The year behind us was marked by numerous artistic events, including film premieres, concerts, exhibitions, and much more. Unlike the pandemic period, 2022 has finally brought our scene back to life.
Honorary guests arrived at the 28th edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival: Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen and American actor Jesse Eisenberg, who were awarded the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo. Mikkelsen stayed in Sarajevo for the first time, whileEisenberg came here before.
We were also happy with the news that the film “Balada” by Aida Begic is an Academy Award nominee from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) for Best International Feature Film. This is the story of Merjem-Meri (30), an unambitious housewife and mother of a girl Mila (8), who returns to her parents’ house after 10 years of married life. Soon after her return, Meri realizes that she is trapped in a vicious circle of provincial laws and rules, as well as in the complex relationship between an ambitious mother and a spoiled younger brother.
It is important to mention that the premiere of the documentary film “Sarajevo Safari” by Slovenian director Miran Zupanic as part of the fifth edition of the AJB DOC Film Festival attracted great interest. It brings a brutal story about the little-known phenomenon of “manhunting”, that is, rich foreigners who paid high fees for the opportunity to shoot the inhabitants of besieged Sarajevo.
Furthermore, the performance “Ay, Carmela” has become part of the permanent exhibition of the Open Depot of the History Museum of BiH. This was the first time that the play became part of a museum exhibition in our country. It was definitely one of the most visited in 2022. Actress Selma Alispahic gave lectures on “Ay, Carmela” several times and had the opportunity to introduce elementary school students to this iconic play.
The play “Rechnitz – The Angel of Destruction” directed by Sabine Mitterecker, which premiered at the Sarajevo War Theater (SARTR), is one of the most significant in 2022. The plot of this play “Rechnitz – The Angel of Destruction” deals with an event that happened on the night between March 24thand on March 25th, 1945, when Countess Margit von Batthyany hosted a feast in her Rechnitz castle in Burgenland for neighbors, dignitaries of the local National Socialist Party, SS officers.
The highlight of that night of drunkenness and debauchery was the massacre of 180 Jews at forced labor. All were killed that night, except for the two who were in charge of digging the grave. They were killed the next day. In Austria, this event was not talked about for decades. Traces of the crime were removed, and the mass graves were never found. This text can undoubtedly connect Austria after the Second World War and the current situation in the region, where crimes have not ended even decades after the end of the war. The play features: Selma Alispahic, Jelena Kordic Kuret, Dzenana Dzanic, Sead Pandur,and Drazen Pavlovic.
When it comes to the music scene, Sarajevo can finally boast of hosting a world star. The legendary pop singer Sting celebrated his birthday by entertaining several thousand Sarajevo citizens at a concert in the Zetra Hall. Before the concert, the musician enjoyed the tourist attractions of Sarajevo.
“He surprised me with his easygoing personality and simplicity. He is quite open, he stopped the driver to say goodbye, and he had patience for everyone who would meet him on the street and ask for a photo,” told tourist guide Mak Muranovic.
The history of the Yugoslav music scene will remain recorded in the Ex-Yu Rock Center in the Youth Center in Skenderija. 200 original artifacts are on display, and souvenirs, photographs, and audio and video exhibits will bring songs and artists to life for visitors from Sarajevo and beyond. Ex-Yu Rock Center will be fully opened in 2024. Several exhibitions are planned, which will be realized during 2023, Klix.ba reports.
E.Dz.
