Rada Šešić: Introduction

Holding a mirror up to our times

Documentary makers do not spend their time chasing the latest story. Documentaries are not fleeting, but hold a mirror up to our times. They are able to stimulate the viewer and provoke thought, ask questions, initiate debates. With the films they make, they approach the accurate and actual from a new angles, and express original point of view.

Among this year’s selection of twenty-two films, of which nine are shorts, are three compelling documentaries from Ukraine, a country struggling to survive, its people dying and suffering every day, but nevertheless managing to create valuable artistic dox to share with the world.

The programme opens with two productions: the Ukrainian short film LITURGY FOR ANTI-TANK OBSTACLES by Dmytro Sukholytkyy-Sobchuk, a young director who recently presented his fiction feature PAMFIR at the Festival de Cannes, will have its world premiere in Sarajevo. It was made during the ongoing war and was finished on the eve of the festival. As well, we present the regional premiere of ANOTHER SPRING by Heart of Sarajevo-winner Mladen Kovačević from Serbia, which features masterfully edited archival footage of a smallpox epidemic that occurred in Yugoslavia. From today’s perspective of these (hopefully) post-COVID-19 times, this dramatic story from the early 1970s brings a fresh view to the table, with a new meaning and stimulus.

In our program we visit many countries and delve into various narratives: coming near to the world of football hooligans in Bulgaria; depicting the spiritual needs of youngsters in Ukraine and their evident interest in religion; encountering deeply wounded women from Croatia, victims of war rape; observing the life style of hardworking Macedonians as UN troops in Afghanistan; visiting a language school for migrants in Austria; empathizing with a mother whose child got sexually molested; spending time at a hospital during covid in a provincial town in Bulgaria; peeking into the soul of a Bosnian young girl; witnessing the destiny of a migrant worker from Kosovo; all these and many more exciting stories are offered in our Competition Programme – Documentary Film.

The selection puts a large number of debut directors and producers into the limelight. I also proudly emphasise the significant presence of women as directors and producers.

Our Competition Programme – Documentary Film is a special space that welcomes and enables us to create a certain energy together, one that launches strong films and discusses powerful, relevant stories. The conversations with enthusiastic Sarajevo Film Festival audiences after each film, and at the Docu Press Corner every day, will provide lots of excitement and food for thought.

Welcome!

Rada Sesic Programmer Competition Programme – Documentary Film