Festival In Focus: Sarajevo Film Festival’s New Director Jovan Marjanovic Talks “Full Spectrum” Of 28th Edition & Why Extending Lineup To Include Ukrainian Titles Was Essential

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Jovan Marjanović has been with the Sarajevo Film Festival for more than two decades and while he is what he describes as “a true child of the festival” this year marks the first edition where he’ll sit as director of the much-loved Balkan event, taking the reins from founder and long-time director Mirsad Purivatra.“We owe Mirsad so much, but he’s very much still involved – there was no avoiding that,” quips Marjanović of the much-loved Purivatra, who has recently launched boutique Croatian event Ponta Lopud Film Festival. “He’s a remarkable leader and we will all miss him as our leader.

I hope I’ve learned enough from him to continue where he stopped.”With the Sarajevo Film Festival, it’s perhaps unsurprising that there’s a unique comradery within those who work at the festival.

Founded in 1995 during a near four-year siege on the city, few industry events can speak to the same unique cultural resilience that this relatively young festival can.

Formed out of a desire to rebuild a city and art sector that was ravaged during the Bosnian War (the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare), the Sarajevo Film Festival has successfully shaped itself into the Balkan region’s biggest industry film and TV event with top-notch programming, a strong industry segment, educational and networking platforms.This year will see the festival return in full force after Covid restrictions marred the previous two editions (it was an online only event in 2020 and a Covid-restricted version last year).