July 1, 2025
DokuFest is proud to announce the selected projects for the inaugural edition of the Short Film Forum, a regional coproduction and pitching platform supporting short films from the Balkans. This initiative will begin with an online session on July 25, followed by an in-person program in Prizren from August 4–6, 2025 during the 24th edition of DokuFest.
Eight projects from Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Albania have been selected to take part in the first edition, bringing together a dynamic range of storytelling across genres: animation, documentary, fiction, hybrid, and experimental.
“We first thought about the Forum back in 2015, but without sustainable funding, it was hard to get it off the ground,” says Eroll Bilibani, Head of DokuLab. “One of the main obstacles was Kosovo’s exclusion from Creative Europe’s MEDIA strand. That made it nearly impossible to launch a sustainable platform that supports new voices and cross-border collaboration in our region. Thanks to the long-term support from the Swedish Embassy and the Ministry of Culture, we will be kicking off this very important regional initiative in support of emerging voices in Balkan cinema. We’ve always admired how the Nordic countries work together to support short film, and that model has inspired us, and we hope to bring that spirit to the Balkans. I’m also grateful for the guidance of Jing Haase, who has been with us from the start, and to Martijn te Pas, who will mentor the selected film teams.”
The Forum will be moderated by Jing Haase, a curator and short film expert with over two decades in the field. She previously worked at Nordisk Panorama and the Swedish Film Institute, focusing on international short film distribution.
The participating teams will be mentored by Martijn te Pas, former senior programmer at IDFA and expert in documentary development and strategy. Martijn brings deep experience in festival advising, pitch training, and tailored support for filmmakers.
SELECTED PROJECTS
Kosovo
Crow Funeral
Director: Durim Klaiqi
Producer: Durim Klaiqi
Genre: Hybrid
Synopsis: Crow Funeral is a hybrid experimental documentary that explores the act of observation as both process and philosophy. Built from over 100+ hours of unreleased VHS and MiniDV tapes filmed by Ahmet Grajqevci in post-war Kosovo, the film unfolds through five interlinked "dimensions": language, image, space, time, and feeling.
I Still Haven’t Cried
Director: Flaka Kokolli
Genre: Animation
Synopsis:In “I still haven't cried”, two stories happen simultaneously.
One is in the conversation of two girls as they try to find out why Nata, whose father just died, hasn’t been able to cry yet. And the other one is the framing and sound.
Soundtrack of a People: Boom
Director: Fjolla Muharremi
Producer: Laberion Nitaj & Ismail Myrseli
Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: An exploration of the new wave rock music scene in post-Tito Kosovo (1981–1987), capturing the essence of the people who created a soundtrack for a forgotten generation.
Who Is Singing?
Director: Ana Morina
Producer: Anita Morina
Genre: Animation
Synopsis: As young political prisoners, these women found ways to communicate with each other through secret messages, rhythmic knocks, and whispered words despite brutal conditions in a Yugoslav woman prison. Today, forty years later, Sadije and Ganimete reunite again in a park in Prishtina, Kosovo, in the same spirit of solidarity. They recall the day their Afërdita was violently taken away for singing about freedom.
North Macedonia
Soil
Director: Kiril Karakash, Svetislav Podleshanov
Producer: Kiril Karakash, Svetislav Podleshanov
Genre: Documentary
Synopsis: “Soil” is a metaphorical visual portrait of 400 children growing up and attending school next to a 15,000 tons of toxic arsenic waste. In the seemingly peaceful village of Lojane, an abandoned arsenic mine lies just a hundred meters from the local primary school. During one school day, the children discover the ecological catastrophe that is silently and insidiously killing the earth, water, air, but also the innocent lives of children.
sveti antun pustinjak
Director: Antonio Dimovski
Genre: Experimental
Synopsis: What happens when an image takes control of the world it reflects?
‘sveti antun pustinjak’ is a short film that explores the tension between memory, identity, spirituality, and mental health in a post-socialist context. In a small bedroom, someone watches as images and memories of Tetovo are projected onto the wall in front of them, telling the story of their life.
Albania
Until the Sun Sets
Director: Gledis Bica
Producer: Ajsela Vojka
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Twenty year old Albana lives in a remote village in Albania. She made a mistake. She fell in love in secret, telling no one in her family. But her brother, Besim, learned about it through the village whispers. One winter afternoon, Besim, angry and obsessed with family honor, shoots her in front of the village bar. She falls into the snow, still alive, bleeding. People see it happen. Some turn away. Some do nothing. The bar door keeps opening and closing. No one helps. Her mother tries to go to her, but Besim steps in and stops her. She’s not allowed to reach Albana, not yet. Not before the sun goes down.
Discobox
Director: Romina Ruda
Producer: Blerina Hankollari
Genre: Fiction
Synopsis: Discobox is a raw coming-of-age drama set over the course of a single, chaotic night in the heart of post-communist Tirana. In the shadows of Albania’s turbulent transition to capitalism, three friends, Ana, Kristi, and Astriti, enter the neon-lit underground club Discobox, seeking escape, connection, and perhaps some kind of truth.
Guest Country: Scotland
In partnership with the Scottish Documentary Institute, Scotland will be the guest country for the first edition of the Short Film Forum. Three film in post production, that were filmed during 'Breaking Borders' residency program supported by the British Council’s Collaborative Grants.
The Short Film Forum is organized by DokuFest, in partnership with the film centers of Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Albania, and in collaboration with:
Italian Short Film Center, ShorTo Film Market, Documentary Association of Europe, Thessaloniki Film Festival’s AGORA MARKET, Square Eyes, Finnish Broadcaster YLE, and The New York Times: Op-Docs.
The Short Film Forum is supported through the Creative Force Program, financed by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) and the Swedish Embassy in Prishtina, with annual support from the Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sports of the Republic of Kosovo.
