Student films exude uniqueness, courage and youthful energy, and the selection for the 38th Film Festival Herceg Novi – Montenegro Film Festival (FFHN-MFF) showed the diversity and originality of authors from the film academies of the Balkans, with a particularly notable presence of talented young authors, pointed out the selector of the student selection, director Sara Stijović.
The competition selection of student films this year will be held at a new location – in the Old Town, on Mića Pavlović Square, in front of the Church of St. Jerome and the building of the Music School, from August 24 to 28, every evening starting at 9 p.m.
The selection includes 23 short feature films and documentaries by students from academies across the region – from Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, North Macedonia and Montenegro.
“The basic criteria, bearing in mind that it was a student selection, were focused on the works created during basic or master studies at the art and film academies of the Balkans. The most important were the originality, the value of the script, the directing process, the establishment of style, as well as the overall courage of the young authors to implement a topic or idea that interested them at a given moment, in a certain phase of life and education,” explained Stijović.
She emphasized that student films often exude a special energy.
“What is always particularly beautiful about student films is their youth, courage, and the fact that technical mistakes are forgiven because it is a learning process. These were the basic values that were followed during the selection,” said Stijović.
When asked which stylistic tendencies dominate among student works this year, Stijović said that it is difficult to determine one or two stylistic tendencies because each academy has its own method of education, values within the film field, as well as a specific style and mentality.
“It is one of the greatest values of the student selection, how different the films of students from Slovenia, Cetinje, Belgrade, Zagreb, Skopje… Each school nurtures its own foundation and style, which is clearly felt in the works,” said Stijović.
She assessed that student selection within the FFHN-MFF is extremely important because it is focused on specific schools and countries in the Balkans.
“After more than four decades of existence, it has become a kind of cradle for authors who are just starting out or who are happy to return to it. It is wonderful when I meet people who were once part of the same student selection with me at festivals all over Europe and the world – that is the greatest beauty of this process,” said Stijović.
She also pointed to the fact that, while making the selection and making the schedule for the evenings, she realized how many female names there were among the authors.
“It was not immediately obvious to me, but it was very nice when I realized it. There are many talented girls and boys who work hard. Herceg Novi will certainly be a nice place this year,” Stijović concluded.
The 38th Film Festival Herceg Novi – Montenegro Film Festival will be held from August 23 to 29, and the most important film event of the summer brings to the audience more than 60 productions in three competitive selections and review programs, under the slogan “All the colors of film”.
Within the competitive selection of student films, the creations of young authors from eight academies of the Balkans will be shown: Academy of Dramatic Arts from Zagreb, Faculty of Dramatic Arts Belgrade, Academy of Arts Novi Sad, Academy of Performing Arts Sarajevo, Academy of Arts Banja Luka, Academy for Theater, Radio, Film and Television Ljubljana, Faculty of Dramatic Arts from Skopje and Faculty of Dramatic Arts from Cetinje.
The audience will see four works by students of the Montenegrin Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Cetinje – “Yellow Pages” by Anja Kečalović and “Typing…” by Kaće Žarić, as well as two films made in co-production with the Film Center of Montenegro, “His World” by Uliana Rashkina and “When Friends Part” by Krsto Giljen.
From the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Zagreb, the following productions arrive: “Greek Apricots” – Jan Krevatin, “Robert Flies” – Tadija Čaluković, “Carpe diem!” – Nina Damjanović, “Komorebi” – Lea Tošić, “Kradljivac” – Jakov Benčić and “Fleka” – Sara Alavanić.
The selection of films by the students of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts Belgrade included: “Bazen-rupa” – Ana Vučićević, “Exam” – Ljudmila Korobova, “Echo” – Dan Grabnar, “The smell of fresh paint” – Nađa Petrović, “The future is bright and unbearable” – Milena Grujić and “White work” – Gvozden Ilić.
From the Academy of Performing Arts in Sarajevo comes “All because of a bull” by Emir Solaković, a film made in co-production with Aljazeera Balkans and OKUP Bugojno, and “Good luck, Sara!” Isidore Ratković, co-production with “Realstage”.
The Herceg Novi audience will also see “River” by Uglješa Ranisavljević from the Academy of Arts Novi Sad (co-production with Alaska Film), “Poster” by Ana Korićanac from the Academy of Arts Banja Luka, “Shadows of the Moon” by Tina Velichkovikj from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts Skopje, as well as two works by students of the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television from Ljubljana – “Flowering” by Lara Šifrer and “Mediterranean” by Emma Paš.
The awards within the competitive selection of the student film will be decided by an expert jury consisting of: screenwriter and writer Maja Volk, actor and producer Hazim Begagić and playwright Aleksandar Radunović Popaj.
The patrons of the 38th Film Festival Herceg Novi – Montenegro film festival are the Ministry of Culture and Media of Montenegro and the Municipality of Herceg Novi, and the executive producer is the Public Institution of Culture “Herceg-fest”.
