Introducing the In Focus programme of the 30th Sarajevo Film Festival

“This programme is one of the programmes for which it is a pure pleasure to make a selection. The selection is always different because the films are completely different. Perhaps I could say that this is the most open selection so far, because the authors today are more open than they were before. I think this openness adorns the programme this year”, said Elma Tataragić, selector of the In Focus programme.

Croatia, Qatar, 2024, 86 min.

Director: Bruno Anković

Cast: Klara Fiolić, Lars Štern, Jan Doležal, Nedim Nezirović, Tanja Smoje, David Tasić Daf, Izudin Bajrović, Bernard Tomić, Krešimir Mikić

At the end of the Second World War, Mijo, a soldier, is hiding in the woods. Through examining his life, we explore the circumstances that inspire the growth of extremism. After seeing his father driven by poverty into cruel action, and having carried out the municipal authorities’ unreasonable order to get rid of the family dog, Mijo became easy prey for a right-wing ideology that offered him false hope for a better life and a scapegoat for all the things he has suffered through.

Sweden, Denmark, France, Türkiye, Georgia, 2024, 105 min.

Director: Levan Akin

Cast: Mzia Arabuli, Lucas Kankava, Deniz Dumanlı

Lia, a retired teacher living in Georgia, made a promise to find out what happened to her long-lost niece Tekla. When Lia learns from her neighbour Achi that Tekla might be living in Turkey, the pair set off together in search of her. In Istanbul, they discover a beautiful city full of connections and possibilities—but looking for someone who has no intention of being found is more difficult than they thought—until they meet Evrim, a lawyer fighting for trans rights. As Lia and Achi weave their way through the city’s backstreets, Tekla starts to feel closer than ever.

Romania, France, Moldova, 2023, 160 min.

Director: Cristi Puiu

Cast: Bianca Cuculici, Laurențiu Bondarenco, Otilia Panaite, Florin Țibre, Igor Babiac, Roxana Ogrendil, Adelaida Perjoiu, Dorian Boguță, Dragoș Bucur, Marin Cumatrenco

Oana Pfifer, a young therapist, gradually slips into the net of the questionnaire she submits to her patient. Mihai, Oana’s brother, worrying about his birthday, is stuck in a story far bigger than he can handle. Septimiu, Oana’s husband, concerned about his health, vaguely listens to a strange story his colleague was caught up in a while ago. Narcis Patranescu, an organised crime detective, deals with an unsettling dark story while interrogating a young woman at a funeral.

Austria, 2024, 92 min.

Director: Kurdwin Ayub

Cast: Florentina Holzinger, Andria Tayeh, Celina Antwan, Nagham Abu Baker

Sarah, a former mixed martial artist from Vienna, takes up the offer to work as a personal trainer for the three daughters of a wealthy family in the Middle East. In a palace surrounded by walls, with no internet access and constant surveillance of the sisters, Sarah finds that they are not really interested in boxing training. Why was Sarah brought here?

Austria, Germany, 2024, 121 min.

Director: Veronika Franz, Severin Fiala

Cast: Anja Plaschg, David Scheid, Maria Hofstätter

Upper Austria, 1750. A fishpond reflects the grey sky. A deep, dark forest swallows the sunlight. On a hilltop, an executed woman is displayed for all to see. As evidence. As a warning. As an omen? Deeply religious and highly sensitive, Agnes looks at the dead woman with pity. But also with longing, because she feels like a stranger in her husband Wolf’s world—an emotionally cold world consisting of work, chores and expectations. Agnes withdraws more and more into herself. Her inner prison becomes ever more oppressive, her melancholy more overwhelming. Soon her only way out seems to be a shocking act of violence.

Switzerland, Bulgaria, France, Taiwan, India, 2024, 115 min.

Director: Konstantin Bojanov

Cast: Anasuya Sengupta, Omara, Auroshikha Dey, Rohit Kokate, Kiran Bhivagade, Tanmay Dhanania, Mita Vashisht

In the dead of night, Renuka escapes from a Delhi brothel after stabbing a policeman to death. She takes refuge in a community of sex workers in northern India, where she meets Devika, a young woman condemned to a life of prostitution. Their bond develops into a forbidden romance. Together, they embark on a perilous journey to escape the law and forge a path to freedom.

Serbia, USA, 2024, 73 min.

Director: Iva Radivojević

Cast: Natalija Ilinčić, Anton Augustinov, Slavica Bajčeta

Through an intimate reconstruction of an important phone call, WHEN THE PHONE RANG investigates dislocation and the nature of remembering. In the protagonist’s eleven-year-old mind, a phone call erased her entire country, history, and identity, and hides its existence in books, films, and the memories of those born before 1995.