Open Air Premiere brings together the most anticipated new films from the region of the former Yugoslavia. The films are screened at UNIQA Open Air Cinema Stari Grad. The audience-selected Best Film in the programme will receive the Prix Cineplexx, established by the Sarajevo Film Festival in partnership with Cineplexx, the leading cinema chain in Southeast Europe. The award aims to strengthen the connection between festival recognition and a film’s success in theatrical distribution.
3 WEEKS AFTER / 3 NEDELJE POSLE
Serbia, Bulgaria, Italy, Croatia, Luxembourg, 2026, 95 min.
Director: Miroslav Terzić
Cast: Jovan Ginić, Branislav Trifunović, Tihana Lazović, Klara Hrvanović, Anđela Alavirević, Andrija Marković
It all begins as a typical school trip. A bus, school friends, professors, casual jokes, small excitements, and the well-known temporary sense of freedom children get when traveling. But gradually we start to feel that all is not well in that small community. Daily glances, teasing, and silences hide something nobody wants to talk about. Zoza is burdened by the death of his best friend who committed suicide three week before the school trip. When he decides to talk about his school friends’ failure to speak up, their decision to turn their gaze away and about brutal mistreatment of his friend, all attention turns to him.
HIDDEN PEOPLE / SKRITI LJUDJE
Slovenia, Serbia, Iceland, 2026, 97 min.
Director: Miha Hočevar
Cast: Blaž Šef, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Luka Marčetić, Barbara Ribnikar, Ana Urbanc, Igor Samobor, Gregor Gruden, Janez Hočevar, Maja Boh, Oskar Perpar
Thirty-five-year-old Guti and fifty-year-old Sig wake up beaten, hungover, and handcuffed together on a riverbank near Ljubljana. Sig, obviously a tourist, suffers from memory loss and can’t remember where he is from or why he is – as he thinks – stuck in Slovakia. He and Guti embark on a journey to recover Sig’s passport and identity and, in the meantime, work on Guti’s dream project: a river raft that will hopefully rebuild Guti’s life, which has fallen victim to a bad divorce, failed bank loans, vicious bureaucracy, and many, many bad neighbours.
HOME / HJEM
Denmark, 2026, 104 min.
Director: Marijana Janković
Cast: Tara Čubrilo, Dejan Čukić, Nada Šargin, Sergej Bulatović, Viktor Janković, Jesper Christensen, Dubravka Drakić, Zlatko Burić, Lene Maria Christensen, Claes Bang, Trine Dyrholm, Olga Odanović
In 1991, amidst the Balkan region’s dissolution and prompted by the unfolding events, 6-year-old Maja and her parents, make the decision to journey from Yugoslavia to Denmark. However, their encounter with the promised land proves to be a challenging ordeal for the small family, particularly for Maja. She observes in wonder as her parents desperately try to adapt to an entirely new world with its peculiar rules and traditions. But soon they realize that their new home is far from the fairytale land they dreamed of. Maja witnessing her parents’ difficulties, quickly learns Danish and consequently shoulders the responsibility of an adult to support them.
HONEY BUNNY / KOKE
Croatia, Serbia, 2026, 97 min.
Director: Igor Jelinović
Cast: Snježana Sinovčić Šiškov, Aleksandra Janković, Šimun Šitum, Stojan Matavulj, Leon Lučev, Ana Marija Veselčić, Mare Rodin, Dara Vukić
Tonina, a caring and confident accountant, runs her company together with her husband and daughter, and holds all the strings of the family logistics. Along with all these obligations, Tonina is taking care of her bedridden mother, who is suffering from dementia. Her younger sister Tajana and her family have a much more easygoing and less ambitious approach to life. The sisters clash when Tonina secretly buys out a part of the family’s island house from a cousin, even though the sisters had agreed to buy it together.
THE LOST SON / IZGUBLJENI SIN
Slovenia, Greece, Croatia, Italy, North Macedonia, 2026, 100 min.
Director: Darko Štante
Cast: Jure Henigman, Nejc Cijan Garlatti, Lara Maria Vouk, Tamara Avguštin, Nika Rozman, Svit Šturbej, Liam Benjamin Štante, Igor Samobor, Goran Bogdan
Andrej, a seasoned criminal investigator, faces a shocking revelation when he encounters his estranged brother, Kristian, as a domestic violence perpetrator. As he grapples with guilt and tries to mend their relationship, parallels between Kristian’s behaviour and that of their abusive father emerge. This personal turmoil and Andrej’s professional life intertwine, leading to substance abuse and strained relationships. A tragic turn of events pushes Andrej to confront his past trauma, which culminates in a heartbreaking confrontation with his father. As he seeks redemption and reconciliation, his life takes another devastating turn when Kristian commits a horrific act, forcing Andrej to confront the depths of familial turmoil and personal responsibility.
THE VIRUS OF PATHOLOGICAL KINDNESS / VIRUS PATOLOŠKE DOBROTE
Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2026, 99 min.
Director: Predrag Ličina
Cast: Hristina Popović, Nikola Đuričko, Gordan Kičić, Tihana Lazović Trifunović, Goran Bogdan, Rade Šerbedžija
On a snowy Zagreb night in 1983, a stranger inexplicably turns up at Zorka Vasiljević’s flat claiming he has arrived from the future using a time machine. His stunning predictions of the events of that night and disturbing stories of what lies ahead force Zorka to decide if she believes him or not. Is the future of humankind really dependent on her decisions?
THE WIDOWER / UDOVAC
Bosnia and Herzegovina, 2026, 102 min.
Director: Hari Šečić
Cast: Izudin Bajrović, Faketa Salihbegović – Avdagić, Lana Stanišić, Nermin Omić, Edin Koja Avdagić, Gordana Boban, Emina Muftić, Dino Bajrović, Emir Fejzić, Mediha Musliović, Alija Aljović, Damir Kustura, Emina Macić, Ata Bećiragić
Mirsad is a 62-year-old electrician who was raised and lives in a patriarchal society. His daily routine changes after the sudden death of his wife Enisa. Mirsad stays alone while his grown children live their own lives. As Mirsad tries to get used to a life without his wife, he realizes that he took her for granted and had not given her the love and care she deserved. Mirsad’s relationship with his estranged son worsens after he discovers that the son lives with a male friend.
The 32nd Sarajevo Film Festival will take place from 14 to 21 August 2026.
