Universal Cinema Film & TV Journal’s editor, Amir Ganjavie, recently interviewed Rada Šešić, a filmmaker, critic, lecturer, and the head of the Documentary Competition section for the Sarajevo Film Festival. What follows is some of that interview.
Amir Ganjavie, UniversalCinema Magazine (UM): So, does your festival have both features or only documentaries?
Rada Šešić (RS): The festival has a fiction section, separately, feature-length fiction and short fiction. Within the documentary, I’m open also [to], let’s say, non-traditional types of telling the story. There should be, of course, documentary texture or documentary source, but it can be told in a, let’s say, non-classical way. Hybrid films, as well, can be filmed that explore new ways of telling the story with animation or with breaking the borders of the genre and stuff.
(UM): And how are films selected? Do you have programmers?
(RS): Yeah. We have programmers and they choose films. We get submissions, and then we get films. We choose films, we make a program that can fit the profile of the festival, and we take care of the filmmakers when they come.
(UM): The are 21 regions to make up the Balkans, do you have specific quotas?
(RS): Twenty-one countries. Not true for good films. One year, let’s say, 15 films, we cannot have 21 countries represented, so probably some countries are missing, But, that’s not the main aim to represent everybody. It’s more to represent good cinema, what is made in this harvest of that particular season from year to year, what is exciting, what is the opening eyes of the audience after watching the film, what are the important questions being brought by films, and so on.
(UM): What are the major criteria for you when you are selecting good movies? What are good movies for you?
(RS): It’s a film that finds a way to catch the viewer. Of course, a viewer is somebody who sits in the cinema, who paid the ticket to get the story of the film, but also to be moved by the story. To be moved emotionally, to be connected, you need this expressive language of cinema.
Cinema is an art form, and the movie director deals with cinematic language in a way that can move the audience. What I look for is certainly a film that can touch the audience and make them think later on about the film, or it can open some new angles of looking at the world, looking at life, looking at the region, looking at the politics of the region, or the culture of the region, and so on.
It’s important that we see the position of the filmmaker. The film, as we all know, is an artistic expression, meaning it’s subjective. The audience (viewer), as a person, also from his subjective self or herself, is looking to the film, but the film has to pose important questions to open up debates, to bring to the table debates. There are a lot of brave directors who bring taboo topics to the debate. There are directors who, through personal stories, talk about broader issues, either political or social.
I believe that I make a selection that survives the moment. It’s not only interesting for one year, but I think this film is good cinema and can be watched in 10 years, and still be interesting.
(UM): So you’re not against films that explore controversial topics? Are there any red lines?
(RS): There is, of course, a red line of insulting somebody with your film, or hurting somebody with your film. There is some ethical notion, but if the film is controversial about a certain topic, I don’t think that would be an issue because something controversial can bring about this topic to the debate. That can be actually… the director could be surprised by what kind of debate the film could bring. The film has to definitely… we have to see the ethical angle of the director. It’s not that the director can just show anything, but I’m not trying to hide some kind of controversial topics if they are well-made and interesting to show.
The topic is not the only thing. It’s what, but it’s also how this work is made in the film. Film is cinema. I’m not in favor of films that look like a television programs. It has to be author’s cinema, it has to see who is behind this film. They have to see the person behind the film to understand that’s the view of the director. It’s not ultimate truth, it’s a view of the director.
(UM): Do you have educational opportunities?
(RS): [We have an] open call for the talents who want to improve their knowledge and their skills in directing, acting, editing, scriptwriting, camera work, and so on. It’s for young people from the region.
(UM): Are you looking for crowd-pleasers?
(RS): No. What is a crowd-pleaser? It’s like what you presume the crowd might like so you go, somehow, to such a populistic way of looking at things that you are lowering the criteria with your choice. I don’t want that because, on the contrary, I think that the duty and the role of the festival are to put higher the standards, not lower, so the crowd can go and see, and think about it. Even when they want to walk out, they will feel something while they walk out from a certain film.
We had a film from Azerbaijan in our documentary competition some years ago, by Hilal Baydarov (When the Persimmons Grew). He made the film about himself and his mother. It’s a beautiful cinematic piece, very slow. This slow cinema type of film, very poetic, contemplative. There is energy happening in the film, so there is no action. A lot of people walked out of the film, but he won many awards. After actually winning this Heart of Sarajevo Award, he made a new film and one more after. He went to Locarno, won an award, then his last film was in Venice. He’s a known director. The audience didn’t really recognize the quality of the film because they are used to watching fast things on television, on their mobile phones, and so on. The slow cinema was too challenging for them, and they walked out. Half of the theater walked out, but luckily, the jury stayed. It’s their duty to stay, and they gave the man an award for the film. Obviously, the director was recognized at the big festivals, the top festivals of the world. I think the role of the curators at the festivals is to find new talents, new voices, to give them space, and not to go for the easy way.
(UM): Any final words?
(RS): If [you the reader] want to make films, I encourage [you] to follow [your] dream because it’s difficult for everybody. It might look difficult like, “Oh, where am I going to find money? How am I going to find somebody?” There are ways and there are many platforms around the world for everybody, for different ages, for beginners, for different topics, and for different groups.
Let’s say, if people of the South Asian diaspora cannot find a way to make a film in Canada, there are ways to present this film in Docedge in Kolkata, for example. That’s a big platform for documentaries where South Asian and Far East Asian, but also Iranian filmmakers could come and present their projects. This platform invites decision-makers, even from Canada, America, and other European countries, to come and watch the presentation, engage, and so on.
There are always possibilities. I think what is important is that you believe that you have something to say and that you believe that you have enough energy to come to the end, and have passion for this topic that you want to say.
Of course, you have to watch a lot. It helps to broaden your view of how films are made and what type of cinema is [around] nowadays because things are changing.
I would say don’t give up your dreams. Follow your dreams and keep your passion alive, no matter your age.
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