Teah

On Martin's tenth birthday strange things start happening in the ancient forest. Even the friendly chestnut tree seems worried.

A couple of strangers arrive from the city to live in Martin's house. Although the lonely Martin desired company for a long time, the newcomer girl Teah spells nothing but trouble as she ruthlessly invades his world.

As if that were not enough, another disaster lurks on the horizon: malicious signs appearing on trees indicate the impending building of a motor way right through the heart of the magical forest.

Can it be that the ancient trees will be cut for the sake of a new road? Magic and reality are inseparable in the forest. Is there a way to face reality and preserve the magic?

What Martin needs most urgently is a true friend. Together they can fight for the survival of the forest.

A big revelation awaits Martin on the road of this struggle: the source of magic resides not in the forest, but in the hearts of people.

There is a reason why fairy tales exist. They comfort and guide, they can help survive and they heel hardship and frustration. The need for fantasy in this world might not be as obvious as hunger, thirst or loneliness of many, but we must not forget children also have a right to believe in fairy tales. We all share that need, and we all have that right. The mystery of the world is delicate and easily destroyed, but it is possible to protect it, preserve it and pass it on.
There is another basic human need that might not be obvious but I feel an increasing urge to speak of. I am referring to a very personal need of each individual, a craving we all share, to be intimate sometimes with peace, power and magic of nature. It had always been a part of my life and I am very much aware of the impact it had on my childhood. I would like to pay tribute to the magic and beauty of my childhood forest and share the mystery of it with the children audience.

The shooting of the film ended in August 2007. Directors second long feature film is Slovenian-Polish-Croatian-Bosnian coproduction.

The main producers are Frenk Celarc from the production company Gustav film and Dunja Klemenc from Studio Maj.

Co-producers of the film are TV Slovenia (Child and Youth Programme), SPI International from Poland and Jadran film from Croatia, and the associated co-producer, SCCA from the production company Pro.ba from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The film is co-financed by the Film Fund of the Republic of Slovenia - a Public Fund within the 2006 programme, it has also obtained means of the European film fund Eurimages, the Ministry of Culture of Croatia, the Ministry of Culture of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Polish Film Institute also invested public means through the co-producers. Project got financial support on open call for MEDIA developement for single projects.

In 2004 the feature film project TEAH received one of two main awards of the CineLink - the Sarajevo Film Festival co-production market for feature films. Within the "North by Northwest" programme at the 55th Berlin International Film Festival in February 2005 the film was represented to the interested international producers and potential investors.

With this project Hanna Slak also participated in some other international workshops and programmes, where she aroused interest of the international film public. Among others she participated in the Nipkow Programme, Berlin-based fellowship programme, designed to assist film and television professionals, supported by the Media East of Eden, a "North by Northwest" development programme.

The team

Hanna Slak is a director who has a track record of international prize winning films for her feature film and short films. For her feature debut "Blind Spot" she was awarded Best Director at the 7th Sofia International Film Festival in Bulgaria and Manca Dorrer was presented the award for the Best Actress for the same film at the 43rd Thessaloniki International Film Festival in Greece. "Blind Spot" also won the award of the Ecumenical Jury "Don Kihot" at the 12th Cottbus Film Festival in Germany. The film saw its premiere at the Locarno International Film Festival and went on to the festivals in Chicago, Rotterdam, Edinburgh, Ghent etc. She is the author of several internationally recognised short films; her first film "FREAKquencies" (Brez štroma) was awarded the prize for emerging young director at the Munich Film Festival of Film Schools and the short film A. M. (Zjutro) won the prize for Best Student Film at Slovenian Film Festival in Portorož. In 1999 she was named the Most Promising Young Slovenian Filmmaker.

She was born in Warsaw in 1975 and graduated at the Academy for Theatre, Radio, Film and TV (AGRFT) in Ljubljana.

Teah is the result of the cooperation of the international film crew; filmmakers from Slovenia, Poland, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Belgium etc. Director of photography is Karina Kleszczewska from Poland, set designer is Katja Šoltes (Estrelita, Well Tempered Corpses, Ruins, Beneath Her Window), make up artist is Tina Šubic Dodocic (No Man's Land, Vladimir, Pretty Village, Pretty Flame - the Golden Mimosa Award for make up, Burlesque Tragedy - Crystal Prism Award for make up, Well Tempered Corpses); costume designer is Bjanka Ursulov, sound engineer is Dirk Bombey from Belgium (11'09''01, Antonia), and the production manager is Petra Vidmar.

Starring:

Nikolaj Burger - MARTIN

Pina Bitenc - TEAH

Marko Mandic - SAMO

Aleksander Krošl - DEDA

Manca Dorrer - ALENKA

Tanja Šojic - VELJKA

Senad Bašic - ZLATAN

Žan Marolt - ELVIS