Three Croatian films at Warsaw International Film Festival
The 31st Warsaw International Film Festival, to be held in Poland’s capital city, will run from October 9th to 18th, and screen three Croatian films. On October 15th, Hrvoje Mabić’s documentary Sick will have its international premiere in the competition category, while Antonio Nuić’s new feature film Life is a Trumpet will also have its world premiere on the same day in the Special Screenings section. The Warsaw festival will also feature Dalibor Matanić’s award-winning The High Sun.
One of fifteen films competing in the documentary film category is Sick, written and directed by Hrvoje Mabić. It is based on a big scandal that shook Croatia, and it features the story of a girl trying to face difficult trauma from her past while trying to get back into everyday life. Fade In, Zagreb Film, and Drugi Plan are the production houses backing Sick. Almir Fakić and Bojana Burnać are the cinematographers, the producers are Iva Tkalec and Morana Komljenović, the editor is Žarko Korać, while Marko Mihalinec and Petar Šimunić are the musical supervisors. The winner will be selected by a jury consisting of Polish director Karolina Bielawska, Canada’s Hot Docs film festival program selector Dorota Lech, and German writer and director Bettina Wilhelm.
The Special Screenings section will feature Life is a Trumpet and The High Sun. This is a non-competition category which screens critically acclaimed, nominated and award-winning films from around the globe.
Life is a Trumpet is a comedy about one wedding and two families whose harmonious coexistence is shaken when a secret from the past is revealed. Antonio Nuić both wrote and directed the film, the cinematographer is Radislav Jovanov Gonzo, the editor is Marin Juranić, the producers are Boris T. Matić, Miha Černec, Jelena Mitrović, Srdan Golubović, Ivan Đurović and Goran Radman, co-producers are Miha Čemec, Jelena Mitrović, Srdan Golubović, Ivan Đurović and Goran Radman, and the film stars Bojan Navojec, Iva Babić, Zlatko Vitez, Mirela Brekalo, Goran Navojec, Filip Križan, Ksenija Marinković and Filip Šovagović. The production houses behind the film are Propeler Film, with coproduction from Staragara (Slovenia), Baš Čelik (Serbia), Artikulacija Productions (Montenegro), Croatian Radio Television (HRT) and the Zagreb Film Festival. Along with the MEDIA Sub-program, the film also received support from the Croatian Audiovisual Centre.
The multiple award-winning film The High Sun, directed by Dalibor Matanić, which is in distribution in Croatia from September 24th, spans three different decades, taking place in two neighboring villages burdened by intolerance and conflict. Through three separate love stories it speaks of the dangers, as well as the strength, of forbidden love. The film stars Tihana Lazović and Goran Marković, and costars Nives Ivanković, Dado Ćosić, Stipe Radoja, Trpimir Jurkić, Mira Banjac, Slavko Sobin, Lukrecija Tudor, Tara Rosandić and Ksenija Marinković. The director of photography is Marko Brdar, and the editor is Tomislav Pavlic. The producers are Ankica Jurić Tilić and Kinorama, and the co-producers are Petra Vidmar, Frenk Celarc, Nenad Dukić and Miroslav Mogorović. The composers are Alen Sinkauz and Nenad Sinkauz, the sound engineer is Julij Zornik, the scenographer is Mladen Ožbolt, the costume designer is Ana Savić Gecan, and the make-up artists are Mojca Gorogranc Petrushevska and Talija Ivančić. The tone recorder is Mladen Pervan, while the assistant director is Dragan Jurić. The film is co-financed by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre.
The international film festival in Warsaw is one of the most important film festivals in Poland. More than fifty feature and short films from all over the world will compete in festival competition categories this year.
For more information regarding the festival please visit the festival’s official website.
Cover photos: scenes Sick; Life is a Trumpet and The High Sun; festival logo
