This week, the United Kingdom is spotlighting new collaborations and promoting its world-renowned creative industries at the 30th Sarajevo Film Festival in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The UK is proud to be part of this iconic event, which continues to serve as a global hub for the film and creative communities.
As the festival celebrates its 30th anniversary, the UK is taking the opportunity to forge mutually beneficial partnerships with international creative talent, showcasing expertise from some of Britain’s leading industry professionals.
The British Embassy Sarajevo, in collaboration with the British Council and the British Film Institute (BFI), is once again joining forces with the Sarajevo Film Festival to support and uplift creative talent in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“We are proud of the UK’s longstanding association with the Sarajevo Film Festival,” said British Ambassador Julian Reilly. “We are determined to nurture spaces where creative individuals and artists from various walks of life can come together, discuss art and culture, generate new ideas, and build new collaborations,” added Reilly.
This year, the British Film Institute, the UK’s lead organization for film and the moving image, is bringing a delegation of nine UK screen professionals to the festival. They aim to engage with counterparts in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Southeast Europe, exploring innovative collaboration opportunities in the region.
Denitsa Yordanova, Head of the UK Global Screen Fund and International Funds at the BFI, will participate in a panel discussion focused on collaborative opportunities, funding strategies, and the exchange of creative resources between the UK and the region.
To further cement these relationships, Ambassador Reilly will host a reception for British and regional film professionals, promoting the UK’s dynamic creative industry. This year’s festival will also feature nine British productions and co-productions on its screens.
Ambassador Reilly emphasized the importance of the creative industries to the UK’s economy, said, “Creative industries have a very important role in the UK. Our creative industries are worth £125 billion in economic value to the country as a whole, employing 2.4 million people. Film and the TV sector is worth nearly £19 billion to the UK annually and provides more than 200,000 jobs. The cultural and creative industries can be a fantastic driver of economic growth, at the same time fostering cultural identity and diversity.”
He added, “I am glad that the UK has for a while now been building closer relations and collaboration between the creative sectors of our countries. Our world-leading creative industry brings energy, ambition and economic opportunity, inspires new ways of thinking and doing, and invites you to see things differently. We want Bosnia and Herzegovinian and Southeast European creatives to visit and collaborate with us.”
The UK has a deep history of collaboration with the Sarajevo Film Festival, dating back to the festival’s early days. Over the years, prominent UK artists, directors, and producers like Mike Leigh, Jeremy Irons, and Stephen Frears have shared their expertise at the festival. Many British films have graced the festival’s screens, and several major figures in British cinema, including John Cleese and Tim Roth, have received the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo.
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