Dobrodošli na 29. Sarajevo Film Festival

Welcome to the 29th Sarajevo Film Festival

The 29th edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival remains faithful to the event’s now well-established concept: to screen the best films and drama series for our audiences and to serve as a platform for the development of film production in our region. The slate of more than 220 films from around the world, including forty-nine premieres from our region and distributed across four competitive programmes, is what makes the Sarajevo Film Festival the world’s greatest showcase of film and television produced in South-East Europe.

What’s new in this forthcoming edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival? There are a few programming changes. The Open Air programme has been expanded so that, in addition to the best new movies by international filmmakers which are the biggest draw for the audience, it will also include a segment focused on locally produced films that will be screened at the Old Town Summer Screen cinema. The Summer Screen and Kinoscope sections have been recalibrated so that the Summer Screen will offer a slate of the year’s best art-house films, while Kinoscope will explore emerging trends in the world of cinema.

We celebrate an important anniversary from before the dawn of the Sarajevo Film Festival. The festival is rooted in numerous film screenings and events that were staged by the Obala Art Centre during the Siege of Sarajevo from 1992 to 1995 at the Cinema Apollo. Despite those challenging times, what was collectively known as the first wartime movie theatre offered a desperately needed break from reality to the residents of Sarajevo, who endured the siege of their city for three-and-a-half years. The cinema, located in the basement of the Sarajevo Academy of Performing Arts, was always packed despite the risks moviegoers had to take to reach it in a city under almost constant sniping and mortar fire.

With the strong support of the international film community, various film programmes and retrospectives of the selections of top international festivals, such as those of Edinburgh and Locarno, were staged in Sarajevo without interruption from February 1993 to December 1995, giving rise in 1995 to the Sarajevo Film Festival as we now know it. This year, we mark the 30th anniversary of the launch of the Cinema Apollo. To celebrate that historic moment and the festival itself, we will showcase the favourite films that were screened in besieged Sarajevo. The films will be screened in the same basement where everything started thrity years ago to offer a unique glimpse into the past.

This year’s opening film also relates to Sarajevo’s past but, as its name suggests, with a focus on the future. The festival kicks off with KISS THE FUTURE, a documentary about a man in war-time Sarajevo who, with the help of a few friends, managed to get the attention of one of the world’s biggest rock ‘n’ roll bands, U2, who included the people of the besieged city in its Zoo TV tour. The festival closes with CLUB ZERO, a new film by Jessica Hausner, whose body of work is presented in this year’s Tribute To programme.

Mark Cousins, Lynne Ramsay, Charlie Kaufman, and Jessica Hausner will give public talks as part of our Masterclass programme.

CineLink Industry Days, Talents Sarajevo, our TV Drama Series Awards, conference programmepre-premieres and premieres of new national, regional, and international films in cinemas around Sarajevo, as well as in Mostar and Tuzla, that are also accessible throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina on the festival’s VoD platform are certain to make the 2023 edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival a unique celebration of film and television art in our city, our country, and our region.

Organising a festival like ours is only possible through the generous support of our sponsors, patrons, and partners, including numerous private and public companies, government institutions, and cultural bodies of Bosnia and Herzegovina, local and international foundations, the media, and international embassies in Sarajevo, who share our values and our desire for the Sarajevo Film Festival to continue its development as a prime culture event with strong economic and social impact on Sarajevo and on Bosnia and Herzegovina as a whole. We are grateful for their support. We also wish to thank all the friends of the festival and all others who help put it together, either by working on its organisation all year round or in the preFestival period. Their love of film and their desire to stage a great festival is the real secret of the event’s success.

Once again, we wish to welcome our audiences and guests in the hope that the 29th Sarajevo Film Festival will deliver some memorable moments!

Jovan Marjanović, Festival Director

ŽIRI TAKMIČARSKOG PROGRAMA – IGRANI FILM / COMPETITION PROGRAMME JURY – FEATURE FILM

Predsjednica žirija / President of the Jury

Mia Wasikowska

Glumica, rediteljica, Australija / Actor, Director, Australia

Zlatko Burić

Glumac, Hrvatska, Danska / Actor, Croatia, Denmark

Danica Ćurčić

Glumica, Srbija, Danska / Actor, Serbia, Denmark

Juraj Lerotić

Reditelj, glumac, Hrvatska / Director, Actor, Croatia

Josh Siegel

Kustos Odsjeka za film u MoMA-i, SAD / Curator of MoMA’s

Department of Film, USA

ŽIRI TAKMIČARSKOG PROGRAMA – DOKUMENTARNI FILM / COMPETITION PROGRAMME JURY – DOCUMENTARY FILM

Iva Dimitrova

Programska menadžerica u Chicken and Egg Pictures, SAD / Program Manager at Chicken and Egg Pictures, USA

Niklas Engstrom

Umjetnički direktor Festivala dokumentanog filma CPH:DOX, Danska / Artistic Director at CPH:Dox, Denmark

Péter Kerekes

Reditelj, producent, Slovačka / Director, Producer, Slovakia

ŽIRI TAKMIČARSKOG PROGRAMA – KRATKI FILM / COMPETITION PROGRAMME JURY – SHORT FILM

Balázs Turai

Reditelj, animator, Mađarska / Director, Animation Artist, Hungary

Nina Rodriguez

Voditeljica programa na Filmskom festivalu u Guanajuatu, Meksiko / Head of Programming, Guanajuato Film Festival, Mexico Wim Vanacker

Selektor takmičarskog programa – kratki film na Filmskom festivalu u Cannesu, Francuska / Programmer, Festival de Cannes Official Short Film Competition, France

ŽIRI TAKMIČARSKOG PROGRAMA – STUDENTSKI FILM / COMPETITION PROGRAMME JURY – STUDENT FILM

Kumjana Novakova

Selektorica, profesorica, producentica i filmska autorica, Sjeverna Makedonija / Programmer, Professor, Producer, Filmmaker, North Macedonia

Tomek Popakuł

Reditelj, animator, Poljska / Director, Animation Artist, Poland

Damir Šagolj

Fotograf, direktor fotografije, profesor na Akademiji scenskih umjetnosti Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina / Photographer, Director of Photography, Professor at the Academy of Performing Arts Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

ŽIRI - SPECIJALNA NAGRADA ZA PROMICANJE RODNE

RAVNOPRAVNOSTI / JURY - SPECIAL AWARD FOR PROMOTING GENDER EQUALITY

Jay Van Hoy

Producent, SAD / Producer, USA

Nashen Moodley

Direktor Sydney Film Festival, Australija, Južnoafrička Republika / Director, Sydney Film Festival, Australia, South Africa

Mila Schlingemann

Voditeljica programa u Eye Filmmuseumu, Nizozemska / Head of Programming, Eye Filmmuseum, The Netherlands

NAGRADE / AWARDS

ZVANIČNE NAGRADE

POČASNO SRCE SARAJEVA

Dodjeljuje se u znak priznanja za izuzetan doprinos filmskoj umjetnosti.

Takmičarski program – igrani film

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJI IGRANI FILM

Novčanu nagradu, u iznosu od 16.000 €, sufinansira Turistička zajednica Kantona Sarajevo.

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJU REŽIJU

Novčanu nagradu, u iznosu od 10.000 €, obezbjeđuju Ujedinjene nacije u Bosni i Hercegovini u saradnji sa UNESCO-om.

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJU GLUMICU

Novčana nagrada u iznosu od 2.500 €.

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJEG GLUMCA

Novčana nagrada u iznosu od 2.500 €.

Takmičarski program – dokumentarni film

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJI DOKUMENTARNI FILM

Novčanu nagradu, u iznosu od 4.000 €, obezbjeđuje Vlada Švicarske.

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJI KRATKI

DOKUMENTARNI FILM

Novčana nagrada u iznosu od 2.000 €

NAGRADA ZA LJUDSKA PRAVA

Nagrada za ljudska prava dodjeljuje se za najbolji film iz Takmičarskog programa – dokumentarni film koji obrađuje tematiku ljudskih prava. Nagradu, u iznosu od 3.000 €, obezbjeđuje Kraljevina Nizozemska.

SPECIJALNA NAGRADA ŽIRIJA

Novčana nagrada u iznosu od 2.500 €

Takmičarski program – kratki film

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJI KRATKI FILM kvalifikacioni film za prijavu za nagradu Oscar®

Novčana nagrada u iznosu od 2.500 €

Takmičarski program – studentski film

SRCE SARAJEVA ZA NAJBOLJI STUDENTSKI FILM

Novčanu nagradu, u iznosu od 1.000 €, obezbjeđuje Vijeće za regionalnu saradnju.

SPECIJALNA NAGRADA ZA PROMICANJE RODNE RAVNOPRAVNOSTI

Novčanu nagradu, u iznosu od 7.500 €, obezbjeđuje Mastercard.

SRCA SARAJEVA ZA TV SERIJE

UNICREDIT NAGRADA PUBLIKE

PARTNERSKE NAGRADE

KANDIDATURA ZA NAGRADU EVROPSKE FILMSKE

AKADEMIJE U KATEGORIJI NAJBOLJI KRATKI FILM

Pobjednik ulazi u kandidaturu za nagradu Evropske filmske akademije za najbolji kratki film.

CICAE NAGRADA

Međunarodna konfederacija umjetničkih kina (CICAE) nagrađuje film u selekciji Takmičarskog programa – igrani film. Nagrađeni film će dobiti posebnu podršku CICAE kada je u pitanju pomoć s distribucijom, prikazivanjem filma i dopiranjem do publike, putem mreže od 3.000 kina.

CINEUROPA NAGRADA

Nagradu dodjeljuje Cineuropa portal, posvećen evropskoj kinematografiji i njenim stvaraocima i to u filmu koji, osim što neosporno posjeduje umjetničke kvalitete, također promoviše ideje evropskog dijaloga i integracije. Vrijednost nagrade iznosi 5.000 €.

Official Awards

HONORARY HEART OF SARAJEVO AWARD

Given in recognition of an exceptional contribution to the art of film.

Competition Programme – Feature Film

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST FEATURE FILM

Award in the amount of €16,000, co-sponsored by the Tourism Association of Canton Sarajevo.

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST DIRECTOR

Award in the amount of €10,000, sponsored by the United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina in cooperation with UNESCO.

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST ACTRESS

Award in the amount of €2,500.

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST ACTOR

Award in the amount of €2,500.

Competition Programme – Documentary Film

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY FILM

Award in the amount of €4,000, sponsored by the Government of Switzerland.

ŽIRI ZA EVROPSKI KRATKI FILM / EUROPEAN SHORT FILM JURY

Olga Lucovnikova

Rediteljica, Moldavija / Director, Moldova

Aneta Ozorek

Umjetnička direktorica na Kaboom Film Festivalu, Nizozemska / Artistic Director, Kaboom Film Festival, The Netherlands

Valentine Umansky

Kustosica za film i pokretne slike u muzeju Tate London, Ujedinjeno Kraljevstvo / Film and Moving Image Curator, Tate London, United Kingdom

CICAE ŽIRI / CICAE JURY

Gregor Janežić

Koordinator događaja i kustos filmskog programa u Kulturnom centru Cerknica, Slovenija / Events Coordinator and Film

Programme Curator at the Cerknica Cultural Centre, Slovenia

John Sarkanjac

Reditelj, scenarist, konsultant za scenarij i supervizor scenarija, Sjeverna Makedonija / Director, Screenwriter, Script Consultant and Script Supervisor, North Macedonia

Ula Śniegowska

Direktorica Američkog filmskog festivala u Poljskoj, Poljska / Director, American Film Festival in Poland, Poland

CINEUROPA ŽIRI / CINEUROPA JURY

Pilar Campos

Službenica za finansiranje projekata pri Evropskoj komisiji, Španija / Project Funding Officer, European Commission, Spain

Danijel Hočevar

Producent, Slovenija / Producer, Slovenia

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST SHORT DOCUMENTARY FILM

Award in the amount of €2,000.

HUMAN RIGHTS AWARD

Best film in the Competition Programme – Documentary Film that deals with the subject of human rights. Award in the amount of €3,000, sponsored by the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

SPECIAL JURY AWARD

Award in the amount of €2,500.

Competition Programme – Short Film

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST SHORT FILM

Qualifies the winning film for consideration for the Academy Award® for Best Short Film. Award in the amount of €2,500.

Competition Programme – Student Film

HEART OF SARAJEVO FOR BEST STUDENT FILM

Award in the amount of €1,000, sponsored by the Regional Cooperation Council.

SPECIAL AWARD FOR PROMOTING GENDER EQUALITY Award in the amount of €7,500 sponsored by Mastercard.

HEARTS OF SARAJEVO FOR TV SERIES

UNICREDIT AUDIENCE AWARD

PARTNERS' AWARDS

EUROPEAN FILM ACADEMY SHORT FILM CANDIDATE

The winner receives candidacy for the European Film Academy's Best Short Film Award.

CICAE AWARD

The International Confederation of Art Cinemas (CICAE) bestows this award on a film from the Competition Programme – Feature Film. The winning film receives CICAE support for distribution, exhibition, and audience outreach, through a network of 3,000 cinemas.

CINEUROPA PRIZE

The prize is awarded by the Cineuropa portal, the site dedicated to the European cinema and film professionals, and is given to a film that besides having indisputable artistic qualities also promotes the idea of European dialogue and integration. The value of this award is €5,000.