ENFF CATALOGUE 2019

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CONTENT

OPENING FILM 7

CLOSING FILM – CLASSIC 8

CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA 9

OLD GOLD 20

FAMILY FILMS 22



DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES 24

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES 37

FOCUS – EUROPE, 30 YEARS AFTER THE BERLIN WALL 52

FOCUS – CINEMA BY MIGRANTS/CINEMA ON MIGRANTS 56

FOCUS – BULGARIAN NEW VOICES 60

GRAND LOVE AFFAIRS - OLD GOLD 62

CHILDREN’S PROGRAM 64

SIDE PROGRAM 66

PARTNERS AND SPONSORS 78

FILM INDEX 80
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A WORD BY ARTISTIC During the Festival, it will be exactly
DIRECTOR RADA SESIC 30 years since the East German
government announced – on 9
MIRRORING TODAY’S EUROPE November 1989 – that from that
One of the ambitions of the Eastern moment on, all GDR citizens were free
Neighbours Film Festival has always to travel to West Germany and West
been to show the best and most Berlin. The whole of Europe celebrated.
relevant art-house films made in East Today, 30 years later, Europe builds
and South-East Europe that otherwise new walls and becomes increasingly
don’t reach the Netherlands. With our divided. Our Focus program Europe,
selection we aim to grasp the reality 30 Years After The Berlin Wall brings
we live in and get in touch with the some older films reflecting on Europe
spirit of the time in today’s Europe. during and after the Berlin Wall, but
The main sections Current, Relevant also new and alarming films that mirror
Cinema and Documentaries Open strongly the current situation and the
Debates as well as Short Films, re-establishment of divisions in cities,
Big Stories are bringing to the Dutch countries and among people.
and international audience in the OPENING FILM
Netherlands films that have a critical Since the stories from divided Mostar,
eye on our social reality. These films Mitrovica and other places in Europe
often deal with urgencies, and convey are part of our Focus program Europe,
compelling human stories that reflect 30 Years After the Berlin Wall, we have
East and South-East Europe still chosen the opening film accordingly.
burdened by the transitional period An alarming human story from Ukraine
between communism and democracy, about an 80-year-old charming lady
economic turbulence, unemployment living in totally new circumstances.
and a massive brain drain. At the “My Granny from Mars”, a Belarus-
same time, they are confronted with Ukrainian-Estonian coproduction and
the logistical and social challenges of the debut of Alexander Mihalkovich,
mass immigration. is an intimate, yet very political tale
of the filmmaker’s grandmother who
lives in Crimea and due to known
circumstances ends up being totally
cut off from her family.
CLOSING FILM
While the opening film deals with
divided Europe today, we close the
festival by going 30 years back in
time, when regimes, rulers and norms
changed overnight. In his brilliant film
“Sweet Emma, Dear Bobe” (1992) that
was recently restored, Istvan Szabo
deals with the destinies of Russian
language teachers in Hungary whose
knowledge and services are no longer
required. The film is also memorable
for the remarkable performance of
the Dutch actress Johanna ter Steege
who will be our special guest.

CINEMA BY MIGRANTS/ at big festivals like Berlin, Cannes,
CINEMA ON MIGRANTS Rotterdam, Venice and IDFA. However,
Not seldom have migrants made distribution of their films in the West
tremendous contributions to their is rare. That’s why we put in the
new homelands, either in politics, limelight Bulgarian New Voices,
art, culture or science. In our Focus several compelling, exciting films
program we show works by people from Bulgaria that reflect the spirit of
who contributed considerably to the today’s society.
film world of Western-Europe where For the first time this year, ENFF
they live, while originally coming will be launching a program for the
from East and South East Europe. At whole family – parents and children.
the same time, the program aims to In our small Children’s Program,
show how revitalized contemporary we have chosen two exciting films
European cinema is, how an eclectic from Slovenia and Croatia, that have
mix of non-Western traditions, cultural become a huge hit at home and
connotations and sensibilities are travelled internationally with success.
creating the new identity of European
cinema. We also present a few films BRAINSTORM WITH ENFF
made by Western filmmakers that And last but not least – we are giving
look at the lives of migrants in their the stage to upcoming directors to
homelands. present their projects in New Pro
Formula section. We’ve decided to
FOCUS PROGRAM try out something “out of the box”.
For many years ENFF has featured Namely to pitch projects not to
the section Old Gold, dedicated to decision makers, but to the audience
the films that survived political and and brainstorm with them. Filmmakers
social changes in the countries where and producers will debate with the
they were made and prove to be still cinema goers aiming to understand of
relevant, being watched and loved how a certain project can be improved
by new generations. This year, the and lifted to a higher level.
program is called Grand Love Affairs Come and brainstorm with us!
and brings two beautiful love films. We screen 45 films, mostly Dutch
One from Poland: “A Year of the Quiet premieres, host 26 filmmakers, debate
Sun” (1984), by one of the masters of about relevant, exciting cinema, taste
European cinema, Krzysztof Zanussi. South-East European wine, watch
And the Bosnian film “Kuduz” (1989) upcoming, not yet finished projects
by director Ademir Kenovic, made just and have fun together.
in the eve of the ex-Yugoslav tragedy.
Gifted new voices, among whom are
several strong female directors, have
already being spotted and presented

WELCOME TO THE 11th EASTERN NEIGHBOURS
FILM FESTIVAL!

FILM PROGRAM

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OPENING FILM

MY GRANNY FROM MARS DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: ALEXANDER MIHALKOVICH

When politics and nationalism turn Crimea into an unfriendly environment, can it still
be a safe place for a grandma and her big family? A humorous and charming film
awarded with the Docu Talent Prize by Ji.hlava Academy.

Zina is a native Ukrainian who lived peacefully all her life in Ukraine, Russia and
Belarus. After retirement she moved to Crimea and true to her Eastern heritage, she
has always tried to unite her big family. But after the Ukrainian revolution and the
annexation of Crimea by Russia, visiting her became an endless hassle. The same
old place, now with a new culture, symbols of state, music and propaganda. Isolated
from the rest of her family, she lives in a coastal town forgotten by the world, unable
to decide whether to leave or stay. What a time to be an old lady! The family has
been separated, Crimea turned into ‘a distant planet’, and its environment is now
unfriendly towards the grandmother.

MOYA BABUSHKA S MARSA
Belarus/Ukraine/Estonia | 2018 | 72 min

PRODUCTION: Volia Chajkouskaya – Volia Films; Directory Films
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Siarhei Kanaplianik, Alexander Mihalkovich
EDITING: Petro Tsymbal
SOUND: Serz Avdey, Artem Mostoviy

PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus – Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

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CLOSING FILM

SWEET EMMA, DEAR BOBE

DIRECTOR: ISTVAN SZABO
A must-see classic that was awarded the Silver Bear at the 1992 Berlinale, with a
remarkable performance by the Dutch actress Johanna ter Steege. Probably the
most improvised film ever made by Istvan Szabo, it was the first to depict the hard
changes in the Hungarian society started in 1989.
Emma and Bobe came to Budapest from the countryside to teach Russian. The only
problem is that Russian is no longer wanted. Russian schoolbooks are burnt, teach-
ers are mocked. Schools now ask for compulsory English, which the two young
women never learned. The two girlfriends fall on hard times - Emma becomes a maid
while Bobe ends up in prison for illegal money changing and prostitution. Only one
will survive.

EDES EMMA, DRAGA BOB – VAZLATOK, AKTOK
Hungary | 1992 | 90 min

PRODUCTION: Gabriella Grosz – Objektiv Filmstudio; Manfred Durniok
CAST: Johanna Ter Steege, Eniko Borcsok, Peter Andorai, Eva Kerekes
SCREENPLAY: Istvan Szabo
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Lajos Koltai
EDITING: Eszter Kovacs
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus – Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

BAD POEMS

DIRECTOR: GABOR REISZ
An amusing, full of fantasy and utterly unpredictable comedy, awarded at several
festivals with jury and audience awards!
33-year-old Tamas is heartbroken after his girlfriend Anna, who is on a scholarship
in Paris, breaks up with him. While wallowing in self-pity, Tamas takes a trip down
memory lane to figure out if love only exists when it’s practically gone. As he’s trying
to pick up the pieces, he begins to realize what makes this current society so con-
fused. An unique, charming and highly subjective view of Hungary’s present times.

ROSSZ VERSEK
Hungary/France | 2018 | 97 min

PRODUCTION: Julia Berkes – Proton Cinema; Les Films du Balibari
CAST: Gabor Reisz, Katica Nagy, Zsolt Kovacs, Lili Monori, Katalin Takacs
SCREENPLAY: Gabor Reisz
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Daniel Balint, Kristof Becsey
EDITING: Zsofia Talas

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

COLD NOVEMBER DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: ISMET SIJARINA

An Albanian archivist faces a moral dilemma when the Serbian regime demands
loyalty from state employees. This compelling Kosovar film had its premiere at the
prestigious San Sebastian IFF and later won numerous awards.

In the early ’90s, the Yugoslavian Government cancelled the autonomy of Kosovo,
dissolved its Parliament and closed down the National Television. With the imple-
mentation of the extraordinary measures by Serbian authorities, the Albanian citi-
zens who were working at that time were forced to sign a declaration by which they
officially accepted Serbia as their own country. If they refused, they would lose all
their privileges, jobs, health insurance, children’s funds, as well as the real estate
which was given to them for use by institution they worked for. Fadil, an archivist,
has to choose between two options, knowing that both of them are wrong. He there-
fore involuntarily and unwillingly swallows the shame, endures the stigma, and the
pressure coming from all sides.

NENTOR I FTOHTE
Kosovo/Albania/North Macedonia | 2018 | 93 min

PRODUCTION: Fatmir Spahiu – Thumbs Up & Buka; AlbaSky Film, Audiohaus -
Sound Solutions, Ikone Studio
CAST: Kushtim Hoxha, Adriana Matoshi, Fatmir Spahiu, Emir Hadzihafizbegovic
SCREENPLAY: Arian Krasniqi, Ismet Sijarina
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Sevdije Kastrati
EDITING: Vladimir Pavlovski

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

ERASED DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTORS: MIHA MAZZINI/DUSAN JOKSIMOVIC

Inspired by true events, this amazing and compelling story of a new mother erased
from all state documents, is certainly one of the most memorable films from recent
Slovenian production.

After giving birth to a healthy baby girl, Ana finds her own name cannot be found in
the system. At first this does not worry her, computer mistakes happen and they can
be fixed. However, what ensues is a bureaucratic nightmare of monumental propor-
tions. She is forced to leave the hospital and her baby until everything is sorted. But
since Ana doesn’t legally exist, her baby doesn’t have official mother and as such is
to be put up for adoption. Ana begins the fight of her life to get her identity and her
child back. This first feature film by Slovenian award-winning writer Miha Mazzini is
based on true events. After declaring independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, Slove-
nia erased 25,671 of its own citizens due to bureaucratic complexities. The majority
of those are still unable to regain their legal status.

IZBRISANA
Slovenia/Croatia/Serbia | 2018 | 86 min

PRODUCTION: Frenk Celarc - Gustav Film; Kinorama, Delirium, Pakt Media
CAST: Judita Frankovic, Sebastijan Cavazza, Jernej Kogovsek, Izudin Bajrovic
SCREENPLAY: Miha Mazzini, Sebastian Cavazza
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Dusan Joksimovic
EDITING: Tomislav Pavlic

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

GOD EXISTS, HER NAME IS PETRUNYA

DIRECTOR: TEONA STRUGAR MITEVSKA
A thought-provoking satire, awarded at this year’s Berlinale, that questions patriar-
chy and gender equality in Macedonian society.
Based on true events, the film takes place in Stip, a small town in North Macedonia,
where every January a local priest throws a wooden cross into the river and hun-
dreds of men dive after it. This ritual is common in many Christian Orthodox coun-
tries of the Eastern Europe. Good fortune and prosperity are guaranteed to the man
who retrieves it. This time, Petrunya dives into the water on a whim and manages to
grab the cross before the others. Her competitors are furious - how dare a woman
take part in their ritual? As hell breaks loose, Petrunya stands tall, challenging the
church, judiciary and media. She won her cross and will not give it up. “God Exists,
Her Name Is Petrunya” is among the three finalists for the European Parliament’s
LUX Film Prize 2019. More info on page 70.

GOSPOD POSTOI, IMETO I’ E PETRUNIJA
North Macedonia/Belgium/Slovenia/Croatia/France | 2018 | 100 min

PRODUCTION: Labina Mitevska — Sisters and Brother Mitevski; Entre Chien et
Loup, Vertigo, Spiritus Movens, Deuxieme Ligne Films, EZ Films
CAST: Zorica Nusheva, Labina Mitevska, Simeon Moni Damevski, Stefan Vujisic
SCREENPLAY: Elma Tataragic, Teona Strugar Mitevska
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Virginie Saint Martin
EDITING: Marie-Helene Dozo

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

IRINA

DIRECTOR: NADEJDA KOSEVA
A moving award-winning social drama about different faces of motherhood, female
strength and the power of forgiveness, directed by one of the most exiting female
new voices of European cinema.
Irina lives in a small Bulgarian town and is the only financial support for her family. On
the very same day that she gets fired, her husband experiences a serious accident
which leaves him in a wheelchair. Irina’s family is threatened by poverty. To make
ends meet, she decides to become a surrogate mother. Fights, despair, and the
seed of life growing in her belly are shaking even further the rough and hopeless life
she seems to be entitled to. Slowly, she discovers what it means to love and forgive.
With her Madonna-like face, the young discovery of the film - actress Martina Apos-
tolova - delivers an exceptional performance in the main role.

IRINA
Bulgaria | 2018 | 96 min

PRODUCTION: Stefan Kitanov – Art Fest; Front Film, Doli Media Studio, Right
Solutions
CAST: Martina Apostolova, Hristo Ushev, Irini Jambonas
SCREENPLAY: Svetoslav Ovcharov, Bojan Vuletic, Nadejda Koseva
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Kiril Prodanov
EDITING: Nina Altaparmakova
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus – Bulgarian New Voices

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

LET THERE BE LIGHT DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: MARKO SKOP

A deeply moving, award-winning drama of a Slovak father who discovers that his
son joined neo-Nazi group.

Milan (40) has three children and does construction work in Germany in order to pro-
vide for his family in Slovakia. While visiting home over Christmas, he realises that
his eldest son Adam is a member of a paramilitary youth group. When the boy is in-
volved in bullying and the death of a classmate, his father has to decide what to do.
In this process, along with his wife, he discovers the real truth about their son, their
family, themselves and the community around them. A multi-layered drama which
deals with religious hypocrisy and rise of right extremism in Eastern Europe. The film
had its world premiere at Karlovy Vary IFF where it won the Best Actor Award and
Special Jury Mention.

NECH JE SVETLO
Slovakia/Czech Republic | 2019 | 93 min

PRODUCTION: Marko Skop, Jan Melis – Artileria; Negativ, Rozhlas a televizia Slov-
enska, Ceska televize
CAST: Milan Ondrik, Frantisek Beles, Zuzana Konecna, Lubomir Paulovic
SCREENPLAY: Marko Skop
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Jan Melis, ASK
EDITING: Frantisek Krahenbiel

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

NEIGHBORS

DIRECTOR: GIGISHA ABASHIDZE
Beautiful Old Tbilisi where neighbours still live together. One day a big investor ap-
pears. A touching story about transition and how money can affect even the stron-
gest friendships and closest families.
Lifelong friends and neighbours, who live in one of the yards of Old Tbilisi, turn into
enemies when an investor shows up to buy their houses. He wants to buy everything
and build office buildings – but for this plan to succeed, everyone has to agree. This
compelling, well-acted and precisely directed film ponders whether the illusion of
getting rich quickly can influence people and destroy friendships and family ties.

MEZOBLEBI
Georgia/North Macedonia | 2018 | 90 min

PRODUCTION: Lasha Khalvashi – Artizm, Tinatin Kajrishvili – Gemini; Small Moves
Films
CAST: Tornike Gogrichiani, Ia Sukhitashvili, Temur Chichinadze
SCREENPLAY: Gigisha Abashidze, Ioseb ‘Soso’ Bliadze
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Dejan Dimeski
EDITING: Nodar Nozadze

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

STITCHES DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: MIROSLAV TERZIC

A powerful film inspired by the true case of a Serbian seamstress who had been
searching for her “dead son” for almost two decades. Best European Film at this
year’s Berlinale.

Based on true events, the film takes place in contemporary Belgrade, 18 years after
a young seamstress was coldly informed of her newborn’s sudden death. She still
believes the infant was stolen from her in hospital. Dismissed by others as paranoid
and with a mother’s determination, she summons the strength for one last battle
against the police, the hospital bureaucracy and even her own family to uncover the
truth. An emotional story of one of a hundred families who have suffered the same
fate in Serbia, featuring Snezana Bogdanovic, one of the most prominent actresses
from former Yugoslavia. The film had its world premiere in the Panorama section at
Berlinale and won the Europa Cinemas Label for great direction, cinematography,
script, editing and superior performances.

SAVOVI
Serbia/Slovenia/Croatia/Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2019 | 97 min

PRODUCTION: West End Productions; Nora Production Group, Spiritus Movens,
SCCA/pro.ba
CAST: Snezana Bogdanovic, Marko Bacovic, Jovana Stojiljkovic
SCREENPLAY: Elma Tataragic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Damjan Radovanovic
EDITING: Milena Z. Petrovic

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

THE DELEGATION DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: BUJAR ALIMANI

An Albanian government official is sent on a mission to a faraway prison in order to
bring an important dissident back to the capital. But nothing goes as planned. Win-
ner of the Grand Prix at the Warsaw IFF and Trieste FF.

October 1990, the communist regime in Albania is trying to hold on to power. A Eu-
ropean delegation comes to Tirana to monitor the government’s implementation of
reforms. In a remote area of the country, a political prisoner is transferred overnight
without knowing where or why. The car transporting him breaks down deep in the
mountains. The prisoner gets acquainted with his two guards, officials devoted to
the Albanian Communist Party. Their personal stories intertwine and tensions burst,
just like the history of a country in turmoil.

DELEGACIONI
Albania/France/Greece/Kosovo | 2018 | 77 min

PRODUCTION: Emir Turkeshi Gramo - Art Film; Zorba Production, Graal Films, Bleri
Production
CAST: Viktor Zhusti, Ndricim Xhepa, Xhevdet Feri, Richard Sammel
SCREENPLAY: Artan Minarolli
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Ilias Adamis
EDITING: Bonita Papastadhi

PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus – Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

THE PIG DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: DRAGOMIR SHOLEV

After making remarkable debut, Sholev is back with compelling, atmospheric and
hyper realistic teenage drama about school violence and adolescent loneliness,
masterfully directed with non-professional actors.

A shy, chubby, 13-year-old boy is bullied by his classmates every day. Living with
just his grandmother while his parents work abroad, he is a lonely and introverted
outsider who never responds to the insults and the mockery. Until one day, pushed
to his limits, he instinctively hits back with a single, but probably fatal strike which
finally puts him into self-initiation. The film premiered at the Sofia International Film
Festival 2019, where it won the Special Jury Award, the Best Bulgarian Feature Film
Award and the FIPRESCI Prize.

PRASETO
Bulgaria/Romania | 2018 | 96 min

PRODUCTION: Elena Mosholova, Dragomir Sholev - Gorilla Films; Nu Boyana, B2Y,
Screening Emotions, Papillon Film
CAST: Rumen Georgiev, Andrea Zahariev, Filip Pavlov
SCREENPLAY: Dragomir Sholev, Martin Iliev
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Georgi Andreev
EDITING: Vesela Vidolova, Dragomir Sholev

PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Bulgarian New Voices

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CURRENT RELEVANT CINEMA

VOLCANO

DIRECTOR: ROMAN BONDARCHUK
The new voice of Ukrainian cinema, after winning awards with “Ukrainian Sheriffs”,
comes back with this amazing surreal narrative: “In deserted land of South Ukraine,
in this dramatic moment of history in my country, I found a wild and forgotten place
of anarchy; a new provincial order, where people live their own lives, some of them
even without any documents or connection to the state”.
A series of odd coincidences has left Lukas, an interpreter for an OSCE military
checkpoint inspection tour, stranded near a small southern Ukrainian steppe town.
With nowhere to turn, this city boy finds shelter at the home of a colourful local
named Vova. With Vova as his guide, Lukas is confronted by a universe beyond his
imagination, one in which life seems utterly detached from any identifiable structure.
Fascinated by his host and his host’s daughter Marushka, with whom he is rapidly
falling in love, Lukas’s contempt for provincial life slowly melts away and sets him
on a quest for a happiness he had never known could exist. An amusing, weird road
trip, beautifully shot, that ponders over self-recognition and happiness. More than a
film, an experience!

VULKAN
Ukraine/Germany/Monaco | 2018 | 106 min

PRODUCTION: Olena Yershova – Tato Film; Elemag Pictures, KNM, South
CAST: Serhiy Stepansky, Viktor Zhdanov, Khrystyna Deilyk
SCREENPLAY: Alla Tyutyunnik, Roman Bondarchuk, Dar’ya Averchenko
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Vadym Ilkov
EDITING: Mykola Bazarkin, Heike Parplies

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GRAND LOVE AFFAIRS - OLD GOLD

A YEAR OF THE QUIET SUN

DIRECTOR: KRZYSZTOF ZANUSSI
A sensual romantic drama in which love doesn’t need many words in order to be
expressed. One of the most moving love stories in East European cinema. Winner of
the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival.
In a devastated Polish territory, shortly after World War II, a middle-aged American
soldier falls deeply in love with a poor widow. She lives with her ill elderly mother,
while her only joy in life is painting and discovering beauty in the surrounding sad
landscape. His desire is to take her to the United States and start a new life together.
However, life has made other plans for them. The plot’s simplicity of this tenderly
tragic and beautifully shot film strengthens the power of suggestion, while silently
inspiring performances by leading actors bring it to the level of a masterpiece.

ROK SPOKOJNEGO SLONCA
Poland/Germany/USA | 1984 | 110 min

PRODUCTION: Michael Bohme, Hartwig Schmidt, Michal Szczerbic, Regina Ziegler
CAST: Maja Komorowska, Scott Wilson, Hanna Skarzanka
SCREENPLAY: Krzysztof Zanussi
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Slawomir Idziak
EDITING: Marek Denys

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GRAND LOVE AFFAIRS - OLD GOLD

KUDUZ DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: ADEMIR KENOVIC

30 years after it was made, Kuduz remains a cult film that has survived the test
of time and is still being loved by generations of ex-Yugoslavs. Inspired by a real
person, who after returning from prison, chooses a quiet family life with stunningly
beautiful woman. However, her behaviour triggers a chain of events that destroy
their love. This compelling love story won dozens of awards, including Golden Arena
for Best Actress and Audience Award in Pula.
Set in 1985, in a grim city periphery, the story follows Becir Kuduz, a convicted
criminal, who returns home after serving time in prison for assaulting a policeman.
Soon after, he meets Badema, an attractive, flirty young woman who has a child
from a previous marriage. To everyone’s excitement, they fall in love and get married.
Kuduz is a loving husband and a father to his wife’s daughter. However, Badema’s
refusal to be what is expected of her, as a wife and a mother in traditional Bosnian
environment, triggers fits of rage and jealousy in Kuduz. The initial happiness of the
newlyweds turns into a series of quarrels and fights, pleadings and reconciliations,
culminating in a tragic end.

KUDUZ
Yugoslavia | 1989 | 105 min

PRODUCTION: FRZ Bosna, Avala Film, RTV Sarajevo, Radomir Maric Raka

CAST: Slobodan Custic, Snezana Bogdanovic, Ivana Legin,

Branko Djuric, Mustafa Nadarevic

SCREENPLAY: Abdulah Sidran, Ademir Kenovic

CINEMATOGRAPHY: Mustafa Mustafic Sponsor:

EDITING: Christel Tanovic

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FAMILY FILMS

GAJA’S WORLD DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: PETER BRATUSA

Entertaining Slovenian family comedy with a little crime story! A huge hit in domestic
cinemas as well as the Best Film in Children’s Programme at the Sarajevo Film Fes-
tival and Motovun Buzz@teen.

As her mother joins Doctors without Borders in Africa, Gaja now lives (together with
her father and sister, Tea) in a recently dissolved family that strives to get on its feet
again. She plays the saxophone, helps her father in everyday family routine and
hangs out with her best friend Matic, a computer freak and eternal victim of school
bullies. But nothing can keep Gaja from standing by him at every step. Together they
will face a perilous situation and have to help Tea and her friend, who gets entangled
in the dangerous world of online threats because of their teenage naivety. The film
addresses teenagers as well as their parents with dynamic, humour, emotion, and
suspense.

GAJIN SVET
Slovenia | 2018 | 88 min | English subtitles

PRODUCTION: Peter Bratusa, Tilen Ravnikar - Felina Films; RTV Slovenija
CAST: Tara Milharcic, Sebastian Cavazza, Neza Smolinsky, Anze Gorenc
SCREENPLAY: Peter Bratusa, Spela Levicnik Oblak
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Mirko Pivcevic
EDITING: Tomislav Pavlic

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FAMILY FILMS

MY GRANDPA IS AN ALIEN

DIRECTORS: MARINA ANDREE SKOP / DRAZEN ZARKOVIC
An extraordinary adventure of a girl and a robot on a mission to save her partly alien
family. An inventive sci-fi children’s film that parents will enjoy too. Winner of the
Golden Arenas for Best Visual Effects and Best Cinematography at the Pula Film
festival.
In a single moment, Una’s entire life is turned upside down; the girl’s grandpa is
kidnapped by aliens and her mum collapses and ends up in a hospital. Left alone in
the house, Una discovers that her grandpa is an alien himself. His spaceship hit the
planet some time ago, and its pilot, a little grumpy robot, still remains! Una and the
robot have less than 24 hours to find and rescue her grandpa. Their mission leads
to a new friendship. The rational robotic logic gets replaced by emotions, and Una’s
selfless love ultimately saves her partly alien family.

MOJ DIDA JE PAO S MARSA
Croatia/Luxembourg/Norway/Czech Republic/Slovakia/Slovenia/
Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2019 | 79 min | Dutch subtitles

PRODUCTION: Darija Kulenovic Gudan, Marina Andree Skop – Studio dim; Wady
Films, Filmbin, MasterFilm, Artileria, Senca Studio, Fabrika Sarajevo, Croatian Radio-
television, Magiclab, Art Rebel 9
CAST: Lana Hranjec, Ozren Grabaric (voice), Alex Rakos
SCREENPLAY: Branko Ruzic, Pavlica Bajsic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Sven Pepeonik
EDITING: Marina Andree Skop

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DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

ARAF DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: DIDEM PEKUN

A poetic and haunting elegy of displacement shot in Bosnia by the Turkish director
and film scholar. The film premiered at Berlinale and won the Human Rights Award
at Sarajevo Film Festival.

A’raf - a Turkish word for limbo or purgatory – symbolises the borderland between
heaven and hell for those who are, from incapacity, neither morally bad nor good,
according to Qur’an. In this very special essayistic road movie, we follow a diary of
Nayia, a ghostly character who travels between Srebrenica, Sarajevo and Mostar in
Bosnia and Herzegovina. She has been in exile since the war and returns for the me-
morial of the Srebrenica genocide. Her diary notes merge with the myth of Daedalus
and Icarus – Icarus being the name given to the winner of a bridge-diving compe-
tition in her home country. This years-old tradition in Mostar appears as a central
motif of the film. The carefully chosen visual style with black and white photography
remarkably emphasises the emotional state and grief of people at the Srebrenica
Memorial.

ARAF
Greece/Turkey/Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2018 | 45 min

PRODUCTION: Maria Thalia Carras, Olga Hatzidaki – Locus Athens; Didem Pekun
CAST: Dino Bajric as Icarus
SCREENPLAY: Didem Pekun
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Petros Nousias
EDITING: Didem Pekun

24

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

BEFORE FATHER GETS BACK DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: MARI GULBIANI

A compelling story of two lovely teenage girls from a small Georgian village where
many fathers went abroad and joined ISIS. Their dream of going to school, having
fun by making amateur movies, and having normal life as before, begins to fall apart
when the fathers come back.

Iman and Eva live in Pankisi, a small, remote region in Georgia, traditionally inhab-
ited by moderate Muslims. Most of them originate from neighbouring Chechnya.
Against the will of the older generation, a growing number of young Pankisians have
converted to Wahhabism, a conservative and strict form of Islam. As a result of their
radicalization, many young men joined the war in Syria, leaving their families behind.
Most of village people are living in a constant fear of their relatives sacrificing their
lives in the name of God. What will happen when the ones who survived the war
return home? Talented director Mari Gulbiani achieved remarkable closeness with
her characters and made relevant, moving film that makes us think about the world
we live in.

SANAM MAMA DABRUNDEBA
Georgia/France/Germany | 2018 | 75 min

PRODUCTION: Tekla Machavariani – Nushi Film, LuFilms, TV78, Filmpunkt
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Mari Gulbiani, Nik Voigt, Toto Kotetishvili
EDITING: Nina Graafland
SOUND: Matthias Weber
MUSIC: Levan Mizandari

25

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

EASY LESSONS

DIRECTOR: DOROTTYA ZURBO
On the brink of adulthood, beautiful Somalian Kafia breaks free from everything she
grew up with. A poetic and captivating journey of a refugee in today’s Hungary,
learning to adapt to her new life.
Kafia is 17 years old. Two years ago she fled to Europe, escaping from a child mar-
riage in Somalia. She has been living in a state children’s home in Budapest ever
since. She learns the Hungarian language, goes to high school, prepares for the
graduation exam, and dreams about a modeling career. On the surface, everything
seems fine. However, behind that beautiful and confident appearance lies a heavy
heart. Her repetitive daily routine revolves around constant dilemmas and self-doubt
about leaving behind her Muslim culture and everything else she grew up with. As
she lets the camera get closer to her, the film slowly becomes an intimate confes-
sion. What does it mean to break with your past and fully give yourself up to a new
life in Europe?

KONNYU LECKEK
Hungary | 2018 | 78 min

PRODUCTION: Julianna Ugrin – Eclipse Film
CAST: Kafiya Said Mahdi
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Natasha Pavlovskaya
EDITING: Peter Sass
SOUND: Rudolf Varhegyi H.A.S.E.
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus – Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

26

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

I SEE RED PEOPLE

DIRECTOR: BOJINA PANAYOTOVA
A brave and thrilling documentary investigation about the filmmaker’s own family
participation in state espionage during communism in Bulgaria.
After twenty-five years spent in France, due to the emigration of her family from
communist Bulgaria, Bojina return to her home country, torn out by street protests
against the never changing status quo. She carries a camera and a vertiginous sus-
picion: what if her family had collaborated back then with the political police of the
communist regime? And what if they belong to the so called “red trash” that the
protestors want to see disappearing? She decides to investigate her own family
while filming constantly and being ready for anything. Her adventure turns into a
tragic-comic odyssey, a mix of a spy thriller and a family portrait.

JE VOIS ROUGE
France | 2018 | 84 min

PRODUCTION: Roy Arida – Stank, Arnaud Dommerc – Andolfi
SCREENPLAY: Bojina Panayotova
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Bojina Panayotova
EDITING: Lea Chatauret, Elsa Jonquet, Bojina Panayotova
SOUND: Pablo Salaun, Xavier Sirven
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus – Bulgarian New Voices
Focus – Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants
Focus – Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

27

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

IN TOUCH

DIRECTOR: PAWEL ZIEMILSKI
A moving story of immigration, the hopes of those left behind and the desires of oth-
ers who chose to live their country. Winner of the Special Jury Award for Mid-Length
Documentary at IDFA 2018!
The village Stare Juchy, which means in Polish Old Blood, is located in Masuria, area
often referred as “The Land of Thousand Lakes”. Most of the inhabitants have emi-
grated to Iceland since the 80s and nobody has returned. Those who stayed behind,
most of them elderly, hope to see them back. Now, their children and grandchildren
have a different destiny away from Poland, and the only way to keep a relationship
is... Skype.

IN TOUCH
Poland/Iceland | 2018 | 60 min

PRODUCTION: Lukasz Dlugolecki, Haukur M. Hrafnsson — NUR; Join Motion
Pictures, TVP, MX35, Oxymoron, Widok
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Filip Drozdz, Asta Julia Gudjonsdottir
EDITING: Dorota Wardeszkiewicz
SOUND: Pawel Szygendowski
MUSIC: Arni Valur Kristinsson, Martina Bertoni
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

28

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

KINDERS

DIRECTORS: ARASH & ARMAN T. RIAHI
A touching film about hidden potential, creativity, integration, the power of music
and the possible future of our society. It shows new ways of inspiring adolescent
creativity and is a push for a new education policy. The film won the Audience Award
at Diagonale in Graz and the Jury Award in Sarajevo.
Kinders shows a musical world that is more open and richer than the world the chil-
dren came from, a world where they learn to trust themselves. It gives them access
to a day-to-day life in which they are heard and seen and their needs are respected.
Through a music project, we learn from Arash and Arman T. Riahi what really goes on
in our children’s lives - their worries, joys and desires. A mature film about children -
empathetic, merciless, and inspiring.

KINDERS
Austria | 2016 | 95 min

PRODUCTION: Golden Girls Filmproduktion — Arash T. Riahi & Karin C. Berger,
Sabine Grube
SCREENPLAY: Riahi Brothers
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Mario Minichmayr, Riahi Brothers
EDITING: David Arno Schwaiger
SOUND: Claus Benischke, Hjalti Bager-Jonathansson
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

29

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

MOSTAR UNITED

DIRECTOR: CLAUDIA TOSI
Historically important and attractive for tourists, after the war in the 1990s the beau-
tiful city of Mostar has lived its peace as a divided city, separated on two sides by the
Neretva River. The film is part of our Focus program which emphasizes some of the
aberrations of “united” Europe that at several vulnerable spots, even 30 years after
the Berlin Wall fell, is still divided.
For four years Italian director followed a football enthusiast and Bosnian war vet-
eran in his struggle against nationalism. While his fighting in the war ended in the
mid-nineties, the fight he didn’t anticipate at the time is still ongoing. Using football
as his tool, Mensud Durakovic spends his days trying to coach boys from Croatian
and Bosnian part of the city of Mostar. Football techniques are just part of his train-
ing, as the true focus of Mensud’s effort is to develop feelings of unity and mutual
respect for kids from different communities. Football trainings are rare moments of
overcoming divisions for kids who attend ethnically separated schools and live on
different parts of the city, split by a magnificent river.

MOSTAR UNITED
Italy/Slovenia | 2008 | 73 min

PRODUCTION: Edoardo Fracchia — Stefilm International; Petra Pan Film Production
SCREENPLAY: Claudia Tosi
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Brand Ferro
EDITING: Rasmus Hogdall Molgaard
SOUND: Vladimir Rakic
PROGRAM SECTION: Focus — Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

30

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

ON THE WATER DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: GORAN DEVIC

In this touching documentary, Goran Devic captures poetic visuals of his hometown
in Croatia that was once a thriving multinational community. Critics proclaim “On the
Water” as one of his best achievements and the jury of the DOK Leipzig honoured
him because it ‘’beautifully shows that despite the trauma and the scars of war, hu-
manity and survival transcend’’.

A human story of the former industrial city of Sisak told through the rivers that pass
through its centre. Today, the rivers are places of relaxation and leisure. However,
when we meet people who appear on the water or riverside, the social conflicts of a
country in transition arise in all directions. Sometimes the river reveals the remains
of past that left traces in the water. Even though Yugoslavian civil war was more than
two decades ago, this historic period seems like a parallel reality which throws its
shadows over the protagonists. What will remain behind us?

NA VODI
Croatia | 2018 | 79 min

PRODUCTION: Hrvoje Osvadic — Petnaesta umjetnost
SCREENPLAY: Goran Devic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Damian Nenadic
EDITING: Jan Klemsche, Vanja Sirucek
SOUND: Martin Semencic

31

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

PALACE FOR THE PEOPLE DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTORS: BORIS MISSIRKOV/GEORGI BOGDANOV

An exciting cinematic tour through five impressive palaces from socialist times in
Eastern Europe.

Until the 20th century, ordinary people didn’t have access to palaces. This was given
to them with the arrival of communist ideology when collective good was the major
state policy, to remind people there was an ultimate power and brighter future. Here
are the stories of the most emblematic buildings that witnessed historical turbulenc-
es in Eastern Europe in the 2nd half of the century. The National Palace of Culture
in Sofia, Moscow State University, Palace of the Parliament in Bucharest, Palace of
Serbia in Belgrade, Palace of the Republic in Berlin are unique architectural crea-
tures constructed with a lot of courage, as well as a bit of lunacy by the local author-
ities. Each one is the tallest, the largest, has the biggest clock on Earth, or the most
advanced technology of its time. Now that socialism is over, it’s time to go back and
reveal their hidden secrets. A snapshot of the palaces today seen through the eyes
of their architects, former and current directors, and people who took care of them.

Bulgaria/Germany/Romania | 2018 | 76 min

PRODUCTION: Martichka Bozhilova – Agitprop; Filmtank, ICON Production
SCREENPLAY: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov
EDITING: Ema Konstantinova
SOUND: Momchil Bozhkov
PROGRAM SECTION: Focus – Bulgarian New Voices
Focus – Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

32

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

THE DISTANCE BETWEEN DUTCH
ME AND ME PREMIÉRE

DIRECTORS: MONA NICOARA/DANA BUNESCU

The renowned Romanian poet, Nina Cassian, is a fascinating artist whose life is a
unique fight between ethics and aesthetics. She saves herself in fairy tales through
times of fascism, communism, and an unwanted exile into capitalism.

We all wrestle with our past. Some more than others. Romanian Jewish avant-garde
poet, musician, visual artist, femme fatale, prodigious drinker and terminal smoker
Nina Cassian had more than most to wrestle with. Her refuge in the Communist un-
derground during the Fascist 1940s put her first in complicit proximity to the Stalinist
regime of the 1950s. This then propelled her on a collision course with the Ceaus-
escu regime in the 1970s and eventually sent her into an unwanted New York exile
in 1985, when her poems led to a secret police murder. An intensely personal film
about art, belief and politics based on a rich archive of films, music, poems, official
television appearances, never-before-seen private recordings and secret police sur-
veillance materials.

DISTANTA DINTRE MINE SI MINE
Romania/USA | 2018 | 89 min

PRODUCTION: Ada Solomon/Alexandru Solomon - Hi Film Productions, Mona
Nicoara — Sat Mic Film, Diana Paroiu - Romanian Public Television
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Ovidiu Marginean, Rudolf Costin
EDITING: Dana Bunescu
SOUND: Dana Bunescu

PROGRAM SECTION: Focus — Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

33

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

THE STONE SPEAKERS DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: IGOR DRLJACA

This visually superb, poetic, and thought-provoking documentary examines the
cross points between tourism and ideology in four post-war Bosnia and Herzego-
vinian towns. This film by Sarajevo born director who now lives in Canada, was
screened at Berlinale 2019.

Present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country still affected by the civil war in the
early 90s. The Bosnian economy never recovered, and the country remains divided.
In order to cope, many towns have transformed themselves into unique tourist des-
tinations that bring together history, religion, politics and folklore. The tourist sites
promoted are not only a reflection of peopleʼs attempts to make a livelihood, but are
also a means to promote and establish contradicting versions about the countryʼs
past, present and future. ‘’The Stone Speakers’’ explores the cities of Medjugorje,
Tuzla, Visoko and Visegrad through their tourism, slowly unravelling these compet-
ing narratives.

KAMENI GOVORNICI
Canada/Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2018 | 92 min

PRODUCTION: Igor Drljaca, Albert Shin — Timelapse Pictures
SCREENPLAY: Igor Drljaca
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Amel Djikoli
EDITING: Igor Drljaca
SOUND: Aaron Mirkin

PROGRAM SECTION: Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

34

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

THE WINTER GARDEN’S TALE DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: SIMON MOZGOVYI

“The super-task is to show how palm trees and ficuses feel everything that happens
with them and in general, what is the most important: people or plants. It is tragi-
comic film about life: not easy, but still life, with a bit of self-irony and allegory to
routine”, points out Ukrainian director who meticulously filmed this exquisite place
throughout the seasons.

The Floriculture Pavilion, one of the last soviet symbols, is about to end its existence.
Its fate is decided when the elderly employee Valentyna Voronina is asked to retire.
But Voronina does not agree with that. She thinks that all the plants will die without
her, after investing her whole life into them. Meanwhile, a group of mysterious radio-
esthesists find a channel of positive energy right in front of the entrance of pavilion…
The Winter Garden’s Tale is a vivid testimony of changing epochs process and hu-
man unwillingness to change.

ISTORIYA ZYMOVOHO SADU
Ukraine/Czech Republic | 2018 | 75 min

PRODUCTION: Alex Chepiga, Artem Koliubaiev, Taras Bosak — Mainstream Pictures
LLC
SCREENPLAY: Simon Mozgovyi
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Denys Melnyk
EDITING: Mykola Bazarkin, Simon Mozgovyi
SOUND: Natalya Avramenko, Andrii Nidzelskyi, Michal Pajdiak

35

DOCUMENTARIES OPEN DEBATES

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE

DIRECTOR: RAFAL LYSAK
A grandma and her gay grandson trying to find the way towards mutual acceptance
and unconditional love in this very honest, personal story full of emotions and hu-
mour.
Is understanding between a deeply religious 80-year-old woman and her gay grand-
son possible? Are they able to overcome their beliefs in the name of love? A com-
pelling documentary and intimate journey of the director Rafal, who was raised by
his grandmother Teresa and treated her as a second mother. She has invested all
her love and hope in him until he told her about his homosexuality. The news broke
her heart. She sees no other way of life for the young man than marrying a woman.
The best film in the Polish competition at the 58th Krakow Film Festival, premiered
internationally at IDFA.

MILOSC BEZWARUNKOWA
Poland | 2018 | 40 min

PRODUCTION: Produkcja Filmow Jacek Blawut
SCREENPLAY: Rafal Lysak
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Michal Luka, Zofia Dabrowska, Rafal Lysak
EDITING: Piotr Wojcik
SOUND: Rafal Lysak, Piotr Pliszka

36

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

90 SECONDS IN NORTH KOREA

DIRECTOR: RANKO PAUKOVIC
The Croatian-Dutch director has created poetic snippets of North Korean everyday
life, showing the side of the country never present in the news.
Every frame of this 15-minute journey through the streets and fields of North Korea
transports the viewer into the shoes of an ordinary person living in the country. The
director lets you glide along without imposing any moral judgements nor value state-
ments. You can immerse in your own experience of people fixing a broken tractor
by the road, while others are manually watering green public fields and adults dance
and relax in nature. The slow-motion view greatly corresponds with the pace of life
in a country far from the hectic western world.

90 SECONDS IN NORTH KOREA
Croatia/The Netherlands | 2018 | 15 min

PRODUCTION: Ranko Paukovic — Editson
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Ranko Paukovic
EDITING: Ranko Paukovic
SOUND: Ranko Paukovic

37

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

BASHKIMI UNITED DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: LASSE LINDER

An award-winning short documentary of a seemingly small player and a larger than
life story.

In his barbershop, Bashkim from Pristina tinkers with hair and hearts. He shares his
philosophy of life with his customers, whom he treats like guests and talks about his
latest project – shooting a film. Bashkim is the director of his own story. He is trans-
figured from being a marginal figure to having the key role in an aesthetic exploration
of the big concepts in life.

BASHKIMI UNITED
Switzerland | 2018 | 10 min

PRODUCTION: Edith Fluckiger — Studienrichtung Video Hochschule Luzern /
Design & Kunst
SCREENPLAY: Lasse Linder
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Dejan Barac
EDITING: Lasse Linder
SOUND: Kathleen Moser

PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

38

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

CLOUD FOREST

DIRECTOR: ELIANE ESTHER BOTS
A fairytale-like film in which five Dutch girls take the viewer on an imaginative journey
through the memories and images they have of their parents’ experiences of the
war in the former Yugoslavia. A war which the girls haven’t physically experienced
themselves.
In Cloud Forest, the narratives are a combination of facts and imaginations, vague
memories and detailed impressions, transferred from the parents to their daughters
through conversations, listening in, silence and finding information on YouTube. Re-
sulting in a scattered image of a conflict present on the horizon of one’s life. It is in
the darkness, in the shadows, lit by mobile phones, where these narratives can un-
fold. While the girls listen back to their own stories, a mechanism similar to listening
to a narrative shared by a parent, the viewer is invited to listen along and become
part of the intimate spheres of their family.

CLOUD FOREST
The Netherlands | 2019 | 18 min

PRODUCTION: Manon Bovenkerk — Near/by Filmmakers
CAST: Elma, Amira, Alma, Amela, Matea
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Daniel Donato, Herman van den Bosch
SOUND: Sergio Gonzalez Cuervo
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

39

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

GREAT WALL OF CHINA DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: ALEKSANDRA ODIC

A compelling story from today’s Bosnia where the temptation to migrate is omni-
present among the young generation.

A family gathering in the Bosnian countryside brings joy and pleasure to almost ev-
eryone. Maja, an 8-year-old girl is the single family member that is noticing change is
happening, while all the grownups are blind to it. Through a mix of dreamy sequenc-
es and bright daylight, Maja’s realisation of her rebellious aunt Ljilja’s next steps
are revealed. Ljilja, an arty teen, is simply not cut for the post-conflict reality in the
Bosnian countryside. She regards individuality and self-expression, the values that
are not highly appreciated in her surroundings. While she’s getting ready to change
that forever, Maja stands as the only witness of those intentions.

KINESKI ZID
Germany | 2017 | 36 min

PRODUCTION: Aleksandra Odic — Deutsche Film- und Fernsehakademie Berlin
(DFFB)
CAST: Elena Matic, Tina Keserovic, Faketa Salihbegovic-Avdagic
SCREENPLAY: Aleksandra Odic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Katharina Diessner
EDITING: Branka Pavlovic

PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

40

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

HOPE DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTORS: BERNARD BRKIC/LUKA RADOVIC

A modern drama that deals with buried emotions and relationship gone cold. A story
of a man trying to win his ex-wife back, full of comic moments.

Reviving a relationship is a very delicate task, which inevitably brings back bad
memories and calls for caution. As she assumes a distrustful and defensive attitude,
he becomes more and more insecure until the moment when he spots in her bed-
room an old photo of the two of them as a happy couple.
That gives him courage, but his hope is not meant to last long. Bosnian actor turned
director Bernard Brkic co-directed with young Luka Radovic their debut film Hope.

HOPE
Germany/The Netherlands | 2019 | 15 min

PRODUCTION: Studio 104A, Garden Productions
CAST: Katarina Justic, Bernard Brkic, David Brkic, Ronja Seyfried
SCREENPLAY: Bernard Brkic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Luka Radovic
EDITING: Luka Radovic

41

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

I CAN BARELY REMEMBER DUTCH
THE DAY PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: LEON LUCEV
Renowned Croatian actor Leon Lucev has visited our festival several times and was
always received with a huge appreciation for his acting performances. Now we’ll see
him in another role - as a director. His debut premiered at the Locarno Film Festival.
It won the Best Film Award at GoEast in Wiesbaden, and deals with family, pain and
conflicting loyalties.
Goran’s youngest daughter, Zoe, is celebrating her tenth birthday. While family and
friends are gathering and the party is kicking off, Goran receives a phone call with
unwelcome news. Knowing that it would ruin the planned celebration, he hides the
truth from everyone. He tries, with success, to play the perfect host - but one person
senses the powerful emotions that are on the verge of tearing him apart. The director
shows the feelings that protagonist cannot pronounce through cinematography, the
choice of his stylistic devices and the excellent acting performances, emphasized
the GoEast jury.

MALO SE SJECAM TOG DANA
Croatia | 2018 | 21 min

PRODUCTION: Ivana Ivisic — Everything works
CAST: Goran Bogdan, Nina Violic, Daria Lorenci Flatz, Sandro Miljus
SCREENPLAY: Leon Lucev
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Radislav Jovanov Gonzo
EDITING: Ivana Fumic

42

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

IN BETWEEN

DIRECTOR: SAMIR KARAHODA
Emigration is about to tear families apart, but the feeling of belonging determines
an awkward form of expressing their unity. A moving short, premiered at this year’s
Berlinale.
Striving for a better life, many people from Kosovo emigrate. Meanwhile, their par-
ents still hope that the family stays unified. More than just a gesture and as powerful
as a statement can be, brothers and sons who work and live abroad build identical
houses to express the equality and unity in the family. An empathetic portrait of the
families that, by economic necessity, need to live much of their lives separated and
away from their own cultures.

NE MES
Kosovo | 2019 | 14 min

PRODUCTION: Eroll Bilibani — SK Pictures
SCREENPLAY: Samir Karahoda
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Samir Karahoda
EDITING: Enis Saraci
SOUND: Memli Kelmendi, Gezim Rama
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

43

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

ONCE UPON A TIME IN SHANGHAI

DIRECTOR: LEYLI GAFAROVA
The renowned German director Veit Helmer is shooting a fiction film in a poor area
of the capital Baku in Azerbaijan. The area is called Shanghai and its inhabitants
are part of the film. The director’s assistant, Lejli Gafarova, makes a documentary
parallel to shooting of the fiction and the famous actor, Miki Manojlovic, arrives too.
A hilarious and thought-provoking documentary.
Intercepting the footage of the German film crew trying to film around the railroad
going through Shanghai with scenes of the slum’s daily life, the director takes us
on a journey through the last days of a slum in Azerbaijan’s capital. Men talk with a
sense of nostalgia and pride over the petty crimes they’ve committed as youngsters
from Shanghai. Elders instruct children to express their love for Shanghai, while
children talk about the fear they feel when a train interrupts their play at the railroads
and friends end up in the hospital.

ONCE UPON A TIME IN SHANGHAI
Azerbaijan/Germany | 2018 | 35 min

PRODUCTION: Veit Helmer
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Leyli Gafarova
EDITING: Leyli Gafarova
SOUND: Michiel De Malsche, Leyli Gafarova
MUSIC: Emin Sabitoglu

44

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

ONE HUNDRED AND DUTCH
TWENTY-EIGHT THOUSAND PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: ONDREJ ERBAN
An award-winning Czech short on debt and its impact on people’s daily lives,
screened this year in Cannes.
Right now, almost one in ten Czechs over the age of 15 faces the prospect of having
their property seized because of the money they owe. Every day, more and more
people fall into the debt trap, but Karel is on the opposite side of the dilemma - his
job is collecting debts. The young director Ondrej Erban tackles one of the biggest
social issues of the country, and points out: “I wanted to give the audience as au-
thentic experience as possible of what it is like to have your property seized; to give
them a feeling that would stay with them even after the film was over, so maybe they
would have a little bit more empathy for the people who get caught in a debt trap”.

STO DVACET OSM TISIC
Czech Republic | 2018 | 16 min

PRODUCTION: Laura Figurova, FAMU, Filmtalent Zlin Foundation Fund
CAST: Ctirad Gotz, Elizaveta Maximova, Jiri Konvalinka
SCREENPLAY: Ondrej Erban
CINEMATOGRAPHY: David Hofmann
EDITING: Simona Donovalova

45

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

SEPARATION, VIVID DREAMS

DIRECTOR: BOJANA RADULOVIC
Upon return to a dilapidated home, an artist feels caught between the war-torn past
and a bleak future.
After seventeen years, artist Bojana Radulovic returns to her childhood home in
Montenegro. The house is small, made of stone, and in a state of disrepair. Looking
into the past through the plastic sheets with which Radulovic wrapped the house,
she sees the interior. The family pictures hanging on the wall, memories and snippets
of a life long gone. Once a family home, the house is now at mercy of developers
and political changes. Being caught between the past and uncertain future, the artist
feels rootless despite having a physical home.

SEPARATION, VIVID DREAMS
Montenegro/Belgium | 2018 | 19 min

PRODUCTION: Bojana Radulovic — Code Blue Production, Michel Dutry —
Nameless Production
SCREENPLAY: Bojana Radulovic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Thierry Detaille, Bojana Radulovic
EDITING: Marie-Helene Mora
SOUND: Thierry Detaille, Bojana Radulovic
PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Cinema by Migrants/Cinema on Migrants

46

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

THE BRIDGE DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: VALMIRA HYSENI

Kosovo today. The city of Mitrovica is divided in two parts – the northern with Ser-
bian population and the southern where Albanians reside. Visiting family members’
graves can be a real struggle.

After the conflict of 1998-1999 in Kosovo, the city of Mitrovica (previously called
Kosovska and also Titova Mitrovica) was divided into a Serbian and Albanian part.
The Northern part of the city and the Southern part are separated by a fortified
bridge. The graveyards of ethnic Serbs from Kosovo living in the North side are on
the South side, while the graveyard of the Albanians are on the North side. A visit
to the cemetery can be a very dangerous endeavour in the hostile city, although the
dead are free and they can move freely on both sides of the city.

URA
Kosovo | 2018 | 17 min

PRODUCTION: Valmira Hyseni — Shqip Film LLC
SCREENPLAY: Valmira Hyseni
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Boubkar Benzabat
EDITING: Arber Dinarama, Blerdi Malushi
SOUND: Gazmend Zhubi

PROGRAM SECTION:
Focus — Europe, 30 Years After the Berlin Wall

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SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

THE END OF DARKNESS DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: RANKO PAUKOVIC

Croatian-Dutch filmmaker observes female miners in Bosnia and explores how it
feels to spend a whole life working in what is, for women, a rare profession.

For multiple generations from a small Bosnian mining town, the dark coal mine Bre-
za is the fulfillment of professional dreams and a symbol of progress, as well as the
cause of the biggest tragedy. Sakiba, an enthusiastic woman with strong opinions,
stands tall among the majority male miners. She can’t get her head around division
of jobs to ‘female’ and ‘male’, an opinion she has fought since she landed a miner’s
job at the age of nineteen. Walking down the dark tunnels with loose safety regula-
tions, she talks about appreciation for natural light and retirement, when she hopes
to try some new mindfulness techniques her colleague reads about online. Sakiba
was never welcome to drink along a male colleagues in a local bar when payday
comes, but she ends up dancing to the beats of well-known Yugoslav rock band
celebrating her hero.

NA KRAJU TAME
Croatia | 2018 | 27 min

PRODUCTION: Zdenka Gold — Spiritus Movens
SCREENPLAY: Ranko Paukovic
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Jacqueline van Vugt
EDITING: Ursa Vlahusic
SOUND: Ranko Paukovic

48

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

THE LOVER DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: IGOR IVANOV

Love, the most powerful and enigmatic of all life experiences makes the impossible
possible. But what about regained love? A delicate short silent movie to make belief
in love possible again!

A failed circus artist managed to regain his beloved and to pull her from the embrace
of her new lover, using the acrobatic skills she once fell in love with him for.

LJUBOVNIKOT
North Macedonia | 2018 | 8 min

PRODUCTION: Tomi Salkovski — Skopje Film Studio
CAST: Igor Angelov, Natalija Teodosieva, Sasho Petrovski
SCREENPLAY: Igor Ivanov
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Dragan Salkovski, Dejan Dimeski, Tomi Salkovski
EDITING: Vladimir Pavlovski

49

SHORT FILMS, BIG STORIES

WAITING FOR A MIRACLE DUTCH
PREMIÉRE

DIRECTOR: ALJONA SURZIKOVA

A woman’s biggest joy is giving the gift of life to a new human being. The biggest
pain – the loss of a child – helps to see the beauty in life. A film about life and how
miraculous it is that we are alive.

Aljona is waiting for a baby birth. Happiness is in the air, but a huge problem causes
change. The filmmaker turns the camera upon herself and her family to capture the
excitement and mayhem of the arrival of a new-born. When events take an unex-
pected turn, the viewer is drawn into the turmoil and we see the most taboo topic in
the film, birth and death.

OODATES IMET
Estonia | 2018 | 14 min

PRODUCTION: Ulo Pikkov — Silmviburlane; Diafilm
CAST: Aljona Surzikova, Sergei Trofimov
SCREENPLAY: Aljona Surzikova
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Sergei Trofimov
EDITING: Aljona Surzikova, Sergei Trofimov, Heilika Pikkov

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