Hrvoje Laurenta

Zagreb Film Festival, Zagreb, 04.09, 11.00, French Institut

Born on August 14, 1981 in Split. Graduated in Zagreb (XIII. Gymnasium, science - mathematics). Graduated journalism from Faculty of Political Science in Zagreb. Lives and works in Zagreb. In 2001 Hrvoje Laurenta was given a special scholarship by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to attend Cultural Management School in Amsterdam. From1998 to 2003 he was a grantee of the Council of Europe and attended a number of seminars, conferences and discussions on the youth and the EU which were organized in the largest European cities as a representative of Croatia. In 2002 he completed the Journalist Collage in Salzburg, organized by the Business School of the University of Salzburg.

From 1999 to 2000, as the president of the NGO Postpesimisti he actively participated in peace processes on the war torn areas of Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Croatian Government appointed him the Chairman of the Advisory Committee and Expert Work Group for Evaluation of Projects and Financing Youth Association from all over Croatia for the period 2001-2004. In that period he was in charge of financing various youth associations, that is, their projects and programs in the amount of more that 10 million kuna.

In the period 2002-2007 he created and organized a number of cultural, artistic and educational projects and programs, mostly in Zagreb, Dubrovnik and Rijeka. In the same period, in 2004, he was the executive producer of the 14th Croatian Film Days as well as of a part of the celebration of the Zagreb City Day.

In 2002 he initiated the international Review of Amateur Films whose leader he has remained until present day. In 2009 it took place the 7th time and the program consisted of more than 300 films.

In 2003 he was appointed the Coordinator and in 2008 the Executive Director of the newly established Zagreb Film Festival where he has remained up to date. Zagreb Film Festival has become the most visited Croatian film festival with the most prestigious program as well as one of the 5 most important debut film festivals in the world.

Since 2008 he has been the Executive Director of the cinema Europa, the most beautiful and the oldest Zagreb cinema room which was bought out by the City of Zagreb in 2007 and given to management of the Zagreb Film Festival.