Balkan cinema - we don't get to see too much of it, and the Balkans is not just Kusturica! Every year at Warsaw Film Festival we fill this gap showing you films that drew out attention and claimed our hearts. We chose stories of filmmakers who realize their ideas with wit, bursting with emotions, filled with history and geography, simply extraordinary. We hope that you let us invite you to these worlds.
Anishoara / Anişoara / Anishoara dir. Ana-Felicia Scutelnicu (Germany, Moldova 2016) 106 mins.
Anishoara is 15 years old and lives in a small, picturesquely situated village in Moldova. It is the last year of her childhood in this lovely valley. Soon her new adult life will begin.
Dogs / Câini / Psy dir. Bogdan Mirica (Romania, France 2016) 104 mins.
An emotional and moral labyrinth that has at its core the oldest of all conflicts: man against man. The setting is rural Romania, where the law is an abstract notion. The film won the FIPRESCI Prize in Cannes and the Best Film Award at the Transilvania festival in Cluj.
Godless / Bezbog / Bez Boga dir. Ralitza Petrova (Bulgaria/Denmark/France 2016) 99 mins.
Gana lives in a Bulgarian town. She looks after the elderly with dementia and traffics their ID cards on the black market. The post-communist world is mired in depression, corruption and misanthropy in this film, winner of multiple awards at this year's festivals in Locarno (best actress, best film, Ecumenical Jury Prize, Swiss Critics Boccalino Award for best director) and Sarajevo (best actress, Special Jury Prize for best film).
Houston We Have a Problem / Houston, imamo problem! / Houston, mamy problem! dir.Žiga Virc (Croatia, Slovenia, Germany, Czech Republic 2016) 88 mins.
An intriguing docu-fiction about Yugoslavia’s space programme. Myth or reality? It's up to you to decide.
Hristo / Hristo / Hristo dir. Grigor Lefterov, Todor Matsanov (Bulgaria 2016) 99 mins.
Eighteen-year-old Hristo has been living on the streets for as long as he can remember. His biggest goal, for which he’s willing to pay any price, is to live like a "normal" person: to have a job, a place to live, and a family. Or so he thinks.
On the Other Side / S one strane / Po drugiej stronie dir. Zrinko Ogresta (Croatia, Serbia 2016) 85 mins.
Zagreb. A middle-aged woman gets a call from her husband. He hasn’t been in touch for 20 years, ever since he abandoned his family and fought in the war, for the other side. A story about forgiveness that doesn’t judge but tries to understand.
Park / Park / Park, reż. Sofia Exarchou (Greece, Poland 2016) 100 mins.
Poor Greek families live in the decaying Olympic Village in Athens. A portrayal of a young generation that has been betrayed and deprived of its future.
Quit Staring at My Plate / Ne gledaj mi u pijat / Nie gap się w mój talerz dir. Hana Jusic (Croatia, Denmark 2016) 105 mins.
Marijana’s life revolves around her family, whether she likes it or not. In order not to go crazy, Marijana finds a way of relieving her stress… Dark humour helps the director challenge the myth of self-realization and successful escape from a difficult family. What if you are better off at home after all?
Sarajevo Songs of Woe / Sarajewa pieśni o nieszczęściu dir. Fred Kelemen (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany 2016) 140 mins.
A film triptych showing the universal mosaic of life in Sarajevo. Fred Kelemen in search of new narrative forms. The director is also a cinematographer for Bela Tarr (cinematography prize winner for "The Turin Horse", among others).
Scarred Hearts / Inimi cicatrizate / Zabliźnione serca dir. Radu Jude (Romania, Germany 2016) 141 mins.
Romania, 1937. Emanuel, a 20-year-old young man, spends his days at a sanatorium on the Black Sea coast, suffering from bone tuberculosis. Inspired by the autobiographical novel by Max Blecher, who has been compared to Kafka, Schultz and Mann.
The Beast is Still Alive / Zviarat e oshte jiv / Bestia wciąż żyje dir. Mina Mileva, Vesela Kazakova (Bulgaria 2016) 91 mins.
The film explores the ideas of socialism in a semi-mystical dialogue between a young woman and her long-deceased grandfather.
Train Driver's Diary / Dnevnik mašinovođe / Dziennik maszynisty dir. Miloš Radović (Serbia, Croatia 2016) 90 mins.
Statistics show that during his professional career every engine driver working for the railways unintentionally kills 15 to 20 people. The film is a tragicomic story about the innocent mass murderers and their lives. Starring Lazar Ristovski.
