F ebruary is a special treat for film lov- ers. January’s Golden Globe statu- ettes have not yet cooled down, 9 th February sees the start of the pres- tigious Berlinale, while 26 th February is re- served for the most famous of all film fes- tivals, the American Academy Awards, aka The Oscars. It is somewhere between the Berlina- le and the Academy Awards, between 24 th February and 5 th March, that Fest, the annual film festival in Belgrade, has proudly placed itself. This year will be the 45 th time that the Belgrade audience will watch the Berlinale
Njegova sposobnost da sve ovo predvidi u trenutku kad bitka za na- gradu još nije počela zapravo je či- sto iskustvo selektora. Ima nečeg i do kolektivnog sećanja, koje je festi- val oblikovao u zavidnu filmsku kul- turu širokog sloja građana i izdvo- jio vrhunske poznavaoce. Fest je oduvek birao samo najbo- lje. Tako je 1971. prvi Fest otvorio Meš Roberta Altmana, a za njim se pred- stavili Stenli Kjubrik, Teo Angelopu- los, Dejvid Kronenberg, Ken Rasel, Venders, Kišlovski, Hercog i mnogi
drugi velikani režije. Počasni gosti Beogra- da bili su Marčelo Ma- strojani, Sofija Loren, Harvi Kajtel, Bernar- do Bertoluči, Miloš Forman, Katrin De- nev, Džoni Dep... Slavnu prošlost od gotovo pola veka
laureate, but there will al- so inevitably be a few rus- tlings about the fresh Os- car winners. While we write this article it is difficult to speculate about those awards, but Fest selector Jugoslav Pantelić does so boldly, announcing“Man-
Između Berlinala i Oskara, između 24. februara i 5. marta, ponosno se smestio i naš Fest
directors lay low and wait for their work to premiere in Belgrade and to take home the Victor, a miniature replica of Ivan Meštrović’s famous sculpture. And this year once again they will be pleasantly surprised by the re- action of the Fest audience, which is one of the most knowledgeable and sophisticat- ed audiences, just as was experienced by those presented in the aforementioned list. The fact that viewers are so well in- formed is again the result of the festival’s rich programme, which also introduces them to more alternative films, so that everything they see is compared with the achievements of Serbian cinematogra- phy. And it will be like that again this time, with the screening of the film“On the Milky Road”to be followed by other worthy achievements. Rade Šerbedži- ja’s“The Liberation of Skopje”, then Bo- janVuletić’s“Requiem for Mrs J”.This is less famous than its predecessor, but has a chance to draw attention to it- self in the Serbian film segment, in- dicates Pantelić. What makes Fest so magical? The careful selection of offers and the possibility to view in one place everything that marked the sea- son, but will also mark the upcom- ing season. The atmosphere of Belgrade’s Fest has proudly placed itself between the Berlinale and the Academy Awards, between 24 th February and 5 th March
Fest je nadogradio uvođenjem ta- kmičarskog segmenta, pa se mno- gi reditelji pritaje čekajući da delo premijerno prikažu baš u Beogra- du i ponesu kući Pobednika, mi- nijaturnu repliku čuvene skulptu- re Ivana Meštrovića. I ove godine prijatno će ih iznenaditi reakcija fe- stovske publike, jedne od najupuće- nijih i najsofisticiranijih, kako su je listom doživeli oni ovde prethodno predstavljeni. Upućenost gledalaca je, opet, po- sledica bogatog programa, u okviru kojeg se upoznaju i sa alternativni- jim filmovima, pa sve viđeno upo- ređuju sa dometima srpske sedme umetnosti. Tako će biti i ovog pu- ta jer, nakon filma Na mlečnom pu- tu , slede i druga vredna ostvarenja. Oslobođenje Skoplja Radeta Šerbed- žije, rađeno po istoimenoj predsta- vi Ljubiše Ristića, zatim i Rekvijem za gospođu J Bojana Vuletića, ma- nje poznatog od prethodnika, ali sa šansama da skrene pažnju na sebe u segmentu Srpski film , kako nago- veštava Pantelić. Šta Fest čini tako magičnim? Brižljivi izbor ponude i mogućnost da se na jednom mestu pogleda sve ono što je obeležilo sezonu, ali i što će označiti onu koja je pred nama. Atmosferu Festa podgreva i cr- veni tepih, koji nije puki hir organi- zatora, već sredstvo za afirmaciju fe- stivala i filma. U taj simbol glamura biće uperene oči svetske publike tog 24. februara u 19 sati. Beograd će po- novo biti filmska prestonica.
chester by the Sea” and “La La Land” as the favourites in the race for the Oscars, but al- so the race to be the most watched films of the Belgrade Festival. And in response to the question of whether the red carpet in the Serbian capital will be graced by Mi- chael Shannon, star of David Mackenzie’s “Hell or High Water” and Tom Ford’s “Noc- turnal Animals”, or Monica Bellucci, diva of Emir Kusturica’s“On the Milky Road”, which opens Fest, Pantelić smiles mysteriously, not wanting to spoil the surprise. And for PaulVerhoeven’s film“Elle”, with the masterful Isabelle Huppert, a Golden Globe winner, extra tickets will be sought at the Fest box office. At that time Huppert will be shortlisted for a Best Actress Oscar, predicts Pantelić, who would be happy to see her as a guest of Fest. His ability to predict all of this at a time when the battle for awards has not yet started is actually pure selector’s experience. There is also something about the collective mem- ory that has shaped the festival into an en- viable film culture among large sections of citizens and singled out top connoisseurs. That’s because Fest has always selected the best. So it was that the first Fest, in 1971, was opened by Robert Altman’s“Mash”, and after him were presented Stanley Kubrick, Theo Angelopoulos, David Cronenberg, Ken Russell, Wim Wenders, Kieslowski, Herzog and many other great dirctors. Honorary guests of Belgrade have included Marcel- lo Mastroianni, Sophia Loren, Harvey Keitel, Bernardo Bertolucci, Miloš Forman, Cathe- rine Deneuve, Johnny Depp et al. The glorious past of almost half a centu- ry of Fest has been upgraded with the intro- duction of a competitive segment, so many
Fest is also heated up by the red carpet, which is not merely the whim of the organisers, but rath- er a means of affirming the fes- tival and films. The eyes of the global audience will be fixed on this symbol of glamour on 24 th February at 7pm, when Belgrade will once again be the capital of film.
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