He pointed that this year the festival offers a great number of documentaries in the competition program and also fiction films, films for children, documentary hit films, but unfortunately this is the first year that there are no films from the Home authors program.   "This post-pandemic period certainly affected that part as well, and we did not finish current projects on time, but to look on the positive side next year we will have at least five documentaries by local authors", said the director of the MFF and invited everyone to socialise and enjoy movies in this festival week. 

Robert Bubalo, producer of the festival, Zdravko Mustać, the festival selector, Lucy Eagleson, head of film workshops, and Mislijana Brkić Milinković on behalf of HT Eronet, general sponsor of the Festival, also spoke about the festival, the official part competition part of the program, films from the accompanying program, workshops and numerous festival contents. 

“It has never been so difficult for me to choose ten short and feature documentaries that we will present at the festival as it was this year, because I came across with so many great films”, Zdravko Mustać said. 

He pointed out that a large number of films that had won awards at renowned international documentary film festivals were submitted for MFF, and the importance of this festival is also confirmed by the fact that some authors have started sending films to premiere at this festival. 

“This means that the festival in Široki Brijeg has respectability in the world of festivals of this kind. Based on the films we screen, I can say that MFF is on the trail of a more original, research-based way of treating the documentary material itself. In my opinion, this is one of the biggest and strongest festivals so far”, he added. 

He stated that this is a Mediterranean film festival, but authors from these countries often deal with topics that go beyond the Mediterranean, so we have films about events in Africa, Ukraine, Europe, and from this we get a wide range of topics that authors from the Mediterranean circle deal with. They actually follow the reality in which we live. 

Robert Bubalo also presented the 'music day', which is taking place within the MFF program. The promotion of Željko Bebek's autobiographical book 'In spite of everyone' and the premiere of the film about the musician Vlado Kreslin 'Sing me a song'. 

“Bebek and I worked on the book for three years, in the period of pandemic, so we were forced to constantly interrupt our meetings. That held us back a lot, but I will remember that collaboration for the incredible emotion that Bebek showed. There are many tragic events in his life, his autobiography is full of deaths from different periods,'' Bubalo said and added that he hopes to be able to bring these two great musicians together in Široki Brijeg to perform together. 

The leader of MFF workshop Lucy Eagleson presented two short films that have been filmed over the past weeks by the participants of the workshop and that is going to be screened at the closing ceremony. 

"We have been together for ten years here in Široki Brijeg at film workshops, which we are extremely proud of. The theme of the films we are working on this year is tradition and Herzegovinan customs, and how young people from these areas learn about their past but also live in modern times,'' said the media educator and head of MFF film workshops. She added that the greatest success of the films they make is the process they go through and that they have become like one big MFF family. 

Misijana Brkić Milinković, on the behalf of the Corporate Communications Department of HT Eronet, which this year also provides rich prizes to festival visitors, pointed out that they are happy to be with the Mediterranean Film Festival as a general sponsor again and that they continue to have the opportunity to grow and socialise with the MFF, which this time takes place in the new, autumn dates. 

"HT Eronet, as it is a custom, and was in previous years, provided a valuable prize for the luckiest viewer who will evaluate the films in the competition. This is a smart watch Imilab Smartwatch KW66. We also provide free Wi-Fi in the press centre and the cinema, and in our HOME.TV video library you can watch films from the previous festivals, eight of them, for free until October 16. We wish the MFF many more years in which it will bring smiles to the faces of all film lovers, and, of course, we hope that HT Eronet will continue to accompany it on that path,'' Brkić Milinković said. 

Screening of documentary films from the competition is opening this year’s Mediterranean Film Festival. Croatian film ‘Babajanja’ by Ante Zlatko Stolica and ‘Summer Nights’ directed by Ohad Milstein from Israel are going to be screened after the Festival opening ceremony. In cooperation with Film Centre Sarajevo the MFF will screen seven films that are masterpieces of B&H cinematography, then documentary films from the In Focus program, films for children within the MFF Fora program and fiction film ‘Savages’ by Dario Lonjak. The festival also brings the promotion of Željko Bebek's autobiographical book, the documentary films 'Princess' and 'Sing me a song'. After the closing ceremony and the screenings of films created at the MFF School, the 23rd edition of the festival is going to be closed with the cinematic odyssey exploring David Bowie's creative, spiritual and musical journey in – the film ‘Moonage Daydream’.   

We remind you that the Mediterranean Film Festival takes place from October 11 to 15 in Široki Brijeg. The competition includes ten feature-length documentaries that compete for the MFF "Grand Prix" award, and ten short documentaries that compete for the MFF "Best Short" award. The best film will be chosen by the audience, and that film is waiting for the MFF Audience Award. 

The general sponsor of the Mediterranean Film Festival is HT Eronet.