Invitation: Sarajevo Film Festival - War, Memories, Identities

Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Dialogue Southeast Europe is partnering with the 28th edition of Sarajevo Film Festival to host the Dealing with the Past program. The program presents authors who became famous with films about real events, as well as new authors who question the position of individuals whose lives have been marked by trauma from the recent past. Read more about the Dealing with the Past program on the Fesival website. On Tuesday, within the DwP program, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Dialoge SOE is hosting screening of three short movies:

What is this country called now? ­is based on the experiences of Aida Čerkez, a Bosnian woman who worked as a reporter throughout the Siege of Sarajevo. In 1994, on the eigthieth anniversary of the assasination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Aida had the idea of finding a witness to that seminal event in world history. She found Ismet, now ninety years old , who was ten years old on that fateful day in 1914. He witnessed the shot that triggered the First World War and continued to live in Sarajevo throughout the years of conflict that followed. Aida interviews Ismet and in the process shares her own perspective on life during wartime. (United States, Director: Joseph Pierson, 37 minutes)

B4 – At the unveiling of a memory plaque where his parents were killed, a director meets the man who saved his life on that very night twenty-six years ago. (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Director: Alen Šimić, 13 minutes)

Cutting represents two generations of refugees who are still trying to create a new identity after the break-up of Yugoslavia. Mirjana and Borislav spent most of their lives in a collective centre in Serbia. Now, they take a journey into the past to embrace the future and make roots and a new home. (Director: Davor Marinković, 23 minutes)

The movie screening will be held at Cineplexx 7 (Zmaja od Bosne), Sarajevo, starting from 19:00 with a welcome address by the 28th edition of Sarajevo Film Festival's Director Jovan Marjanović. The screenings will immediately be followed by an after-movie panel discussion „War, Memories, Identities“  featuring directors Alen Šimić, Davor Marinković, Joseph Pierson and the What is this country called now? protagonist Aida Čerkez. The discussion will be moderated by journalist Hana Sokolović All guests are invited to a guest reception at restaurant Regina (Marijin Dvor, Sarajevo) following the panel discussion.

Please note that in order to secure your attendance at the screenings and the following program, guests are obligated to obtain tickets provided by the Sarajevo Film Festival, because the movies are a part of the official Festival program. Should you decide to attend, we kindly ask you to confirm your attendance by filling out the short form on this link. In any case, we sincerely appreciate if you could share the invitation among your networks.

We look forward to you joining us.