Film director Stefan Arsenijević has authored a book Malo Iznad Tla – Srđan Karanović o Svojim Fimovima (Just Above the Ground – Srđan Karanović on His Films), which had a promotion in Belgrade on Valentine’s Day.
Published by Film Centre Serbia, the book was received very well by both critics and fellow helmers. The readers can learn more about how some of the cult films of the Yugoslavian cinema, such as Petrijin Venac (Petria’s Wreath), Miris Poljskog Cveća (The Fragrance of Wild Flowers), Virdžina (Virgina), Besa (Solemn Promise), or the TV series Grlom u Jagode (Rushing Headlong), were made in conversations between a film professor and his former student.
“We didn’t want to write a classic monograph. We talked slowly and in detail, one film at a time, in a period of almost two years. It all started when the coronavirus outbreak began. This book was made based on 30 hours of conversations,” director Stefan Arsenijević said in his interview with Kurir.
How did it feel being a writer?
“I’m a writer only to a point. I’d worked as a journalist for many years, which helped. Now I’ve discovered other media. For me, the best kind of compliment I receive is when people tell me that they feel as if they were sitting in a living room with us.”
Some people preferred this book much more to Sam o Sebi (Karanović on Himself), written by Srđan Đida Karanović. Does that surprise you?
“Wow, what a question. At one point in the book, Karanović quotes a proverb that his father had told him: ‘One man's meat is another man's poison.’ I think these books are a similar case. The first book is his autobiography, in which he is concerned with his life and studies, and I believe that some people will like it, whereas others will prefer our book, which is concerned with Srđan’s professional life. They’re very different. Our idea was for this book to remain as a first-hand, conversational account of how his films were made. Nowadays, they are the classics of our cinema, and I actually found it quite challenging not to fall short of the readers’ expectations. This isn’t a monograph but a conversation and a dialogue between two colleagues and friends.”
How did you become friends?
“Srđan taught me at university for a brief time, and then he gave me a call and recommended me for the short film (A)Torzija ( (A)Torsion ), which was shot in Slovenia. The film producer was looking for a director, and, eventually, we attended the Oscars ceremony with this short. People somehow connected to it, and the film achieved great international success, kickstarting my career. I’m grateful to him for the recommendation and for the fact that he was there for me during the shoot in a different environment. I could always go to him for advice. Afterwards we became closer, and so our friendship started. It’s lasted a quarter of a century now.”
Which Srđan Karanović’s film is your favourite?
“It’s hard to compare his films. The TV series Rushing Headlong is closest to my sensibility. He sees it as a film in parts. Of course, there are also Virgina and the TV film Pogledaj Me, Nevernice (Look at Me, Unfaithful Woman).
You have completed the successful film Strahinja Banović. What are your plans for the future?
“I cannot complain about the film’s success. It couldn’t be our submission for the Oscars because it’s an English language film. Strahinja Banović is still being screened at festivals, and I attend whenever I can. It’s time for something new, and that won’t be a book. I’d like to shoot a TV series, but it’s too early to talk about that.”
Kurir.rs/ Ljubomir Radanov
