Father Figure is an absurdist tale about absurd times, questioning whether it is possible for us to go back and, if that is no longer possible, how to live in a reality with new rules. The film written by Nejc Gazvoda follows a mother and her son who move from Ljubljana to a small town after the mother’s divorce.

Jan is in his final year of primary school and Maja is a psychologist at the same school. The film begins with the reopening of schools after the end of the pandemic, and the children do not seem to have returned to the way things were before.

“Father Figure is a film about a particular period (the middle of 2021), set in a primary school, and all the issues it deals with are concrete: peer violence, loneliness, dignity. At the same time, it is a trip back to my primary school years and my youth, which seem more unnatural with each passing year, just like the times we are living in now. This is probably my most personal project, set in the most impersonal era of recent history”, Nejc Gazvoda said in a statement.

The main characters are played by Mojca Funkl, France Mandić and Jure Henigman.

Slovenia’s Perfo is producing in coproduction with Evolution Films from the Czech Republic and La Sarraz Pictures from Italy. The project is co-funded by the Slovenian Film Centre, the Czech Film Fund and the Italian Ministry of Culture. The Viba Film studio is also taking part in the project.

The film will be shot in 25 days and it is expected to be completed in the spring of 2023.

Production Information:

Producer:
Perfo (Slovenia)
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Coproducers:
Evolution Films (Czech Republic)
La Sarraz Pictures (Italy)

Credits:
Director: Nejc Gazvoda
Scriptwriter: Nejc Gazvoda
DoP: Jan Šuster
Sound designers: Valeria Cocuzza, Marco Brancati
Production designer: Iris Čeh
Costume designer: Katarina Šavs