Happy New Year from Greenhouse!

From all the Green House family,

we would like to wish you a great year, or more appropriately decade. May next year be as productive fruitful and creative as the last few years continuing the creation process towards great documentaries.
Happy new year!


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Personal experience in Greenhouse: Orhan Eskikoy

I have a lot of good thoughts about Greenhouse. Greenhouse is a very important starting point for developing countries' filmmakers, who are not yet part of the industry market. I could see how our project developed from seminar to seminar. Meaning, when I read the first form and the last form of the project, I could see what a development process really is…

Orhan Eskikoy

Turkey

"On the Way to School"

Greenhouse 1 Participant

Personal experience in Greenhouse

Personal experience by Awatif El jadeli from Gaza

At the beginning let me introduce myself to you, I am Awatif El jadeli from Gaza, 28 years old, I had worked in the media after finishing my senior year, worked in so many places, I will not be talking a lot about myself as much am going to talk about my film waiting for heaven. Because this is an experiment that deserves to talk about. The idea came in to my mind in 2007.Through Euro Mid I had to know the green house. What I know and I knew after I had sent my idea to the green house that all the workers are Israeli’s. Even though my family members they don’t interfere with my job issues but in this subject exactly everybody had gave their opinions between who is against and who doesn’t care. But they know that the last decision belongs to me. And I didn’t think too much in this issue because I have faith that peace between countries starts with good relations between individuals. So I was sure that if the green house didn’t interfere with the idea of the film or they tried to change things in it, everything will go perfect. But everything had changed and the way of thinking towards them had also changed, even though I am Palestinian and they are Israeli and until this moment we haven’t seen each other, but I feel that there is a big friendship between us that makes forget all the political problems. A lot have said to me that the green house if he wants to get you out of Gaza, he can but he doesn’t want. But my mind refused to agree with this thing because I am so confident that I have good friends in isreali away from all the people who tries to separate this friendship. At the end I really respect people in the green house who supported me in the war even their country was the reason for it and in the other hand many Arab friends didn’t even call me. I am really thankful for all my friends at the green house best friend Sigal, Sara, and Yaer.There is a special person I knew through the green house Steven; he was a really great person with me and Serje he was supposed to be co-producer he is also a great man.

About my experience with (waiting for Heaven) it is a really nice tough experience, Sometimes it makes me feel that I am so strong and sometimes I feel that I am a victim.Irmade me strong because it was my first film that had been founded from a big community like IDFA if though i wasnt there in the Seminar, i was very glad that my film had been founded from IDFA. Also my film had won a price for the best second idea in turkey. I am not going to hide that i told some colleges in gaza about mu idea before i ad worked with the green houese and thier reply was that it was a stupid idea and i need to forget it. i believe in my thoughts and ideas which made to continue my dream to come true.My dream was that this film would be done in a very professional way, but as a girl living in Gaza, working alone it always made me feel tired while looking for good stuff, the film Waiting for Heaven is talking about a conflict between three generations on the concepts of home land and I hope that you will be able to see it in a soon time. So the hardness that I was facing during shooting the film a lot, one of these reasons that we are in a place full of dangers and the strong relation with the family it made me to feel scared about them more than myself. I don’t want anybody to hurt them and this was a big responsibility.

"As a participant of Greenhouse I did not think that such useful it would be both for our projects and for our understanding about different aspects. I would say I am very happy about seeing filmmakers together whether they are Israeli- Palestenian-Turkish or from any other middle eastern countries.. Seeing them working together, discussing about the issues of cinema and life, made my mind clear; we need more spaces to understand each other, more collaboration, more trust, more facts and more attention even if we are wrong or right.

Of course our nationalities reflect our characters-behaviors and reflexes and as filmmakers whatever we do, we do it in a feeling of partiality, we are taking sides in our movies like we are taking sides in our lives. Bu I believe we can do it without fanaticism.
Cause cinema is an art where only humanity matters. "

Emine Emel Balcı

"Ich liebe Dich- I love You" / Turkey

Greenhouse 4 Participant

Interview with creator:

Emine Emel Balcı & Gokce Isil – Director & Producer of the project ICH LIEBE DICH/ I love You from Turkey

When did you participate in Greenhouse?

I am participating the current GreenHouse4 as the director-co-producer of the Project: Ich Liebe Dich-I love you

How did the seminars help you in developing your film? (Mentors, Greenhouse team, Master classes, support you received in between the seminars)

The seminars gave us the dicipline to focus and spent more time for our projects. I actually hate deadlines but here we have a moderate timetable and in every session you begin to realize you are going deeper and deeper for the main idea and the philosophy of your film.

Mentors have different ideas for each project cause they have different professions but they are all experienced filmmakers and they let you to find your own ways to make your own film. So sharing ideas with mentors and with other participants was always useful during the seminars. While I was telling my ideas I always wanted people to look at the projects both as a filmmaker and as an audience. So if you are open for different ideas, aspects and discussing about your project, GreenHouse offers you many doors to find your way. Of course it is documentary filmmaking, you always develop your project in every step, but if you decide your main philosophy things get less complicated. Our mentor was Steven Seidenberg -who is a great guy and focuses on the projects very carefully, with a great interest even after the seminars- forced us to ask many questions to ourselves and it made our minds clear. While writing the final proposal I realized where I was at the beginning and where I am in now, that was a nice experience.

How has Greenhouse supported you after the end of seminars?

We are going to see the feedbacks at the last seminar in december; but I guess they wont lose the contact with every participant and they will continue guiding us.

Did Greenhouse serve as a meeting place between you and other filmmakers and professionals?

If we would not participating GreenHouse, it certainly can be difficult to reach those professionals among thousands of project and filmmaker.

Would you recommend Greenhouse?

I already recommended GreenHouse to filmmakers that I know who plans to make a documentary project.

What was unique for you in the program?

We had already the experienced filmmaking in our country but here we had the chance to understand the way of documentary industry in the world and in our next film with my producer; from proposal to post production stage sure we will take our steps more conscious.

What do you think of Greenhouse' new project on the theme of Racism and Human Rights?

For documentary filmmaking this theme is a must and also points the filmmaker’s responsibility. So it is sad but I guess directors have lots of options and have the chance to look this theme from different aspects; I hope lots of humanistic films are going to be realized. As I said, I already recommended GreenHouse to filmmakers who are working on a racism theme.

Personal experience By the creator Emine Emel Bal

"As a participant of Greenhouse I did not think that such useful it would be both for our projects and for our understanding about different aspects. I would say I am very happy about seeing filmmakers together whether they are Israeli- Palestenian-Turkish or from any other middle eastern countries.. Seeing them working together, discussing about the issues of cinema and life, made my mind clear; we need more spaces to understand each other, more collaboration, more trust, more facts and more attention even if we are wrong or right.

Of course our nationalities reflect our characters-behaviors and reflexes and as filmmakers whatever we do, we do it in a feeling of partiality, we are taking sides in our movies like we are taking sides in our lives. Bu I believe we can do it without fanaticism.
Cause cinema is an art where only humanity matters. "

Emine Emel Balcı

"Ich liebe Dich- I love You" / Turkey

Greenhouse 4 Participant

Interview with creator

Interview with creator:

Personal experience By the Israeli creator Yonatan, who Participates in the Greenhouse project.

When did you participate in Greenhouse?

I am participating in the current Greenhouse as co-director and co-producer of "The Dolphin".

How did the seminars help you in developing your film? (Mentors, Greenhouse team, Master classes, support you received in between the seminars)

More than anything else, the seminars helped me focus my film. All of the above had part of it, our Mentor (Nenad Puhovski which was a real gift for our project with his wisdom, knowledge and patience), the Greenhouse team that was always there to help in anyway needed, the Masterclasses that brought us different point of views for filmmaking, and of course the interaction with talented filmmakers from different countries and background.

How has Greenhouse supported you after the end of seminars?

I am still in it so I don't know.

Did Greenhouse serve as a meeting place between you and other filmmakers and professionals?

Definitely, as was mentioned before.

Would you recommend Greenhouse?

With no hesitations.

What was unique for you in the program?

The option to understand how this business work outside of my country, and the connections I was able to make with other filmmakers.

What do you think of Greenhouse' new project on the theme of Racism and Human Rights?

I think it is great, I wish I was working on a film with this Theme at the moment…

Personal experience By the creator Melek DEMIR who Participates in the current Greenhouse project.

I believe Documentary filmmaking is one of the best and the most exhilarating job in the world. You need time and dedication to improve your skills with storytelling techniques. Thus, Greenhouse has induced me that it is an extremely great meeting place for filmmakers whom wish to understand core elements of storytelling and open up themselves to the world. It gives you time to sharpen your skills that shapes your project.

I have participated to Greenhouse family in 2009 that started in August. In the beginning of the seminars I was pretty exited and have questions in mind. My attention was focused entirely on the set of obstacles not only on my project but also my existing skills. First we have met with mentors and other GH members. During the personal sessions we have deeply analyzed each of our projects with the direction of personal mentors. And intensively participated film screenings, Q&A sessions and master classes by industry professionals... Each session inspired me for being more productive and pushed me to work more on my project. This intensive schedule gave me great guidance and all the clues about creative and business side of Filmmaking. After each seminar we have continued to develop our projects by the support of not only personal mentors but also others as well. I believe, the unique thing about the program that makes Greenhouse different from others is real concentration to our projects that leads you real achievements step by step. Also, in the end, you can identify your skills and recognize their importance.

On the other hand I think many filmmakers who are making documentary films are really ‘passionate’, and that they're making work just for that reason. Documentaries on human rights really show that. Therefore, this specific theme on Racism and Human Rights will push the passionate filmmakers to draw attention to these vulnerable subjects. Who knows? These films may change the world for the better.