PITCH_IT 5TH EDITION is a workshop programme for emerging directors, writers, and producers who are based in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, the Republic of Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Romania, the Republic of Serbia, the Slovak Republic and Turkey and aims to support their first steps in the film industry. The project is a collaboration between Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg and Goethe-Institut funded by the programme „Perspektive Donau” of the Foundation Baden-Württemberg Stiftung.
The art of pitching is the professional oral presentation of a project idea or story. A task that even brilliant filmmakers and producers often fail at. A successful pitch of a film project can decide whether a project is realized or not.
PITCH_IT offers intensive workshops in the fields of production, directing, distribution and film-marketing. All Mentors are highly experienced and decorated members of the current film industry and will guide your project throughout this program. Furthermore, the pitching training by communication trainer Sibylle Kurz is intended to help the participants to prepare their projects in line with the actual film market requirements and offer skills for networking in the international film industry.
At the end of the trainings, the participants can present their film projects to employees of international film festivals (previous Editions featured experts from Sundance, IDFA, Dok.Fest München etc.), film funding agencies, streamers like NETFLIX and distributers like BETA Film and Deckert Distribution alongside Berlinale 2026.
We look forward to applications from filmmakers in the fields of documentary, feature film and experimental film with their long (minimum 60 minutes) film-projects.
Who can participate?
This workshop is designed to give an international platform for emerging directors, writers, and producers who are based in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, the Republic of Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Romania, the Republic of Serbia, the Slovak Republic and Turkey.
Each country will be represented within the project.
The language of the training and the workshop is English.
The conditions of participation and details can be found in the call for entries.
My film "Goodbye, Little Gal, Goodbye" takes three best friends (in their 20s) on nostalgic road trip to a Czech folk festival. As they bond through memories of their past, they must confront the reality of their present - facing personal struggles and redefining their complex friendship.
Maryana Kozak is a Czech actress and writer born in Ukraine who is currently studying for her PhD at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Her professional portfolio includes experience in film and theatre productions, as well as casting and mentoring for international artist residencies.
As Yugoslavia unravels, a shy but talented designer, Maja, fights to save Labod, a once-thriving socialist clothing factory. When a mistaken identity sparks absurd chaos, the battle between nostalgia and progress takes a hilarious turn. Can Maja stitch together hope before it all unravels?
Ružica Anja Tadić (b. 1994, Belgrade) is a film director and multimedia artist. A graduate of the Academy of Dramatic Arts Novi Sad, Talents Sarajevo alumna with a passion for storytelling and filmmaking. Also a 1st AD, editor, and consultant, she’s forging an international directing career.
A top-secret lab beneath ’90s Budapest, reeking of bananas and regret, is home to Monkey in the Basement—an English-language feature mockumentary that unravels the absurd, twisted tale of a pan-European conspiracy involving eccentric scientists, grumpy apes, and a mountain of Windows 95 computers.
Csongor Dombovári is an emerging writer-director from Budapest. He has made 10 short films, screened at 7 festivals, earning 3 nominations and 2 awards. He has also participated in 6 international script workshops. Monkey in the Basement will mark his debut as a feature film director.
Two best friends - one heartbroken, the other grieving - go on a non-refundable vacation to escape their problems, only to face chaos, clashing personalities, and an unexpected visit from an ex that forces them to confront their emotions and find closure.
Hrvoje Osvadić is a film producer who started in 2000 and is co-owner and director of 15th Art Production since 2007. He has led the Croatian Producers Association (HRUP) for multiple terms and is an EAVE producer with expertise in international co-productions. A member of European Film Academy EFA.
Marko Bičanić is a filmmaker who began making short films in high school. Now, a graduating student from the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb, he is developing his debut feature film. His documentary and fiction shorts have screened at various festivals.
A sexually inexperienced, lonely man tries every ‘how-to-get-a-girl’ method to overcome his paralysing fear of women and finally connect with someone. His unexpected ally is a queer female filmmaker, capturing his story of trial, error, and self-discovery through a friendship that heals them both.
Réka Pinczés is an emerging film director working on documentaries and fiction. She earned her MA in film directing at ELTE Budapest. Steps of Domonkos is her debut feature-length documentary, which she’s been developing for over two years.
Péter Becz is a director and producer based in Budapest and Copenhagen. He completed his MA in documentary filmmaking at SZFE in Budapest and completed an MA in Film and Media at the University of Copenhagen.
The poetic journey of rising German-Bulgarian musician Lisa Morgenstern as she crafts her new album across both countries, confronting her past and identity caught between Eastern and Western Europe, while exploring themes of heritage, family, artistic expression, and the universal quest for belonging.
Thomas Oswald studied Visual Communication at HfbK Hamburg. His short film LES TEMPS QUI CHANGENT launched his career as a director and cinematographer, with works screened globally at festivals like Berlinale, Shanghai, and Aesthetica. THE MOUNTAIN HAS FALLEN will be his third feature documentary.
Denis Pavlovic and Julia Pavlovic (Glassfrog Films): Hamburg-based creative film production company specializing in feature documentaries and short films for both national and international markets. We work on in-house projects as well as co-productions with pan-European partners.
Between the morgue and the dance floor, on the outskirts of Berlin, a lonely mortician, a determined widow and a defiant 90-year-old meet. Three free spirits who rebel against social conventions, navigating their lives in the realm of death.
May Dugast began her journey in acting but soon discovered her true calling behind the camera. In 2024, she graduated from the self-organized film school FilmArche e.V. in Berlin, where she studied fictional and documentary directing and made several short films and two middle length films (in festival submission). She has also worked as a director's assistant and production manager between France and Germany.
Anna Eberhardt is a documentary filmmaker based in Berlin. She joined the self-organized film school FilmArche e.V. in 2023. Before, she studied political science with a focus on visual and discourse politics. She has worked both in fiction and documentary sets and joined Traverses as a hands-on-producer.
Water Wears Away the Stone explores the friendship between director Kateryna and Anna as they face war, memory, and identity. Kateryna, from Ukraine, lost her family home to Russian occupation, forcing her to reconcile past and present. Anna, a Russian in Prague, begins to question her heritage. As politics strain their bond, they must redefine who they are.
Kateryna Ruzhyna (1995) is a Ukrainian filmmaker based in Prague. She studied Ar History and Theory before pursuing a Master’s in Documentary Directing at FAMU. Active since 2020, her debut doc Avitaminosis (2023) won major awards. Her second short, 59th second, is now on the festival circuit.
Ein Interview mit Sibylle Kurz Professionalität, Kommunikationswille und -fähigkeit setze ich voraus
Zum Anlass der finalen Veranstaltung von PITCH_IT@Berlinale am 16. Februar 2023 gewährt Sibylle Kurz, international gefragte Pitching-Trainerin einen Einblick in den Verlauf ihrer Karriere, in die Kunst des Pitchens, sowie hinter die Kulissen von PITCH_IT@Berlinale 2023.
