In the dog days of summer, lots of tourists visiting the Balkan Peninsula in Southeastern Europe are doing like the locals do and flocking to the stunning seaside—whether they’re after gourmet delights in Croatia, lounging in Montenegro, or soaking up rays in Albania. But those in the know return from their holidays for a heavy dose of culture and catwalks.
The biggest Balkan film festival is undoubtedly the Sarajevo Film Festival, which began in 1995 when Sarajevo was suffering under the longest siege in modern history. From an initial audience of 15,000 that difficult year to 100,000 now, SFF has grown to be one of the largest festivals in Europe. Yearly, Sarajevo goes from being a relaxed capital city to becoming a hotbed for stars and gawkers. Cafes and bars are open around the clock and the cinema-hungry Sarajevans file into the open-air theaters around the city.
This year the event, from August 14-22, will host Benicio del Toro, Canadian director Atom Egoyan, who will win festival awards, and many other directors and actors.
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The festival always maintains a balance between showing fantastic international films and maintaining a strong presence for local and regional works. Tigers by Bosnia’s acclaimed director Danis Tanovic, will have a showing alongside A Perfect Day, Del Toro’s new movie about international aid workers in a war zone.
Outside of the cinemas, Sarajevo’s streets are pulsing with the energy the festival brings—and with all the charm the city and its citizens are famous for. Between screenings, stroll around the Old Town, drink Bosnian coffee and dine on the city’s most famous fast food: cevapi, delicious sausages served with pita bread, or just enjoy a glass of wine at some of the cafes along the Miljacka River.
The week before, August 8-16, a smaller and less glitzy event, Dokufest, focuses on documentary film. This festival is as cozy and quirky as Kosovo, Europe’s youngest nation—both in terms of independence and population (half of the country’s residents are under the age of 25).
Nestled in the Ottoman town of Prizren—less than an hour from Kosovo’s capital Prishtina—young and hip Balkan residents converge to watch films and one another. By day there are cajtores, or teahouses, to sit and sip tea for hours and prepare for another night at the DokuNights stage, which brings bands and DJs from the region and across Europe to party all night.
Photo by Katarina, CC-BY
