Universal Cinema Film & TV Journal’s Amir Ganjavie recently interviewed Tiina Lokk, the founder and Festival Director of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. What follows is that interview.
Amir Ganjavie, UniversalCinema Magazine (UM): Can you start by speaking about what makes your festival unique from other festivals?
Tiina Lokk (TL): Firstly, I think each festival is connected to the local audience. The local audience dictates the action of the films. Local touch is making each of the festivals unique. So when selecting films, we have to think, do we have the audience. We are the festival, working with audience and with the industry- both sides are equally interesting and important for us. And because the box office plays quite an important role in our budget. That is on a practical level.
Now, if we are speaking about what kind of festival we would like to make? It would still connect to our audience because we have five competitions currently. One competition is a regional competition (Baltic Film Competition). And then we also have our Rebels with a Cause, Critics’ Picks, First Feature Competition, and the Official Selection. And again, somehow, it’s connected to our geographical position and to our audience, playing role in the selection of the films.
We aren’t getting big, block busters US premieres like Toronto or Venice or Cannes, Berlin are getting because our market is small. The size of the potential market is important as the festival is part of the film business. But from the rest of the world we are getting very interesting and important proposal for world and international premiers- no big differences between us and Locarno or Karlovy Vary, San Sebastian.
Our competitions address different interests. Rebels with a Cause is for the audience who are interested in experimental films with very strong author voice. Critic’s Picks have more interesting tendencies and topics by the filmmakers, which appeal to the critics, but are maybe more usual fans of our festival audience. In the First and Official Competitions, we try to find a good way to balance between distribution-friendly films and “authors”.
And then we have the side programs, which mainly are working this audience, showing the most interesting and discussed films over the year. We also do have 2 sub festivals Just Film – Youth and Children’s Film Festival. Just Film works with all the schools and young people and PÖFF Shorts. which is among 15 film festivals that have the rights to present films to Oscar, BAFTA, and European Film Academy. Both of the sub festivals do have also the industry part as well does the Big festival.
And when we are selecting the films, we are also very much thinking about the target groups, and the international programming team is representative of different ages, gender, interests and etc. So when we are speaking about working with the audience, we are trying to educate them a little and keep them informed on the spectrum of films and work in the industry from around the world. There are usually films from around 70 countries coming to our festival, sometimes a little bit more.
(UM): I know it’s a very tough or silly question, but do you have a definition for a good film?
TL: No, I don’t. And it is a silly question because I think those choices are very subjective. There is some kind of objective basis built up by experiences. Knowledge is the skill of the programming team. But we are making the program, so we are ready to have a discussion about the films and a vote. But we should have to find a balance of understanding from each of our program team members.
(UM): We spoke a few years ago and you said you didn’t use quotas. Has that changed?
(TL): No. I’m still from a generation that values evaluating artistic skills, professional skills, and the artistic quality of the film, and not by gender.
There must be a good feeling for a film. Sometimes I have very good feelings for films made by female directors, and then, of course, I pick them. We aren’t rejecting films because of the gender of the film maker. But usually, we make decisions about the films without knowing who the director is. We only know which county the films come from until we’ve made a decision.
(UM): And what about movies from controversial filmmakers, if they submit them, and they are good, would you accept them? Say a film from Woody Allen or Roman Polanski?
(TL): It depends. So far, I haven’t had to think about this. Case by case, each case is different and finally everything is depending about the artistic quality of the film and what is the message, what film maker wants to say us. There was once the case when one Indian Director submitted a film to my festival in competition, and when we picked it up, I got the news from India that actually he involved in a ME To scandal. And I had to decide whether to keep it in the program or not. I said they needed to send me information on the case. And I consulted with my lawyers. It seems the victim was actually the director because he was being harassed. I am taking such kinds of things case by case.
I’m not a person who is running different kinds of campaigns automatically . And of course, I’m not making this decision only by myself. I do have a meeting with my colleagues from the programming team. And then we decide on the basis of documents, facts, etc.
(UM): And what’s your position on films that come from countries with geopolitical issues? For example, films coming from Russia or Iran?
(TL): It is a complicated question. We support independent cinema. In Iran, I have a very good contacts. And we do have enough films with very interesting themes. And, again, I am trying to support independent filmmakers as much as I can. It’s the first point.
With Russia, it’s more complicated because Russia is at war. And Russia is the aggressor. So we haven’t picked up any Russian movies so far. But if there are Russian films made without Russian governmental money or even some films with governmental money involved if Russia didn’t allow civilian distribution in Russia because the content is against Putin’s regime I’m o or war in Ukraine. Then, I don’t know. It is very early because only starting to watch Russian films right now. And I’ll see what is going to finally happen because it depends on the films we end up having on the table. But I still think we have to support the Russian opposition, to give them voice.
We should have to support the Iranian, Azerbaijan, and all free voices from all of the autocratic countries allover the world. But film must be good and well done. ! Sometimes we cannot, but at least we’ll try.
(UM): Some programmers tell me they consider films more seriously that come from distributors. What is your relationship with distributors?
(TL): I do have a very good relationship with film distributors, but I don’t give preference to the film distributors’ proposed films because we get a lot of films sent directly by the producers and directors.
Selection depends again on what is the film, what kind of quality, what kind of premiere is proposed, and a million other factors. A distributor submitting it doesn’t mean it’s automatically picked up for the competition or for the side programs.
There are a lot of films that are picked up by distributors from our competition because our task is also to discover new filmmakers.
(UM): How else are you helping to support filmmakers at your festival?
(TL): We ask permission from the filmmaker, but once the competitions are completed, where we do have several premieres, we send the films that don’t have a distributor to distributors who are at our festival. We create contact between distributors and filmmakers. We play matchmaker.
(UM): And do you invite filmmakers to your festival for Q&As and provide accommodation? Some festivals told me they have less budget and cannot invite everybody and only pick a few of them.
(TL): We have to do the same. Right now, the prices and inflation, and the stupid economic policy of our government are making it harder to budget. So, we are inviting less. At least all the World and International Premieres are always represented by filmmakers.
(UM): You were at Cannes, are you attending any other festivals? And what is your reason for attending other festivals?
(TL): I am not traveling too much anymore because I don’t have time as I’m watching a lot of films, especially in the Summer/Fall period, and most of the big festivals take place in the Fall. But I try to go to Cannes, because of the time when I was a journalist and started going to Cannes to see films. But now, when I go, I have full days of meetings with different kinds of distributors, producers in field institutions, etc. I’m networking.
(UM): And when you are at the big festivals, I imagine you sometimes invite films to your festival.
(TL): Yes. But only for the side program because for the Competition, we are selecting World and International Premieres.
(UM): Can you speak about your market portion?
(TL): We do have a big Industry part: Industry @Tallinn with different kind of sections, including training and educational part Discovery Campus, different kind of Forums, like Genre Forum, conferences and also different kind of markets: film market, a project market, a co-production market, and a TV series, a co-financing market. And we also have the talent market. This year we are launching the online marketing system Creative Gate.
(UM): In terms of tactical screenings and financial support, do you offer any of these to your winners?
(TL): We have a financial award prize, but not a distribution one. But, very often, the winning film is bought by the distributor for our territory. We can’t guarantee the distributor will pick up the film. We are very independent and tolerant, so I cannot demand the distributor pick up a film. But most of our films taking part of our competitions are getting after the festival or during the festival distributors and and festival invitations from all over the world, which again helps him to be distributed . They are getting mainly good coverage in international press.
(UM): How did Covid impact your festival?
(TL): We took place at the same time as always. We had premieres with guests. That never changed.
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