The Bosnian-Herzegovinian film "Quo vadis, Aida" by Jasmila Žbanić, about the genocide of Bosniaks in Srebrenica in 1995, won three main awards at the Berlin Film Festival last night: for best film and best director, and Jasna Duricic, who portrays the character of Aida, was named the best European actress.
Immediately after the award ceremony on Saturday, the Regional Academy for the Development of Democracy (ADD) asked the Serbian Radio and Television to broadcast "Quo vadis, Aida" on national frequencies.
"It's time for the public service to take into account the internationally recognized artistic value of this film masterpiece that deals with our recent past and in which a large number of actors from Serbia play... and thus promotes values that will oppose hate speech and war retrorec." writes in a letter to the general director of RTS Dragan Bujošević and the editor-in-chief of the cultural and artistic program Vladimir Kecmanović.
Dragan Bujošević did not answer our phone calls and messages today.
Jasmila Žbanić's film is a war drama about former professor Aida, who works as a translator in the Dutch battalion of the UN in Potočari. After the Republika Srpska army enters the city, Aida's two sons and husband try to find salvation in the UN base. As an insider in the negotiations, Aida has access to all the information and tries to save the family from certain death.
Viewers in Serbia could see this film at the beginning of last December, on the Kinomeeting point online platform. The film has been in cinema distribution in Bosnia and Herzegovina since October last year, and it has never been shown on the territory of the Republic of Srpska.
"Quo vadis, Aida" had its world premiere at the beginning of September last year at the Venice Festival, where it received three independent awards. Since then, he has participated in numerous festivals around the world and won numerous awards.
It was also shortlisted by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the Oscar in the Best Foreign Language Film category. Part of the public in Serbia believes that this election has a political background, especially since the Serbian candidate "Dara from JasenovacPredrag Antonijevica was not shortlisted for the Oscar. The world television premiere of "Dare from Jasenovac" was on the First Program of RTS in April this year.
Before that, this film was shown for seven days in a cinema in Gračanica, Kosovo, where Aleksandar Vučić also watched it. "I am proud that the state has invested serious money in it." "No one wanted, nor dared, to make a film about Jasenovac, and I thank Gaga Antonijević for doing this bravely and openly and for not being ashamed to show it in Hollywood: this is what we Serbs suffered," President Sbije said on that occasion.
The critic of the American film magazine "Verajeti" called the film "Serbian nationalist propaganda".
Only the news about the awards of the Berlin Festival was published on the RTS website. One of the tweets about the news reads: "Imagine, you live under a government that does not allow the screening of the best European film, directed by the best European director, and in which the best European actress plays the lead role."
S.Ć. /Danas /Tanjug
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