28th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival
The Makavejev Case or Trial in a Movie Theater
synopsis
In 1971, the film WR: Mysteries of the Organism, an outstanding example of the Yugoslav Black Wave, was enthusiastically received at the Cannes Film Festival. Back home, however, this radical and ironic exploration of sexuality and communism was banned by the Yugoslav regime, and director Dušan Makavejev subsequently emigrated. The ban was decided during the film’s premiere screening, which turned into an unofficial trial. The Makavejev Case plays a newly discovered audio record of the debate in its entirety, accompanied by images of the incredulous faces of people listening to the audiotape recording: actors from Makavejev’s film, random passers-by on the street, and monkeys in a cage.
„Makavejev - is my favorite Serbian director. WR: Mysteries of the Organism became a symbol of Makavejev’s heritage: a film language as a play game and an everlasting experiment in in directing." G. Radovanovic
biography
Former film critic Goran Radovanović (1957) has since the 1980s focused primarily on short- and medium-length documentaries, including Casting (2003), in which he called attention to the difficult economic situation of people in eastern Europe; Pileci izbori (2005), a look at life in the Serbian countryside; and his portrait of contemporary Cuba titled With Fidel Whatever Happens (2011). He also directed the fiction film Enclave (2015).more about film
director: | Goran Radovanovic |
cast: | Svetozar Cvetkovic, Milena Dravic |
producer: | Goran Radovanovic |
script: | Boris Trbic, Goran Radovanovic |
photography: | Dragan Djordjevic |
editing: | Maja Kokic |
music: | Ognjan Milosevic |
sound: | Ognjan Milosevic |