC Agency "Anfas”.
The Festival general partners are – The Ministry of Nature Management and Ecology of the Republic of Karelia, Petrozavodsk City Administration, General Consulate of Norway in Saint-Petersburg, the Vodlozersky National Park and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
The official partners of the film festival are – LLC Cinema theatre "Kalevala”, AC RK the Cultural Center "Premier”, the hotel "Onego Palace”, the county of Tromsø (Norway), the Norwegian Film Foundation, the Finnish Film Foundation, the Latvian Film Foundation, The Goethe-Institute, the "Rostelecom” company, the Centre for Youth and Employment, the trade union committee of PetrSU, "EKOenergy”, the Karelia Regional Nature Conservancy "SPOK” , the Media Center "Vykhod”.
Film festivals-partners – the Tromsø International Film Festival (Norway), the Midnight Sun Film Festival (Finland), the Czech International Film Festival, the Festival of ecological film "EcoCap” (Moscow), the Film Festival "Message to Man” (Saint-Petersburg).
Information partners – TV-channel "Strana”, the federal eco project "Green Russia”, the Encyclopedia of ecological projects "Ecowiki”, RIA Novosti-Ecology, "Petrozavodsk today”, "Youth portal”, "KarelInform”, Online magazine "Litcey”, Television company "Sampo”, "Europa plus”.