Sarajevo‘s Hotel Europe is bustling in preparation for tonight‘s European Union gala for the centennial of Archduke Franz Ferdinand‘s assassination. But the disgruntled staff plans to strike because they haven‘t been paid for two months.

If this prestigious political dinner fails, the already mortgaged hotel will be shut down by the bank. With no time to lose to stop the strike, hotel manager Omer must turn to tough guy Enzo, who runs the cellar strip club. The staff union rep soon goes missing.

Dedicated and pretty chief receptionist Lamija does her absolute best to keep everything running smoothly toward the big event. But things get tricky when her mother Hatidza, of the laundry room, is elected strike leader. The VIP keynote speaker doesn‘t have much time to prepare, and he stumbles through complex details and names. The French guest‘s rehearsals in his room are secretly recorded in B&W. Surveillance is high (literally) due to a nose-happy video security guy.

On the hotel roof, TV journalist Vedrana conducts interviews for a centennial special. Among her guests is Gavrilo Princip, the namesake descendant of the Archduke‘s assassin. Firm political stances quickly lead to age-old arguments. From the hotel roof to the cellar club, via the reception, laundry room and kitchen, increasing tensions turn the Hotel Europe into an ideological pressure cooker.

DEATH IN SARAJEVO is Danis Tanovic’s seventh feature film, and actually his first shot entirely in his hometown of Sarajevo. Danis' last feature, TIGERS, was shot in India with Bollywood superstar Emraan Hamshi as a salesman who begins a dangerous battle against his company when he discovers that their baby formula is killing children. The tense drama made its world premiere at the 2014 Toronto Film Festival. His previous feature, AN EPISODE IN THE LIFE OF AN IRON PICKER, won two Silver Bears at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, including Best Actor for Nazif Mujic, who made his debut re-enacting his own story in the film. The film was shortlisted for the Oscars in the Academy‘s 9 Best Foreign Films group. Tanovic’s 2001 debut feature NO MAN‘S LAND won the Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. Set in the midst of the Bosnian war in 1993, NO MAN‘S LAND also won Best Script prizes at the Cannes FF and European Film Awards. The film received over 40 international awards, making it one of the most awarded first feature films in history.

Filmography
2014 – TIGERS
2013 – AN EPISODE IN THE LIFE OF AN IRON PICKER
2010 – CIRKUS COLUMBIA
2009 – TRIAGE aka SHELL SHOCK
2005 – L‘ENFER (HELL)
2001 – NO MAN‘S LAND