My short film ‘NEWS 23/06/2016 - ZEIT DER UNRUHE’ was invited to take part in the International Film Students Meeting section at San Sebastian Film Festival, 2017. For this section, it is mandatory for the directors of each selected film to be present during the full length of the program, which lasted for a week. With the support of AG Kurzfilm/German Films I had the possibility to cover the travel costs to get to San Sebastian from Berlin. Whilst there, the festival arranges accommodation and two meals a day for all the participants. It was a very nice week, staying at the One Shot Hotel, at the Tabakalera House in the centre of San Sebastian. The Tabakalera House is a former tobacco factory, converted into a centre for contemporary culture. That’s where all the screenings, masterclasses and other events connected to the International Film Students Meeting were held. During the week, we watched all the short films competing in this section, and Q&As with the directors of each film. It was interesting, very well moderated, and quite intense. Each day was scheduled from nine in the morning until six in the evening. The participating filmmakers all had breakfast and lunch together at the Tabakalera cafe. After each day’s screening of the competing short films, there were masterclasses by established film makers, Todd Haynes among others. In the evenings you had time to walk around and eat great sea-food in the city, or to watch films from other sections of the festival. San Sebastian has two beaches, one for surfers and one for swimmers. Swimming was a very good complement to the program of the International Film Students Meeting. In all, attending this festival was an interesting and special experience, both as a filmmaker and as a traveller. I recommend accepting the invitation.

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