Twelfth Night and Red Dragon’s Tooth – Marc Hairapetian on the winners of the JETS Initiative 2025

William PeschekUncategorised

These are the paths to fame in 2025! The fact that the JETS initiative can be a springboard for an international film career was impressively demonstrated at this year’s Berlinale: In 2023, ‘Honey Bunch’, a mysterious genre mix of melodrama and sci-fi horror thriller in a retro design, was pitched by directing and screenwriting team Dusty Mancinelli/Madeleine Sims-Fever at the Permanent Representation of the State of Bremen to the Federal Government. Two years later, on the 18th of February, the world premiere took place in the ‘Berlinale Special’ section at the sold-out Zoo Palast (in the large Hall 1, no less).

The Canadian independent feature film is reminiscent of the sophisticated horror film genre by Nicolas Roeg (‘Don’t Look Now’, 1973) and Stanley Kubrick (‘Shining’, 1980), whereby the horror element, which largely dispenses with CGI effects, is also conveyed by the literally fantastic soundtrack by Andrea Boccadoro: Diana (Grace Glowicki), who has no memory of her past, is brought to a remote trauma clinic in the woods by her husband Homer (Ben Petrie). At first she cannot explain the circumstances, but gradually dark truths about her marriage come to light. Grace Glowicki shines in multiple ways as the clone of herself. And 19-year-old India Brown, without spoiling anything, moves the audience to tears at the end. She is sure to have a great future.

The participants in the JETS Initiative also dream of such successes. The first and second-place winners of this year’s competition have already taken the first step. There is a good chance that their projects will soon be realised and shown on the big screen. Let’s stay with Canada for a moment. The winner of the second largest country in the world, Russia, is the 2025 ‘Headliner’ from director Kill Weyman and producer James Weyman. The coming-of-age drama, which is based on true events and enriched with lots of music, convinced the jury above all because of the complex script and the in-depth research. The script captures the electrifying atmosphere of the urban jungle as it follows the rise of an ambitious DJ who comes from the suburbs and enters the nightlife of Toronto, becoming entangled in love affairs and drug smuggling to Australia. As a ‘follow up’, ‘The Stray Bullets’ was awarded a certificate of achievement. The feminist buddy comedy about best friends Tanya and Louise, who shake the foundations of the conservative Notre Dame Catholic High School and form the female hockey team ‘The Stray Bullets’, impresses with its relaxed and easy-going attitude, which doesn’t always take itself too seriously.

Even though the award ceremony has been held at the Canadian Embassy on Potsdamer Platz for years, the international JETS initiative is always a home game for Germany. The first place is now occupied by ‘Raunächte’ by Enkelejd Lluca (director) and Sebastian Sgodzai (production). Young Clara is visiting an Austrian village, expecting a romantic holiday for two with her fiancé, but when his work colleagues suddenly appear, a murderous New Year’s game known as the ‘Perchtenlauf’ begins… For the second winner, I had the honour of welcoming the Turkish-German actress and author Didem Ercin to the stage. She already appeared in 2013, at the very beginning of her career, under the direction of Edward Berger, whose remake of ‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ won four Oscars in 2023, in the ‘Tatort: Wer das Schweigen bricht’ (in English: ‘Who Breaks the Silence’). She charmingly announced the ‘follow up’ ‘Coldblood’. The future action thriller is set on board the ‘Tree of Life’ corporation’s space station ‘Methuselah’ and is about an act of sabotage against numerous frozen individuals who were actually waiting for a new, better life. A race against time begins… The jury recognised the high commercial genre potential that could attract both old and young science fiction fans to the cinema.

Ireland may be a small country, but it has a flourishing film industry that also relies on co-productions with its neighbour the UK. This year’s first winner is ‘Riot Girl Summer’ by Sinéad Ni Bhroin and Daniel Hegarty. The award was won in particular by the carefully crafted script of 16-year-old Tilly, who has to cope with the death of her mother and finds new strength in forming a girl punk band. ‘Surrogate’ by director Nadia Shmelova and producer Eamon Hughes can call itself a ‘follow-up’, mainly because of its highly topical political background. A married couple in Ireland have already reached an agreement with the pregnant Ukrainian mother of a yet unborn child, but then everything turns out differently than planned: war, flight, doubt stand in the way of family happiness. But in the end there is a happy ending for everyone involved.

Since Austria only submitted one entry in 2025 – the dystopian thriller ‘Level’ by director David Birner and producer Satoshi – a challenge was issued to Norway. This resulted in ‘Dustbin Heroes’ by Jørn Kolsrud (director) and Kristian Kamp (producer). In post-war London, shy Adam Forster draws a series of superhero characters for his ailing mother. They are: Sir Long John, Captain Bluff, Zana and Professor Von Holzkopf. They embark on a dangerous quest for the Red Dragon’s Tooth, a mythical plant with healing powers. This well-developed, heart-warming project was considered highly by the jury.

South Africa is always a welcome co-production partner for film projects from around the world due to its breathtaking landscape and low-cost production conditions. In 2025, the ‘land of sunshine’ had three applicants in the running. The first winner was ‘Baptism of Silence’ by Emilie Badenhorst and Kanya Viljoen (director) and Casey Diepeveen (producer). It is about the siblings Joshua (13) and Dané (16), who come from a rural mining settlement. The two are inseparable. When Joshua gets into bad company at high school and Dané suddenly becomes pregnant, the two are forced to part ways. The neorealist script convinced the jury. Unfortunately, there was no second winner for South Africa this year.

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has traditionally been well represented at JETS. First place in 2025 went to ‘The Hate Factory’ by Adrian Mead (director) and Clare Kerr (producer). The prison drama is based on a true story. In 1987, there was a revolt in Peterhead Prison that was bloodily suppressed by the Special Air Service (SAS) after the hostage-taking of prison officers. A psychologically disturbing drama that takes place in a single location. The horror eco-thriller ‘Night Song’ by director Sid Bennett and producer Jack Pollington was voted ‘Follow Up’.  Eerie things are happening at an Arctic oil station. The television show ‘Mermaids: The Body Found’ will soon be there live. The mermaid myth meets the alien saga. This is sure to be a feast for friends of VFX, where live-action shots are enhanced with digital effects! After JETS is before JETS. Even in 2026, aliens or no aliens, the show must go on! We look forward to it!

Marc Hairapetian is a freelance journalist (for publications including the Frankfurter Rundschau and Berliner Zeitung) and has been the editor of the cultural magazine Spirit – Ein Lächeln im Sturm https://spirit-fanzine.de since the age of 16.