MASTERCLASS: Želimir Žilnik

synopsis

This Serbian director and a pedagogue who ranks among the main figures of the so-called Yugoslav Black Wave is this year’s juror of the Opus bonum competition section. Želimir Žilnik’s work reflects the tradition of cinema verité and the influence of the New York avant-garde. As early as in the 1970s, his socially engaged films focused on the criticism of the establishment following the same line also after the collapse of Yugoslavia. “I don’t try to hide my camera. I don’t hide the fact that I’m shooting and making a film about people… During shooting, I realise that, to a certain extent, I am betraying the reality that is opening up to me,” says Žilnik, summing up the nature and the problems of documentary filmmaking. In his Master Class, he will use clips from his work to demonstrate his filmmaking method and the techniques employed in his films.