The was born amid the Bosnian war, in 1994 during the four-year siege of the city. Sarajevo, the city, and the festival have done much to put that dark history behind them. But as the SFF celebrates its 30 edition, the festival continues to shine a spotlight on films that illuminate contemporary issues and politics, on films that celebrate the power of cinema .
Of the nine movies screening as part of the SFF’s Competition Program, some deal with politics straight on — like Serbian director Vuk Ršumović’s , which looks at issues of identity through the eyes of an Afghan refugee — or obliquely, as with Romanian filmmaker Andrei Cohn’s , set in 1900 but around a clash of religions that still resonates today. “As always, we are looking for original stories, new authors, and above all fresh and bold perspectives,” says Elma Tataragić, SFF’s main competition programmer. “We appreciate filmmakers who take risks with the topics they chose, with the visual language, with the ideas they are conveying.
In the end, I am quite content with the selection. It is very diverse, exciting, innovative, and tempting.” The official selection, picked from 940 submissions, features one world, one European, and six regional premieres, with one film — the -directed — screening out of competition as a gala world premiere.
“This year’s selection is both an invitation and an instruction, it is a possibility and a restriction, a promise and a threat, a safe place, and a c.