A ceremonial opening shall be held at 19.30h in the “Pozoriste na Terazijama” Theatre. The honor to open the Festival this year belongs to Mr. Marko Babac, this year’s recipient of the Life Achievement Award, after which the spectators will have the opportunity to see a block of domestic and foreign films from the competition segment.

Janko Baljak Artistic Director of the Festival:
A Film Marathon for the Belgrade Audience

“I am very happy that, in spite of the difficult situation our country has found itself in, our foreign guests have not lost confidence in use and will come to Belgrade”, said Janko Baljak, Artistic Director of the Festival of Documentary and Short Film. “Documentarists and shorts directors are adventurists and curious people, who will be glad to come to this Festival, even more so because of the difficult situation our country is currently in. In five festival days, visitors will have the opportunity to attend a small film marathon, as opposed to its previous editions, because up to 145 films will be shown in two competition programs and ten special segments. Forty-two domestic and 43 foreign films shall be competing for the Festival Grand Prix. As in the previous editions, the Jury will be an international one. I am also happy to point out to the accompanying program I have dubbed “Walls, Wires and Borders”, pertaining to the still painful refugee issue, topical in places like Palestine, Kosovo and Westerneuropean countries. In the Yugoslav Film Archive Spanish films will be shown, as well as a program realized in cooperation with the Goethe Institute. Every evening at 23h, the audience will have the opportunity to see awarded films from prestigious European documentary festivals,” Baljak says.