Esma’s Secret 15 Grbavica Regional Premiere

Saturday 18th November, 8.50pm (T)
Tuesday 21st November, 8.40pm (T)

Director: Jasmila Zbanic, Feature, 90 minutes, Germany, Bosnia Herzegovina, Austria & Croatia, 2006. Bosnian with English subtitles.

Winner of the prestigious Golden Bear at Berlin International Film Festival this year, Esma’s Secret is a simple and heartbreaking drama about Sara, a girl growing up in Sarajevo during the aftermath of the Balkan War. Her mother Esma is a widow desperately trying to make ends meet, but committed to affording her daughter as many opportunities as she can.

When Sara has the chance to go on a school trip, the discount that is offered to children of war heroes means that she should be able to attend. After all, her mother always told her that her father had died an honourable death. However, she soon discovers that her mum has a painful secret to tell her...

A remarkable debut feature from director Zbanic, this is a masterpiece about the farreaching implications of the aftermath of war.

Plus short film: Spiked UK Premiere

Director: Faye Boustead, Short, UK, 5 minutes 2006, English.

Spiked is a multi-narrative, part animated drama-documentary revealing a sensitive and inciteful depiction of individual encounters with drug-rape. It tackles the subject from the perspective of the survivors as they reflect upon the events.

Mentored by animator Ellie Land and documentary filmmaker Bridget Deane, the four-person team working on this short have created a lyrical and moving film. It was directed by Faye Boustead from a script by Faye Boustead and Richard White. Cinematography by Jennifer Kerven and produced by Caeley Elcock.