Serbian filmmaker Stefan Djordjevic’s documentary-drama “Wind, Talk to Me” swept the Adriatic Film & TV Awards, winning best film, best director and best debut film at Saturday evening’s ceremony in Porto Montenegro, Tivat, Montenegro.
Stefan Djordjevic (Credits: Variety)
The debut feature, produced by Dragana Jovovic, blends fact, fiction and memory into what Variety’s review called a “heart-bursting tribute to his late mother.” The film premiered in the Tiger competition at the Rotterdam Film Festival, and its triple win in Tivat confirms it as one of the breakout films of the regional awards season.
Wind, Talk to Me Wins Best Film, Director and Debut at Adriatic Awards
The ceremony was the second edition of the AFA Awards, handed out by the Film and TV Academy of the Adriatic Region. The academy’s 800-plus members — directors, actors, screenwriters and producers — voted on the nominations and winners. The academy was founded by the Sarajevo Film Festival, the Zagreb Film Festival and the Belgrade-based Festival of Auteur Film.
Djordjevic’s haul was the night’s headline, but the acting prizes spread the recognition wider. Noomi Rapace won best actress for her role in “Mother” by Teona Strugar Mitevska, while Andrija Kuzmanovic won best actor for “Yugo Florida” by Vladimir Tagic.
Elsewhere, the AFA Rising Star award went to Arif Jakup for his role in “DJ Ahmet” by Georgi M. Unkovski, and Hana Jusic won best screenplay for “God Will Not Help.” An award for outstanding success in cinema distribution went to Igor Seregi’s “Wedding.”
The Hollow Dominates the Adriatic TV Awards
On the television side, Bosnian-Herzegovinian series “The Hollow” (Kotlina), created by Amra Baksic Camo and Danis Tanovic, swept its categories: best TV series, best actress in a TV series for Snezana Vidovic and best actor in a TV series for Fedja Stukan.
The ceremony itself began in unusual style, with nominees, organisers and guests gathering on the Kotor-Lovcen cable car on Friday, October 23, before moving to Porto Montenegro for Saturday’s awards. The festival runs through October 25.
For Djordjevic, the three wins mark a remarkable debut. A film built from personal loss, made across Serbia, Slovenia and Croatia, has now been recognised by the region’s own academy as its best film, its best-directed film and its best debut — about as complete a verdict as a first feature can receive.
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Source: Variety — read the full story there.
