ČOVJEK KOJI NIJE MOGAO ŠUTJETI

Croatia, France, Bulgaria, Slovenia

Fiction

Winner European Short Film – Prix Vimeo 2024
Nominated for European Short Film – Prix Vimeo 2024

February 27, 1993, Strpci, Bosnia and Herzegovina. A passenger train from Belgrade to Bar is stopped by paramilitary forces in an ethnic cleansing operation. As they haul off innocent civilians, only one man out of 500 passengers dares to stand up to them. This is the true story of a man who could not remain silent.

Written & directed by: Nebojša Slijepčević
Produced by: Katarina Prpić, Danijel Pek, Katya Trichkova, Noëlle Lévénez, Boštjan Virc,
Cinematography: Gregor Božič, Danijel Pek, Katya Trichkova, Noëlle Lévénez, Boštjan Virc
Editing: Tomislav Stojanović
Costume Design: Geo Pavlov
Make-Up & Hair: Magdalena Boyadzhieva
Sound: Ivan Andreev
Casting: Hana Hribar
Cast: Goran Bogdan (Dragan), Alexis Manenti (the solider), Dragan Mićanović (Tomo), Silvio Mumelaš (the young man)

Statement of the director:
The film is based on a horrific crime committed in Bosnia 30 years ago. There are three sides to every crime: the perpetrators, the victims, and the witnesses. I was particularly interested in the third group, the witnesses. We approached the film as if it were happening today, and as if it was happening to us, here. It’s easy to imagine that the people on the train are someone else, but they could easily be us, and in a way – they are. Acts of violence take place around us daily. Locally, it’s not as extreme as during the war in former Yugoslavia, but globally – it is even more extreme. And each of us is faced with the question posed by the film’s protagonist: should we stand up to violence even if we are not its immediate targets?

Production:
Les films Norfolk
www.norfolk.fr

World Sales:
Manifest
www.manifest.pictures

Selected at Cannes Film Festival