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    • New Talents Open Call
      Eastern Neighbours Film Festival (ENFF) began in The Netherlands in 2008 with the idea to offer Dutch and international audiences a unique glimpse into the cinema of their neighbors from Eastern and Southern Europe. This annual event presents the most recent, exciting, and thought‐provoking films, from countries with small, but often powerful film industries, that… Read more: New Talents Open Call
    • ENFF 2023 On Demand!
      Unable To attend the festival in person? No problem! From November 27th to December 3rd, we’re thrilled to bring you a curated selection of this year’s films available for online viewing! Catch our captivating Opening Film Ivan’s Land, or the touching Closing Film Seventh Heaven. Or explore a collection of shorts from the New Talents Competition! Follow along… Read more: ENFF 2023 On Demand!
    • What’s up in Slovak Cinema? A conversation with Monika Lostakova
      We talked with Monika Lošťáková about contemporary Slovak cinema.
    • ENFF and the Eastern European Film Festival Network!
      The Eastern European Film Festival Network brings together five film festivals dedicated to promoting and showcasing Eastern European cinema, alongside one partner organisation.
    • Masterclasses
      Through these masterclasses we approach two memory in film from different angles: memories from a personal or collective recollection through archive material.
    • Work in Progress
      In Work in Progress, emerging filmmakers and artists will present their works in development to the audience and engage in discussions with Dutch experts.
    • Festival Timetable Available!
    • Check out the catalogue for our 2023 edition!
    • Music at ENFF
      Every year, ENFF brings special musical guests who bring beauty to the program and further represent the rich cultures of their countries to a Dutch audience.
    • Film Marathon
      Join us for the Film Marathon, a new concept in which we merge two components, Short Films, Big Stories, and New Talents Competition into a whole-day screening of short films!

Willow

Milcho Manchevski is a director from the Balkans who always manages to surprise the world of cinema with each of his new works. He is best known for his debut “Before the Rain” which won a Golden Lion in Venice, an Independent Spirit Award and an Oscar nomination in 1995. In his latest film he depicts motherhood across time with a full range of experimentation, poetry and emotion.

Three women cope with issues of the control over their bodies, tradition and adoption. As the director points out: “Our characters are faced with moral and personal dilemmas that end up redefining their roles in their communities. They have not set out to change the world or society, but their search for love, trust and motherhood makes them unlikely heroines. On the surface, the beliefs and lifestyles of our characters in the Middle Ages and in contemporary Macedonia could not be more different”. Three stories set in North Macedonia – one medieval, two contemporary – in a small city of Prilep, explore themes of love, trust and motherhood. A tale of three tales – all built on the very essence of love.  

VRBA

North Macedonia, Hungary, Belgium, Albania | 2019 | 101 min

DIRECTOR: Milcho Manchevski

PRODUCTION: Banana Film, Scala Productions; Pioneer Pictures, Saga Film, Tirana Film Institute

CAST: Sara Klimoska, Natalija Teodosieva, Kamka Tocinovski, Nikola Risteski

SCREENPLAY: Milcho Manchevski

CINEMATOGRAPHY: Tamas Dobos

EDITING: Nicolas Gaster

Saturday 23.4. / 19:00h / Zaal 2

DUTCH PREMIERE

FESTIVALS & AWARDS (SELECTION) 

Fantasporto, Portugal 2020 – Grand Prize | Cinequest Film Festival, USA 2020 – Best Film | Raindance Film Festival, UK 2020 – Best Director | Mostra de Valencia – Cinema del Mediterrani, 2020 – Best Director | Rome Film Fest, 2020 – World Premiere | Stony Brook Film Festival, New York 2021 – Best Film