After its premiere in her home country, Kosovo director Blerta Basholli’s DUA came to Sarajevo audiences as part of the Competition Programme of the 32nd Sarajevo Film Festival. The film is set in Pristina in the late 1990s, as war approaches, and thirteen-year-old Dua tries to find her place among her peers and in her own body.
“This is a very personal story and a film about our generation,” said Basholli, explaining that she wanted to talk about young people who lost their freedom of travel and speech while growing up. DUA is an attempt to talk about the war differently. Instead of scenes of bombing and historical events, Basholli shows the war from the perspective of a teenager – through what is happening inside her. After an incident in the community, Dua herself becomes a target and becomes close to the fearless Maki, who introduces her to an unexpected form of resistance.
For Basholli, researching this period did not require archives. When her co-writer asked her if she did any research for the film, her answer was simple: “There was no need.” Much of her own experience is translated into the character of Dua.
A special challenge was the choice of the main actress, and the role went to Pinea Matoshi because of her authenticity and intuition. The actress herself pointed out that one of the most difficult aspects of the role was speaking in a language that was foreign to her. The actor who portrays Dua’s father joked that his “specialty is playing fathers from the nineties”, which drew laughter from the audience
The music in the film is crucial because it is how a teenage girl manages to stay a teenager. The director pointed out that her generation grew up with MTV, dancing and falling in love even during the war. The music makes the story universal as it testifies to the need to find something personal as the world falls apart. The producer agreed, adding with a smile that music was important – “and expensive”.
The title of the film means love in Albanian, but also “I want”. Due to this double meaning, the authors named the film after the main character. DUA is a film about war, but it does not foreground it. Instead, the story focuses on a young girl who wants friendship, music, and freedom, just like all teenagers – except she and her generation had to grow up in the middle of war.
