FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION: BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM – The Professional Parent

Time15 min
Genredrama
CameraDigital 4k/ARRI ALEXA MINI LF
Productiondog 95 film factory (Slovakia) & ROVA FILM (Romania)

Logline

The story about Ingrid, a single mother living with her daughter and grandmother in an eastern Slovak village where Roma people face stigma, who becomes a professional foster parent to a Roma girl in order to survive, can currently be seen on the Omeleto platform.

The film has been screened at more than 70 festivals in 30 countries worldwide and has received over 15 awards. It was included in the official selections at festivals such as TIFF – Tirana International Film Festival and Balinale – Bali International Film Festival, and had its North American premiere in Los Angeles at the HollyShorts Film Festival. In Australia, it was first presented at the St Kilda FF; in Africa at the Alexandria Short FF; and in Europe it was also screened at festivals in Huesca FF and Odense FF. Its world premiere took place at the Lebu International Film Festival. It won 🏆 Best International Film at the New York Shorts IFF, 🏆 Best European Film at the festival in Navarra — a GOYA-qualifying festival — and also received the award for 🏆 Best Drama at the Glendale IFF.

The story of this film began to take shape when the film’s director, Erik Jasaň, was growing up in a household with two Roma children, because his sister had become a professional parent. At the same time, Slovakia was shaken by a tragic event in which a professional parent killed a one-year-old Roma girl who had been placed in his care. In Slovakia, being a professional parent is a job — a paid profession. These parents take children into their own homes and receive a monthly salary. Most of these children are of Roma origin. In eastern Slovakia, where poverty has persisted for decades, this has become a path to financial security. But when people with hidden racist tendencies enter the system, the consequences can be catastrophic.

The film was supported by Slovak Audiovisual Fund (www.avf.sk), Litfond Slovakia (www.litfond.sk) and Košice Regional Film Office and Košický samosprávny kraj (www.vucke.sk, www.fk-ksk.sk www.kosiceregion.com).

Selection

Lebu International Film Festival (Chile)
Bali International Film Festival (Indonesia)
HollyShorts Film Festival (USA)
CinEast Luxemburg (Luxemburg)
Cinematik – International Film Festival Piešťany (Slovakia)
New York Shorts International Film Festival (USA) – 🏆 Best International Film
Thomas Edison Film Festival (USA) – 🏆 Honorable Mention Award
Exground Short Film Festival Wiesbaden 37 (Germany)
Lublin Film Festival (Poland)
International Film Festival ZOOM – ZBLIZENIA (Poland)
Cluj International Short Film Festival (Romania)
Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (USA)
L’Europe autour de l’Europe (FEAE) (France) Paris Film Festival
Huesca International Film Festival (Spain)
St Kidla Film Festival (Australia)
Alexandria International Short Film Festival (Egypt)
Psarokokalo International Short Film Festival (Greece)
OFF – Odense International Film Festival (Denmark)
Tirana International Film Festival (Albania)
Dalmatia Film Festival (Croatia)
British Urban Film Festival (United Kingdom)
Cerdanya Film Festival (Spain)
Richmond International Film Festival (USA)
Accra Indie Filmfest (Ghana)
DC Shorts International Film Festival (USA)
Glendale International Film Festival (USA) – 🏆 Best Short Drama
Ischia Film Festival (Italy)
WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival (Canada) – 🏆 Silver Medal: Dramatic Film
Sunscreen Film Festival (USA)
Morocco Shorts International Film Festival (Morocco)
Un Festival C’est Trop Court! (France)
Queens World Film Festival (USA) – 🏆 Best Director Narrative Short Film
Weyauwega International Film Festival (USA)
Malter Vándor Filmfesztivál (Hungary)
Monadnock International Film Festival (USA)
Salento International Film Festival (Italy) – 🏆 Special Jury Prize
Tryon International Film Festival (USA)
SorsiCorti Short Film Festival (Italy)
Serbest Film Festival (Moldavia)
Tuzla Film Festival (Bosnia)
Gandhara Independent Film Festival (Pakistan) – 🏆 Best Short Film
The Shawna Shea Memorial Film Festival (USA)
Festival of Cinema NYC (USA)
SHORTS MÉXICO (Mexico)
Golden Door International Film Festival (USA)
Kansas City FilmFest International (USA)
Barcelona Human Rights Film Festival / Festival de Cine y Derechos Humanos de Barcelona (Spain)
Certamen Internacional De Cortos Ciudad de Soria (Spain)
Navarra International Film Festival (Spain) – 🏆 Best European Film
HollyShorts London (United Kingdom)
Westminister Film Festival (United Kingdom)
Ouagadougou International Short Film Festival “Ouaga Côté Court” (Burkina Faso) – 🏆 Best Actress
Theta Short Film Festival (Italy) – 🏆 Best International Film
Nepal Human Rights Film Festival (Nepal)
Kotka Human Rights Film Festival (Finland)
Caorle Film Festival (Italy)
Silver Wave Film Festival (Canada)
Fargo Film Festival (USA)
Biencortos | International Short Film Festival (Venezuela) – 🏆 Best Screenplay
Cannes Indie Shorts Awards (France)
Respect Belfast Human Rights Film Festival (Northern Ireland)
Pocity Film Festival Prešov (Slovakia) – 🏆 Special Jury Prize
Dieciminuti Film Festival (Italy) – Best Extralarge Short Film
AIU Kuwait International Film Festival (Kuwait)
Ljubljana International Short Film Festival – EUROPANORAMA (Slovenia)
Bastau International Film Festival (Kazakhstan) – 🏆 Special Jury Prize
Abuja International Film Festival (Nigeria)
Camera Action Film Critics Festival (Poland)
SANFICI – Santander Festival Internacional De Cine Independiente (Columbia)
Festival La Mirada Tabú (Spain)
Venezcine Film Festival (Mexico) – 🏆 Best International Film

„The Professional Parent should not be missing from the shortlist because it portrays social tension and maternal courage with sensitivity, realism, and without sentimentality. Strong direction, naturalistic acting, and precise cinematography create an intense short-film experience that leaves a clear emotional imprint.“ – The Los Angeles Reporter

„This film examines personal choices against the backdrop of entrenched societal biases. It challenges viewers to dismantle the simplistic dichotomy of good versus evil and delves into the complexities of human nature shaped by societal forces.“ – Overly Honest Review 

„The Professional Parent shows us a world many try not to believe exists.“ – Upcoming On Screen

„More than a story of survival, The Professional Parent is a powerful examination of the quiet battles faced by women when systems fail them.“
– ACTION Magazine

„The film uses only 12 shots over the course of 14 minutes. It captures the life of the main character and her struggle against a dire financial situation in a subjective, documentary-style manner.“
– IFF Cinematik Piešťany

„One of the most impactful pieces of work from this part of the world.“ – BITPIX TV News

“The Professional Parent is a poetically brutal miniature that exposes the invisible fractures of society — where love turns into a commodity, motherhood into a transaction, and empathy into a luxury.“ – El Cinéfilo Latino

„A raw and unflinching look at the harsh realities of poverty and the complexities of parenthood.“ – Kino Critics

„The Professional Parent is a powerful exploration of poverty and the lengths people go to in order to survive and care for their families.“ – Brain’s Film Review

„A remarkable feat – crafting a complex character whose initial sympathy turns into discomfort as her biases and cruelty emerge.“ – HUDA AHMED ISMAIL – ALEXANDRIA SHORT FILM FESTIVAL 2025

Producer’s Bio

Erik Jasaň – dog 95 film factory (Slovakia)

Erik Jasaň is a Slovak director, screenwriter, and producer whose work explores socially sensitive themes. His short film The Professional Parent met the eligibility requirements for consideration in the Live Action Short Film category. The film received an Honorable Mention at the 44th Thomas Edison Film Festival and was screened at several festivals with the relevant status, including the 50th Odense FF, 23rd Tirana IFF, 53rd Huesca FF, 41st St Kilda FF, 20th HollyShorts FF, 17th Balinale, 24th Lebu IFF, and 11th Alexandria SFF.

As a filmmaker without formal film-school training, he has directed several short films and collaborated on projects by other creators. Student films he directed were screened at festivals with the status required to meet festival-based eligibility conditions for U.S. awards, including the 37th Out On Film: Atlanta’s LGBTQ FF and the 8th Bengaluru ISFF.

With his new project THREE BURNED BODIES, he won the Pitching Forum at the 21st FEST – New Directors/New Film Festival in Espinho, Portugal, and was nominated by the Czech Film Center to represent the Czech Republic at Euro Connection, which will be part of the 47th Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival.

Marian Crisan – ROVA FILM (Romania)

Marian Crisan (b. 1976) received his Bachelor’s Degree in Film and TV Directing at UNATC Bucharest in 1999. He directed the short films „Family Portrait“ (2006), „Amateur“ (2007) and „Megatron“ (2008) – which won the Palme d’Or for Best Short Film at the Cannes Film Festival. In 2010, his first feature film „Morgen“ won the Special Jury Prize at the Locarno Film Festival and the Best Director and FIPRESCI Award at the Thessaloniki Film Festival. „Morgen“ was also the Romanian entry for the 84th Academy Awards. In 2012, his second feature film „Rocker“ premiered at the 60th edition of San Sebastian IFF. „Orizont“ is Crisan’s third full-length feature film and will premiere ‚In Competition‘ at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in November 2015.

Cast & Crew