This year, the Festival, taking place between 16 and 23 August, is celebrating its 30th anniversary. A total of twelve films with Slovenian participation will be screened: six live-action features, three documentary features, and three shorts. All the films were created with the financial support of the Slovenian Film Centre.
Fifty-four films will compete for the main Heart of Sarajevo Award, while three films will be screened out of competition. “Over the past twenty years, the Heart of Sarajevo has become a precious film award, strengthening the voices of the region and bringing them closer to the global audience. This year, we should achieve the same,” said the Sarajevo Film Festival Director Jovan Marjanović.
The Feature Competition Programme will open on Saturday, 17 August, at 19:00 with the European premiere of Family Therapy, a new film by the screenwriter and director Sonja Prosenc. Prosenc’s feature, which had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in Manhattan, New York, depicts comically dysfunctional relationships in a seemingly perfect bourgeois family. Starring Katarina Stegnar, Marko Mandić, Mila Bezjak, and the French actor Aliocha Schneider. The supporting roles are played by Kristoffer Joner, who also starred in the director’s previous feature History of Love, Judita Franković Brdar, Jure Henigman, Ana Djurić – Konstrakta, and Matija Vastl. The Slovenian-Italian-Norwegian-Croatian-Serbian co-production is produced by the Monoo production house. Its Slovenian pre-premiere took place at the Film Under the Stars festival at the Ljubljana Castle, organised by the Kinodvor City Cinema. As of 22 August, it will be shown in the regular programme of the Slovenian cinemas. The director is currently developing a series, a black comedy with a horror twist, in cooperation with the Macedonian director Teona Strugar Mitevska in the framework of the French National Centre of Cinema’s programme. The series Mala Yugoslava has also been selected for the festival’s professional programme Cinelink Drama.
Cent’anni, a feature-length documentary debut by the screenwriter and director Maja Doroteja Prelog, will have its regional premiere in the Documentary Competition Programme on the same day at 19:00. It had its world premiere at this year’s Trieste Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award for Best Documentary. The director made a documentary about her partner’s victory over a deadly disease while uncovering the unhealed wounds of their long-standing relationship. The film is a Slovenian-Polish-Italian-Serbian-Austrian co-production, produced by Cvinger Film.
The official documentary programme also includes the film Praslovan by the screenwriter and director Slobodan Maksimović. The world premiere of the story about the musician Zoran Predin will be screened on Sunday, 18 August, at 20:45 on the big screen of the Open-Air Cinema (Stari Grad), located next to the famous Sarajevo City Hall (Vjećnica). In addition to the protagonist, the film also features renowned music and pop culture personalities from the former Yugoslavia, including Đorđe Balašević, Jure Franko, Sašo Hribar, Branko Đurić Đuro, Robert Pešut Magnifico, Peter Lovšin, Vlado Kreslin, Gabi Novak, and many others. The film is a Slovenian-Croatian co-production, while the leading producer is the Invida production company. The Slovenian co-producers are RTV Slovenija, Film Factory, 001, and Gustav Film.
In the BH documentary programme, the festival audience will also have the opportunity to see the feature-length documentary The Last Cowboy by the screenwriter and director Tadej Čater. The latter will have its world premiere on Monday, 19 August, at 15:00 at the Cineplexx Sarajevo 3. The Last Cowboy is a story about a Balkan cowboy who lived his dream and dreamed his whole life. The film features Bahrija Džekson, Juso Muratović, Dženita Rudolf, Janet Maiolo, Virdžinija Džekson Bauml, Bato Hanušić, Jusuf Trbić, Ahmed Burić, Mirko Ilić. The film is produced by the Slovenian production company December and co-produced by RTV Slovenija. It is a Slovenian-North Macedonian and Bosnian-Herzegovinian co-production.
Two Slovenian live-action features in the children’s programme
The children’s programme includes Block 5 by the director Klemen Dvornik and Tartini’s Key by the screenwriter and director Vinci Vogue Anžlovar, which will have its world premiere at the festival.
Block 5 is an action-adventure film about a group of twelve-year-olds who take on the adults to save their playground from destruction. Alma moves with her father to a new neighbourhood, her classmate Luna’s skateboarding nest. Not only do Alma and Luna not get along – they are outright enemies! When Alma learns that her father’s company is going to demolish the playground in front of her apartment building, she has no choice but to join forces with her worst nemesis and her family in the fight for oxygen and trees. The team has a week to save the playground. The script was written by Dora Šustić. Starring Kaja Zabret as Alma, Kaja Šuštar as Luna, Youri Friderich, Niko Lemark, David Trontelj, and others. In addition to the Slovenian actors Marko Mandić and Gregor Zorc, major roles are also played by the Croatian actors Ivana Roščić and Enis Bešlagić, as well as the Serbian actor Tihomir Stanić. It is a Slovenian-Czech-Croatian-Serbian co-production, produced by the production company A Atalanta. The film will have its world premiere at this year’s Locarno Film Festival and is scheduled to arrive in the Slovenian cinemas on 5 September. In Sarajevo, it will be screened for the first time on Saturday, 17 September, at 15:00.
The story of Tartini’s Key, adapted from the novel by Roman Kukovič, is set in the town of Piran, where the paths of three children from different social backgrounds cross: the local girl Mario, Robert from a summer camp, and the wealthy Barbara, who is spending her vacations with her father and his partner. Barbara receives a text message sent to the wrong number. Through a series of puzzles and adventures associated with the medieval mysteries of Piran, the text message leads the children to the treasure, also sought by the caricatured bandits Grandemare and Jofa. During their adventure, the children grow closer, while some sparks of romance also ignite.
Starring the young actors Svit Šturbej, Ella Lapajne and Maks Kerševan, while the main supporting roles are played by Jurij Drevenšek, Primož Pirnat, and Goran Navojec.
The film, produced by Blade Productions and co-produced by RTV Slovenija, is scheduled for release in the Slovenian cinemas on 24 October. It will premiere in Sarajevo on Monday, 19 September, at 18:00.
Slovenian minority co-productions – three live-action features and a live-action short
The festival will open with the screening of the Slovenian minority co-production My Late Summer by the Bosnian director Danis Tanović, the author of the Academy Award-winning No Man’s Land. The screenplay was written by the director, Nikola Kuprešanin, and Anja Matković. The story focuses on Maja, who travels to a remote island to resolve her family inheritance. There, she is confronted with issues from her past. Maja’s pursuit of her inheritance becomes a search for her identity as well as for forgiveness. The film is a Croatian-Bosnian-Herzegovinian-Romanian-Slovenian-Serbian co-production. The Slovenian co-producer of the film is Tramal Films. The main producer is the Croatian Propeler Film. Starring Anja Matković, Uliks Fehmiu, Goran Navojec, Mario Knezović, Marija Škaričić, Mirela Brekalo, Snježana Sinovčić, Luka Juričić, Boris Ler, Ivana Roščić, Jadranka Matković, and many others.
The official programme will also include a gala screening of Mother Mara, a live-action feature by the well-known Serbian actress, director, and screenwriter Mirjana Karanović. The film is a Serbian-Swiss-Luxembourg-Slovenian-Bosnian-Herzegovinian-Montenegrin co-production. The Slovenian co-producer is December, while the primary producer is Okofilm. The film will have its world premiere at the festival on Wednesday, 21 August, at 21:30. Starring Mirjana Karanović, Vučić Perović, Boris Isaković, Jasna Žalica, Pavle Čemerikić, Alen Liverić, Jelena Ćuruvija, and others. The screenplay was written by Mirjana Karanović, Maja Pelević, and Ognjen Sviličić.
Mara, a successful entrepreneur and single mother, is shocked by the untimely death of her son Nemanja. She becomes emotionally distant and refuses to communicate with family and friends. After meeting Milan, Nemanja’s close friend, she finds solace and peace in their relationship. As they grow closer, they discover more and more facts about Nemanja’s life and death, allowing Mara to confront her own life and emotions.
The Open Air Programme and the BH film programme will also include a screening of Gym by the Bosnian-Herzegovinian director Srđan Vuletić. This film is a co-production of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Montenegro, and Croatia. The Slovenian co-producer is Iridium Film, and the main producer is Refresh Production. Featuring Edin Avdagić, Dino Sarija, Dina Mušanović, Rijad Gvozden, Igor Skvarica, Adnan Omerović, and others. The screenplay was written by Mirela Trepanić Grbešić and Srđan Vuletić. This film will also have its world premiere at the festival, where it is to be screened for the first time on Monday, 19 August, at 20:30.
Riki is a waiter in a struggling catering company. His misogynistic colleague and future son-in-law Ado tries to save the business by beating up Melissa, a top pastry chef and former colleague, forcing her to work with them again. All employees reject the plan as downright foolish and pointless, but Ado is a stubborn savage, so his colleagues know he will not give up unless he is stopped by force. Riki is torn between a sense of justice and the norms of tolerating family and friends no matter what they do.
The selection of short films includes a special screening of this year’s Cannes winner, The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent, by the Croatian director Nebojša Slijepčević, who also wrote the screenplay. The film is a Croatian-Bulgarian-French-Slovenian co-production. The Slovenian co-producer is Studio Virc, while the leading producer is the Croatian production company Antitalent. Slovenia is represented by the director of photography Gregor Božič and Nebojša Pop Tašić, who plays one of the roles and is a versatile artist who has lived and worked in Slovenia since 1992.
Featuring the Croatian star Goran Bogdan alongside Alexis Manenti, Dragan Mićanović, Silvio Mumelaš, Lara Nekić, Priska Ugrina, Dušan Gojić, Mijo Pavelko, Martin Kuhar, Jakov Zovko, and Robert Ugrina.
The film is set in 1993 in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is based on actual events. A passenger train stops, attacked by the Serbian paramilitary forces. As the soldiers target innocent civilians, only one of the 500 passengers dares to stand up to them. He will pay for this with his life.
Two films in the Student Film Competition Programme
A total of 15 films were selected for the Student Film Competition Programme, two of them Slovenian. Mentor is a short film by the screenwriter and director Tinkara Klipšteter, produced by the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television in Ljubljana. This will be its world premiere.
Actors Nina and Alen rehearse a seduction scene between Elmira and Tartuffe. As they struggle with the performance, the director and the professor intervene. When that fails, the professor steps onto the stage. The rehearsal takes an unexpected turn after an uncomfortable confrontation between Nina and the professor. Starring Kaja Petrovič, Maja Kunaver, Svit Stefanija, and others.
The second selected film with an international premiere is Beyond the Face by the writer and director Anja Resman, produced by the SPOK Films production company and co-produced by ZVVIKS, Antitalent, and the School of Arts of the University of Nova Gorica. The film had its world premiere in June this year at the Animafest in Zagreb.
While cleaning his recently deceased father’s apartment, a young man is forced to relive the traumatic memories of growing up and losing his soul.
The Slovenian actor Sebastian Cavazza is a jury member of the Feature Film Competition Programme.
The following participants have been selected for the Talents Sarajevo programme, which presents promising young filmmakers from the region: director Tina Ščavničar, director of photography Peter Perunovič, actor Gašper Markun, and critic Tinkara Uršic Fratina.
The Slovenian Film Centre also participates in another vital part of the Sarajevo Film Festival, its professional section – CineLink. For the third time, CineLink, in cooperation with the Sarajevo Film Festival, presents the Female Voices CineLink Award for the project that brings the strongest female voice to the film and audiovisual industry.
This year’s selected projects include Confirmation by the director Darko Sinko, produced by the December production company. Esma Hajdarpašić (Stara Gara) and Eva Kučera Šmon (Remkora) are among the 15 selected young producers.
