In 2024, the Slovenian Film Centre launched its first Call for Proposals for the co-financing of script development for genre-specific live-action Slovenian feature film projects with higher box-office potential for 2025. This initiative aligns with the Slovenian Film Centre’s vision to strengthen the funding system, aiming to increase the diversity and genre diversification of the national film programme, as outlined in its Strategy for the period from 2025 to 2029. According to the Strategy, the Slovenian Film Centre intends to offer greater financial support to projects and scripts in development, as well as back the production of a broader variety of genres. The subject of this Call for Proposals is the co-financing of script development for genre-specific live-action Slovenian feature film projects with a greater potential for box-office success. The Call for Proposals aims to promote creativity in Slovenian genre-specific live-action screenwriting.
With a total amount of 139,040 EUR, the Slovenian Film Centre supported the development of nine scripts for genre films, including four scripts written by female authors:
- The comedy Po nedelji (After Sunday) by Sonja Prosenc, an intelligent and witty tale about women’s experiences (produced by Zavod Mono O).
- The comedy Ob Cesti (By the Roadside) by Tosja Flaker Berce, focusing on the millennial generation’s existential dilemmas with sensitive self-irony (produced by Gliser d.o.o.).
- The youth film Dežela obljub (Land of Promise) by Jakob Krese, a humorous exploration of the issues faced by Slovenian emigrants in Germany through a child’s perspective. This is a significant and topical subject for discussion with schoolchildren (produced by the Potem, Zavod za kulturne dejavnosti institute).
- The youth film Gremo mi po svoje 3 (Going Our Way 3) by Miha Hočevar, the third instalment of the cinema hit Going Our Way (produced by Vertigo, Zavod za kulturne dejavnosti).
- The children’s film V visoki travi (In Tall Grass) by Špela Murenc Škulj, which immerses us in the enchanting atmosphere of growing up in the countryside (produced by the Temporama Film Society).
- The musical Čar julijskih Alp (The Wonders of the Julian Alps) by Blaž Završnik, which may become the first Slovenian musical to feature popular folk music, has the potential to attract crowds to the cinema (produced by Bandera).
- The musical Nizki profili (Low Profiles) by Rene Maurin, which does not strictly follow the conventions of musicals but features a fresh approach and promising humour (produced by Studio Maurin, podjetje za oblikovanje, produkcijo in svetovanje d.o.o.).
- The western Električni pastir (Electric Fence) by Ela Božič boasts strong visual appeal and an atmosphere reminiscent of Brokeback Mountain or The Power of the Dog (produced by Filmservis).
- The historical film Veronika in Friderik (Veronika and Frederick) by Urška Djukić, which boldly tackles one of the most famous historical love stories in Slovenia – that of Veronika of Desenice, which has never been adapted into a film before (produced by the Kulturno umetniški zavod OINK institute).
Source: Slovenian Film Centre
