Shooting Stars Land in Thessaloniki
"Ken Park" and "Ten" make strange bedfellows, but they are the films everyone is talking about, as the festival enters its last weekend. Strangely optimistic Balkan directors are preparing their next scripts. Star power has been boosted by today's Shooting Star presentations of up-and-coming European actors.

The Clark-Lachmann Duo
Dark glasses hid Larry Clark's eyes yesterday, as he talked about when he and co-director Ed Lachmann thought up the idea for "Ken Park" in 1989. "I am glad it wasn't my first film," said Clark, noting that when he finally raised the money for the uncompromising project, he was ready. Clark and Lachmann wanted to make a film that didn't play by the usual rules. There was improvisation, but actress Tiffany Limos explains, "We all knew what we were getting into before we did the movie." The mix of unknown nonactors and older pros worked. Unsurprisingly, Clark's teen years have been a bottomless source of inspiration. "I don't think I'm obsessed with children," Clark clarified, "I'm obsessed with working." He pointed out he's "not out to make people angry." He simply represents reality- whether this is realistic violence or sex. Not a single frame was tampered with in production, so the creators won't permit any censorship now. With a photography book in the works (working title: "An American Hero"), Clark dreams of taking three months off to snap shots. Clark feels close to the subjects in his film, who try to survive families: "We're not rich people coming down from the hill to speak of the working class". Co-director Lachmann cautioned filmmakers on not being deceived by new technology into thinking it's "easier" to tell stories. With regards to the relevance of the film to other countries, actress Limos said she felt it might just show people who romanticise American life that there are problems there too. "Ken Park" is on at 11pm.

Rafelson's Independent Spirit
Yesterday, Bob Rafelson shared stories about how he met David Mamet and Jack Nicholson. He called up Mamet after reading a review of an early play in an airport. The latter shared Rafelson's habit of leaping out of his seat and cheering during good film moments at their LA film society. Nicholson is the bravest actor in the US, according to Rafelson. When he met him, Nicholson had decided to call it quits, feeling his career was going nowhere. Then, when they started collaborating on a script for "Five Easy Pieces", Nicholson acted out all the characters so well, that he was an obvious choice for the lead. "He always picks directors who will challenge him, like Alexander Payne" says Rafelson of the actor. The director's love affair with European cinema began at age 13 because it was easier to sneak into the local foreign film movie theater than other ones. Rafelson also pointed out that he's not as big a fan of the noire genre as others say. He shot "The Postman Always Rings Twice" as a love story, for instance, employing soft colours instead of sharp shadows. Though he's glad to benefit from it, Rafelson feels the quality of 1970s US films has been exaggerated of late. He slammed the entertainment world's current electronic intelligentsia, who think that it's the quantity of information circulated that matters most. In this climate, first films are simply a means to second films. His next project? Spending as much time with his three-year old son as possible. Catch two Rafelson shorts - from 2002 and 1976 - today at 5pm.

First, We'll Take the Balkans
Mirroring moves by other festivals, the Thessaloniki Festival is financing four to five Balkan fiction scripts this year. With 150,000 euros at their disposal, organisers are welcoming suggestions for a pilot Balkan Fund. The plan is to receive 200 treatments or scripts, accompanied by well-developed business/production plans, by April 30. After that, 12 projects will be selected to participate in a workshop held at next year's festival. Four to five of these scripts will be picked to receive 10,000 euros each. Someday soon the films will premier in Thessaloniki (unless they are invited into A-list festivals first). This Michel Demopoulos brainchild may, in the future, expand geographically. Meanwhile jury member Misha Vuckovic reminded the press about another project. With 75% funding from the Greek Film Center, a 300,000 euro Balkan Development Project has been established, supporting the production of 20 projects within the two-year-old South East European Cinema Network.

Niki Karimi	Tiffany Limos	LTaraneh Alidousti

Sunny Skies for Regional Film
Optimism isn't exactly a Balkan characteristic. However this year three filmmakers all are using humor as their main weapon and reporting bumper crops. Balkan filmmakers Nae Caranfil (Romania), Nenad Duric (Bosnia-Herzegovina) and Milora Milinkovic (Yugoslavia) spoke to the press yesterday. Duric explained that his film speaks about Bosnian reality. Milinkovic's black comedy aims to capture today's Yugoslavia, though it also includes universal themes like love and poverty, good and evil. Production is up in all three countries. In Bosnia two new films were made this year. On Wednesday, Caranfil talked to the audience at the screening of "Philanthropy", which has been in theatres since March and may become the most successful Romanian film in 15 years. The film is about organised begging rings. Caranfil likened filmmakers to beggars, each with their own turf: "The bigger sharks are on the big streets, and the smaller sharks are on the smaller streets."

Thai and French Films in Competition
Today's competition films are Apichatpong Weerasethakul's "Blissfully Yours" (a pair of lovers are separated at the Thai-Burmese border, 2pm) and Jean-Pierre Sinapi's "Life Kills Me" ( the day-to-day life of a young Moroccan in Paris, 7.30pm).

Extreme Greek Visions
Nikos Nikolaidis has been making bizarre, compelling films for years. What they are "about" doesn't matter. It's the strange atmospheres and goosebumps the provoke that's important. Word is that his new work "Loser Takes All" (10.30pm) is the best thing he's made in years. Another Greek film premiers earlier, "Let's Go For An Ouzo" (5pm).

Perfect Tens
Abbas Kiarostami and co-screenwriter Mani Akbari are talking to the press at 11am. An hour later, Europe's new acting talent will be on stage, with a press conference by the European Union's Shooting Stars actors. "Ten" plays at 7.30pm tonight. Meet Swiss Shooting Star Michael Finger in "Utopia Blues" (5pm), Danish Maria Wurgler Rich in "Minor Mishaps" (8pm) and Spain's Enrique Alcides in "Stones" (11pm).

One-Way Ticket to Berlin
The first 300 minutes of Rainer Werner Fassbinder's "Berlin Alexanderplatz" is being shown at 1.30am. This is the German director's made-for-television 13-part masterpiece, brought to the big screen. The festival will follow up with Parts II and III over the next two nights (at the same time), and finally, a whole day repeating the series on November 18.

Sokurov's One-Take Film
A single, 96-minute shot marks Alexander Sokurov's "Russian Ark" (2.30pm). An important high definition achievement, the camera floats from room to room of the State Hermitage Museum, as the pages of Russian history keep turning.

Galani and e-m@gic News
Don't forget to catch popular singer Dimitra Galani on the first of two performances at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall. Finally, the e-m@gic presentation tomorrow of two web short film-related sites will be from noon to 3pm

A Small Peeve
Where do all these flies -swat!- in Warehouse C come from?

Quote/unquote
"They are independent on their first film, and then work for Hollywood on their second film," -Director Bob Rafelson on many US newcomers

First shot, #120, 15/11/2002

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