Slovak Short Film “The Professional Parent” Selected for HollyShorts Festival 2024!
The Slovak short film “The Professional Parent,” written and directed by Erik Jasan, is making strides towards an Oscar® nomination! The film has been selected for the main program at HollyShorts 2024.
“The Professional Parent” continues to represent Slovakia at prestigious international film festivals. Written and directed by Erik Jasan and co-produced with Palme d’Or® winner, Romanian filmmaker Marian Crisan, the film had its world premiere at Cine Lebu, an Oscar ®-qualifying festival. Following its Asian premiere at Balinale, the film is now set for its US premiere at the HollyShorts Oscar®-qualifying festival in Los Angeles.
“The Professional Parent” secured its spot in the festival program from among six thousand entries, with four hundred films being showcased across various categories in Los Angeles. Winning at HollyShorts could place the film on the Oscar® Long List, advancing its chances for the coveted golden statuette.
The film has double the opportunity to qualify. “Many films from HollyShorts have been shortlisted for the Oscars®. Winning in any category could place us on the Long List. ‘The Professional Parent’ is vying for both Best Short Film and Best Short Ficton Film,” explains Erik Jasan.
Beyond the potential Oscar® nomination, HollyShorts offers valuable networking opportunities with distributors, producers, independent US and Hollywood studios, and buyers from platforms like Netflix, which partners with the festival. “We’ll have numerous meetings about future collaborations with various American film companies and short film distributors,” says Jasan, who will attend HollyShorts from August 8-18, 2024, in Hollywood, along with first assistant director Patrik Krivanek.
Jasan and Patrik Krivanek will share the red carpet with stars like Zoe Saldana, Bella Thorne, and Jamie Lee Curtis. The festival has previously hosted notable figures such as Demi Moore, Jennifer Aniston, and David Lynch. The film will screen at TCL Chinese 6 Theaters on Hollywood Boulevard, with a capacity of nearly 1,500 spectators. HollyShorts attracts over 15,000 film enthusiasts annually.
“The Professional Parent” tells the story of Ingrid, a mother in financial difficulty with a chronically ill child, who becomes a professional parent to a young Roma girl, disrupting her fragile family dynamics. The film features well-known actors Ela Lehotska, Olga Solarova, and Andrej Soltes, along with child actors Klara Svitekova and Marianna Krokova.
Behind the scenes, several film industry experts contributed to the 14-minute film. Co-producer Marian Crisan and award-winning Romanian cinematographer Tudor Mircea, whose work has been showcased at Cannes, Locarno, Toronto, and San Sebastian, played key roles. “Collaborating with Erik Jasan on ‘The Professional Parent’ was enriching. His dedication to addressing sensitive topics like child abandonment and racism against Roma is commendable,” says Mircea.
Catalin Cristutiu, the film’s editor and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, also praised the project. A juror at Berlinale Shorts 2023 and editor for renowned Romanian director Radu Jude, Cristutiu said, “The team’s enthusiasm and Erik’s meticulous attention to detail were impressive. This film has the potential to feature in several more prestigious festivals.”
