We will screen 16 short, feature and documentary films that reflect the
diversity of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian experience. It is a rich and
powerful body of work and you won't want to miss it!
The
selection includes the world premieres of "Gold Diggers," "Framed,"
"Searching for the Devil" and "If I Don't"; U.S. premieres of "A Short
Story,""85 Seconds," "Short for Vernesa B.," "The West in the East,""The
Neverending Story," and New York premiere of "The Fuse: or How I Burned
Simon Bolivar." We will also showcase feature films: "Jasmina," "Circus
Columbia" and "In the Land of Blood and Honey," as well as
documentaries "A Cell Phone Movie," "The Witness" and "I came to
Testify."
These films explore various themes: return to nature;
miners trapped underground; the filmmaking potential of cell-phone
camera; typecasting of a Bosnian actress; mysterious prophecies; the
magical frame; the hunt for the devil; fashion; adoption; children in
the war; return from the exile; the siege of Sarajevo; violence against
women and search for justice.
After select screenings, filmmaker
Q&A will help provide more context. All films are either in English
or have English subtitles.
Schedule:
Thursday, May 3 2012:
7 p.m. - Circus Columbia
Danis Tanović, 2010 | 113 minutes, Feature
Divko
Buntic returns to his former home after a 20-year exile in Germany.
Returning with an attractive young girlfriend, a flashy new Mercedes, a
pocketful of cash, and a lucky black cat, things are looking good for
Divko. When his cat goes missing things begin to fall apart: trouble
with his girlfriend and the fledgling relationship with his estranged
son are strained as the entire town scrambles to find the cat and
collect the cash reward being offered. Divko's personal tumult mirrors
the country's situation at large with signs appearing that the Bosnian
War is coming. As the war looms, tensions run high and Divko must decide
whether to stay in his newly reestablished home or retreat. "Circus
Columbia" won the Audience Award at the 16th Sarajevo Film Festival.
Location: Block #1
Friday, May 4 2012:
7 p.m. - The Witness (Svjedok)
Haris Bilajbegović, 2012 | 42 minutes, Documentary
"The
Witness" is a visually powerful reinterpretation and dramatization of
Raif Begic's experiences during the war in Bosnia. It is a film about
bravery of a survivor who is not afraid to tell his story as a key
witness at the Hague Tribunal as well as at the Superior Court of Bosnia
and Herzegovina against soldiers of the Army of Republika Srpska, later
found guilty of war crimes. Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the
World Premiere for "The Witness."
Location: Block #2
7 p.m. - I Came to Testify
Pamela Hogan, 2011 | 52 minutes, Documentary
Narrated
by Matt Damon, "I Came to Testify" is a moving story of how a group of
16 women who had been imprisoned and raped by Serb-led forces in the
Bosnian town of Foca broke history's great silence and stepped forward
to take the witness stand in an international court of law. Their
remarkable courage resulted in a triumphant verdict that led to new
international laws about sexual violence in war. This gripping
documentary has won the 2012 Gracie Award for Outstanding Series.
Location: Block #2
9 p.m. - 85 Seconds (85 sekundi)
Ada Sokolović, 2011 | 2 minutes, Short Fiction
A
short film based on author's actual experience during the Siege of
Sarajevo in 1993. The film is a minimalist approach to storytelling
about moments that can change one's life. "85 seconds" shows the power
of one of those moments. Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the U.S.
Premiere for "85 Seconds."
Location: Block #3
9 p.m. - Neverending Story (Priča bez kraja)
Elvir Muminović, 2011 | 15 minutes, Short Fiction
After
Emir and Kirsten lose their child in late pregnancy, they decide to
adopt a child from Bosnia. At the moment when they arrive to take the
child for a trial period, Emir finds out that the child is of the
Bosnian Serb nationality. The film addresses the issue of the post war
traumas and how the new generation of Bosnians are affected by it.
Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the U.S. Premiere for "Neverending
Story."
Location: Block #3
9 p.m. - Jasmina
Nedžad Begović, 2010 | 89 minutes, Feature
An
asthmatic grandmother (Safa) and her six-month-old granddaughter have
arrived with a humanitarian convoy from the war-torn Sarajevo to a
peaceful town on the Adriatic. Their neighbor, Stipe, is an alcoholic
bum, and bent on making their life hell. During one of her asthma
attacks, having no other choice, Safa knocks at Stipe's door and hands
the baby over to him. After she passes away, Stipe clumsily begins to
take care of the baby girl. Over time, the girl becomes his reason for
living. He no longer tries to get rid of her.
Location: Block #3
Saturday, May 5 2012:
4 p.m. - Framed
Davor Mamuzić, 2011 | 2 minutes, Short Fiction
Arriving
home after hard day at work, an exhausted man gets a rare glimpse of
the future with the magical frame that appears at his doorstep.
Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the World Premiere of this intriguing
short film.
Location: Block #4
4 p.m. - If I Don't
Zinka Bejtić, 2012 | 8 minutes, Short Fiction
"If
I Don't" is a fashion film in narrative form. It reflects on the idea
that clothes represent a choice by which we feel, either trapped or
liberated. It explores the idea to leave the box we all feel that we are
inside and search for and face our fears. It also leads to realization
that our fears are imaginary. Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the
World Premiere for "If I Don't."
Location: Block #4
4 p.m. - The Fuse: or How I Burned Simon Bolivar (Kako sam zapalio Simona Bolivara)
Igor Drljača, 2011 | 9 minutes, Documentary
Using
personal home video footage, this documentary portrays how a young
boy's attempts to avoid a poor grade on a school assignment in 1990's
Sarajevo may have contributed to the start of the war. This short
documentary has been awarded Canada's Top Ten Short Films of 2011. It
has also been screened at the Sarajevo Film Festival, Toronto and
Vancouver International Film Festivals, and at the Cinema du Reel
International Documentary Film Festival in Europe. It premiered in the
U.S. at the SXSW festival.
Location: Block #4
4 p.m. - Short for Vernesa B.
Jons Vukorep, 2011 | 11 minutes, Short Fiction
Bosnian
actress, Vernesa Berbo, leaves war-torn Bosnia and settles in Germany
where, as an illegal immigrant, she tries to continue her acting career.
The only roles she is able to get are roles depicting Eastern European
women as, for example, a Polish cleaning lady, Romanian asylum seeker,
Russian prostitute, or a Bosnian refugee, roles which take her back to
her own personal nightmare. The film has screened at the 17th Sarajevo
Film Festival as well as Courtmetrage, Brussels Short Film Festival.
Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the U.S. Premiere for "Short for
Vernesa B."
Location: Block #4
4 p.m. - A Cell Phone Movie (Film mobitelom)
Nedžad Begović, 2011 | 62 minutes, Documentary
A
doctor orders the filmmaker to walk regularly to get over an angina. In
three years, he covers thousands of kilometers. Taking his mobile
phone, he films and records the things going on around him. We hear him
talking with his family and friends. We share in his view of modern-day
Sarajevo: a polyphonic kaleidoscope, strange and entertaining…This
intriguing documentary won the Best Documentary Award at the 17th
Sarajevo Film Festival.
Location: Block #4
6 p.m. - Gold Diggers
Al Mehičević, 2012 | 9 minutes, Short Fiction
Three
miners trapped underground have captivated audiences around the world.
Their devout wives have now become celebrities. A young lady turns up to
the site uninvited. The wives want her gone but she has a story to tell
– she is having an affair with one of the miners and she wants her
share of the fame. One by one, the mistresses turn up to the site as the
whole world watches the cat fight unfold. The miners are trapped in
more ways than one. Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the World
Premiere for "Gold Diggers."
Location: Block #5
6 p.m. - A Short Story (Kratka priča)
Ibro Hasanović, 2011 | 10 minutes, Short Fiction
An
enigmatic character tells the story (a prophecy originating from
Eastern Bosnia) that has been transmitted orally for over half a
century. The story relates to a prophecy that was given to the people of
a village in 1941 by a local imam, based on the mystical book "Kasida."
The book has predicted the main tragedies that happened during the
second part of the 20th century in former Yugoslavia and predicts more
to come in the 21st. Screening at the 2012 BHFF will be the U.S.
Premiere for "A Short Story."
Location: Block #5
6 p.m. - Searching for the Devil (U potrazi za šejtanom)
Samir Bajrić, 2011 | 31 minutes, Documentary
Shot
as a part mocumentary and part documentary, "Searching for the Devil"
uses humor and real interviews to address one of the biggest enigmas in
human history. Mostly filmed in the area around the town of Kljuc,
Bosnia and Herzegovina, , the project is a debut of the director, Samir
Bajric. The plot explores the possibility of the true existence,
presence and influence of the Devil on mankind. Screening at the 2012
BHFF will be the World Premiere for "Searching for the Devil."
Location: Block #5
6 p.m. - The West in the East (Zapad na istoku)
Nisvet Hrustić, 2010 | 24 minutes, Documentary
A
lover of nature is trying to build a weekend house on his own and bring
water to it from its source in the forest ¾ of a mile away. Combining
Eastern resourcefulness and Western ideas, he uses lumber waste as
building material, preserving the environment while facing
incomprehension and derision by local community. This captivating
documentary was screened at the 16th Sarajevo Film Festival. It has been
awarded the Main Prize in the category "People and Earth/Ecological
Success Stories" at the 37th International Festival of Sustainable
Development Films in Bratislava, Slovakia.
Location: Block #5
7:45 p.m. - In the Land of Blood and Honey
Angelina Jolie, 2011 | 127 minutes, Feature
Set
against the backdrop of the Bosnian War that tore the Balkan region
apart in the 1990s, 'In the Land of Blood and Honey' tells the story of
Danijel and Ajla, two people from different sides of a brutal ethnic
conflict. Danijel, a soldier fighting for the Serbs, and Ajla, a Bosnian
held captive in the camp he oversees, knew each other before the war,
and could have found love with each other. But as the armed conflict
takes hold of their lives, their relationship grows darker, their
motives and connection to one another ambiguous, their allegiances
uncertain. 'In the Land of Blood and Honey' portrays the incredible
emotional, moral and physical toll that the war exerts both on
individuals and people as a whole, and the terrible consequences that
stem from the lack of political will to intervene in a society stricken
with conflict.
This is a Bosnian language version of the film with English subtitles.
Location: Block #6
Date: May 3-5, 2012
Location: Tribecca Cinemas, 54 Varick Street, New York, NY 10013
Ticket: $14
