The story follows Aida, the director of urban planning at the town hall in a small Albanian town, who is running a successful corruption scheme together with her husband and the mayor, and who is suddenly confronted with the infernal machine of a corrupt system when her son of 16 is arrested for raping a classmate.
“Waterdrop is a film about family, hypocrisy, moral corruption, truth and justice. In February 2019 a teenage girl was raped by her peers in a small city in Albania. All the institutions and the media kept silent. The city concealed the event to avoid its reputation being tarnished. I didn’t want to make a film about rape, but to explore the causes of this heinous crime”, Budina said in a statement.
Robert Budina wrote the script alongside Doruntina Basha and Ajola Daja, and the main characters are played by Gresa Pallaska, Arben Bajraktaraj, Adem Karaga, Gerard Kolaneci and Paolo Iancu.
The film is produced by Era Film (Albania) and Avanpost (Romania) in coproduction with Redibis Film (Italy) and Iliria Film (Kosovo). Sabina Kodra and Carmen Rizac are producing and the coproducers are Daniele Segre, Daniele de Cicco and Luan Kryeziu.
The budget is 800,000 EUR, Sabina Kodra told FNE. The Albanian National Center of Cinematography, the Kosovo Cinematography Center, the Italian Ministry of Culture, Creative Europe MEDIA and SEE Cinema Network are supporting the project.
The acclaimed Romanian cinematographer Marius Panduru shot the film in Podgradec, Albania, from 2 March to 8 April 2023. The crew also includes the Romanian music composer Marius Leftărache.
The premiere is set for 2024. Negotiations with sales agents and local distributors are underway.
Production Information:
Producer:
Era Film (Albania)
Avanpost (Romania)
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Coproducers:
Redibis Film (Italy)
Iliria Film (Kosovo)
Credits:
Director: Robert Budina
Scriptwriters: Robert Budina, Doruntina Basha, Ajola Daja
DoP: Marius Panduru
Production designer: Leandër Ljarja
Costume designer: Emir Turkeshi
Make-up designer: Serena Gioa
Composer: Marius Leftărache
Cast: Gresa Pallaska, Arben Bajraktaraj, Adem Karaga, Gerard Kolaneci, Paolo Iancu
