At this year’s Pula Film Festival, Serbian authors have achieved extraordinary recognition and success, with award-winning films by Nikola Ležaić, Vuk Ršumović, Emilija Gašić and Marko Đorđević.
At the 72nd edition of the prestigious film festival, Serbian films notably won six Golden Arenas and one special award.
The greatest triumph was achieved by the family drama How Come It’s All Green Out Here? by screenwriter and director Nikola Ležaić, shown as part of the Minority Croatian co-production program. The film was awarded three Golden Arenas: for best film, for the best male role, where the award went to Filip Đurić and for the best cinematography, by Aleksandar Pavlović.
“In the film How Come It’s All Green Out Here? Nikola Ležaić speaks with restrained emotion about his lost homeland, transience and belonging. About a world from which one cannot completely leave, nor truly return to – a world which has disappeared, but remains deeply imprinted on the one who originates from it.”
The film Between the Gods by screenwriter and director Vuk Ršumović also won two Golden Arenas within the same program: for the best leading female role, played by the Afghan-Iranian actress Ferešte Hoseini, and for the best supporting male role, which went to Nikola Ristanovsko.
The Golden Arena for the best regional film was awarded to the work “78 days” by the author Emilija Gašić, which the jury awarded for, as they stated: “an exceptionally inspired combination of skillful narration and an original formal approach, which tells a universal witness – a witness that broke our hearts, or at the same time filled it with hope for the future of film in the region”.
As part of the Regional Program, a special award was also given to the Serbian film “Za danas tolka” directed by Marko Đorđević.
At the 72nd Pula Film Festival, Serbian films achieved notable success, but by winning these significant awards, they confirmed the strength of contemporary Serbian cinematography.
Pula Film Festival promo photo