Sjaj u očima
Serbia, Montenegro
Synopsis
The film tells the story of Labud, a young student set adrift on the tide of refugees created by the ethnic strife in the region, and Romana a beautiful girl from the wrong side of the ethnic divide who meet and fall in love as displaced people in Belgrade of the mid nineties.
As they fall in love so the "ghosts" of their past visit them and try to keep them apart.
After a series of hilarious events in which the incorporeal attempt to interfere with the lives of the corporeal - love conquers all.
Pure poetic surrealism with a Balkan flavour.
Director's Statement
Meanwhile, I followed the increasing lines of refugees from all over Yugoslavia on TV. These survivors of ethnic cleansing were wandering from one part of the country to another, carrying with them memories of their past lives. I felt very close to them, although I was an entirely different kind of refugee, one surrounded by comparative luxury.
My thoughts on refugees went even further. The modern world was actually full of them. I realised that nearly every big city in the world was full of people who spend their lives far away from their homelands in new surroundings. In that sense, my hometown of Belgrade had become, like London, New York, Paris, Prague and many others — a place full of people unused to it. Even though people born and bred in big cities, including Belgrade, often look down on refugees, they are the necessary strength that protects these places from degeneration and decadence. Perhaps refugees and migrants, despite the sorrow and the surface primitivism that they carry with them, bring the city health and new hope. That is how it all started.
Director's Biography
Cast & Crew
Directed by: Srdjan Karanovic
Written by: Srdjan Karanovic
Produced by: Zoran Cvijanovic, Mike Downey, Milko Josifov, Sam Taylor
Cinematography: Radan Popovic
Editing: Branka Ceperac
Production Design: Goran Joksimović
Costume Design: Saša Kuljaca
Original Score: Zoran Simjanovic
Sound Design: Vladan Koki Korac
Cast: Gorica Popovic (mother), Boris Komnenic (Professor Jablan), Senad Alihodzic (Labud), Ivana Bolanca (Romana), Jelena Djokic (Vida), Milena Dravic (Happy Millenium proprietor)
Nominations and Awards
- Feature Film Selection 2003