Festival of EUPL Laureates

Festival of EUPL Laureates

Publishing houses which have been winning the support of the EU through the Creative Europe programme for several years: Arete, Heliks, Kontrast, Odiseja and Štrik are organising a festival of EUPL laureates in Serbia for the first time.

The festival is designed as a series of promotions of books which won the prestigious prize of the European Union for literature, a place where we will meet some of their authors and where on a joint staged debate of EUPL winners we will try to respond to the question of how much we create Europe and how much Europe creates us.

Apart from foreign guests, festival participants also include translators, editors, theoreticians of literature and editors of cultural columns. The festival is organised by publishing houses Odiseja, Kontrast, Heliks, Arete and Štrik. During the festival, a mini book fair will also take place. More information about the festival and other activities within this initiative can be found on the Facebook page of EUPL publications in Serbia.

FESTIVAL PROGRAMME:

SATURDAY, 18th May

16.15−17.00

Presentation of the collection of stories Dani (All Dag verstoppt en aneren) of Gast Groeber, Odiseja

Speakers:

Spomenka Krajčević, translator

Marija Vukosavljević, editor at Odiseja

17.15−18.00

Presentation of the book Ostrvo krah (Остров Крах) of Bulgarian author Ina Valchanova, Heliks

Speakers:

Ina Valchanova, author

Representative of the Embassy of Bulgaria

Jasmina Jovanović, translator

Katarina Ješić, editor at Heliks

18.15−19.00

Promotion of the novel Egzodus roda (L-Eżodu taċ-Ċikonji) of Walid Nabhan from Malta, Odiseja

Speakers:

Walid Nabhan, author

Marija Vukosavljević, editor at Odiseja

Moderator: Sandra Bakić Topalović, PR at Odiseja

19.15−20.00

Presentation of the novel Livro of José Luís Peixoto, a special guest from Portugal, Kontrast

Speakers:

José Luís Peixoto, author

Dejan Tiago Stanković, translator

Jelena Nidžović, editor at Kontrast

SUNDAY, 19th May

16.00−16.45

Presentation of the collection of poetry Stvarno i nestvarno postaje jedno telo (Rzeczywiste i nierzeczywiste staje się jednym ciałem.111 wierszy), of the Polish poet Eugeniusz Tkaczyszyn-Dycki, Arete

Speakers:

Irina Markić, translator

Ana Marija Grbić, editor at Arete

16.50−17.35

Presentation of the book Dvostruko staklo (Tvöfalt gler) of Icelandic author Halldóra Thoroddsen, Heliks

Speakers:

Sanja Milić, literary critic and editor of Radio Belgrade

Sanja Stefanjesko, Scandinavian Corner

Katarina Ješić, editor at Heliks

17.40−18.25 Presentation of the novel Dendriti (Δενδρίτες) Kallia Papadaki, Štrik

Speakers:

Kallia Papadaki, author

Slavka Vlalukin, literary critic

Dragana Bošković Kovačević, editor, Radio Belgrade 2

18.30−19.15 Presentation of the novel Hodočašće (Palveränd) of Tiit Aleksejev and collection of short stories Lepe strankinje (Frumoasele străine) of Mircea Cărtărescu, Arete

Speakers:

Ileana Ursu Nenadić, translator

Jasmina Jovanović, translator

Moderator: Ana Marija Grbić, editor at Arete

19.20−20.30

Staged discussion: EUPL laureates in Belgrade

Participants:

Walid Nabhan, Malta

Kallia Papadaki, Greece

Darko Tuševljaković, Serbia

European Union Prize for Literature – EUPL was established by European Commission in 2008 with the aim to encourage cultural exchange on the European continent and initiate
intercultural dialogue by supporting translation of selected, representative works from member and candidate countries of the European Union. The prize is operating and financed within the Creative Europe programme (at the beginning within the Culture programme). European Commission tasked the consortium comprised of the European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF), European Writers’ Council (EWC) and the Federation of European Publishers to organise national juries and awarding or prizes. Each year twelve prizes are awarded to authors of prose works (novels and sometimes short stories) from 36 countries currently participating in the Creative Europe programme. National juries choose a winner from their own country every third year, so during the three-year cycle one representative from 36 all 36 countries is awarded. EUPL is important because it encourages translation of literature from smaller countries whose languages are rarely translated into big world languages, it emphasises variety and creativity of modern literature from all corners of Europe, with the long- term aim of encouraging interest in readers for literature which was not written in their own language and comes from other European countries.