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The Sarajevo Film Festival has unveiled the films that will play in its Open Air Program, which include Joachim Trier’s Cannes Grand Prix winner “Sentimental Value,” Michel Franco’s Berlin competitor “Dreams,” Nadia Fall’s Sundance competition title “Brides,” Dominik Moll’s Cannes competitor “Case 137,” and Miguel Ángel Jiménez’s Locarno title “The Birthday Party.”

Some of the screenings will be attended by stars or directors of the films, who will be in Sarajevo to receive the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo, including Willem Dafoe with “The Birthday Party,” Stellan Skarsgård with “Sentimental Value,” Franco with “Dreams,” and Paolo Sorrentino with “The Great Beauty.”

The program is divided into two sections: Open Air is for festival favorites and cinematic classics, and Open Air Premiere will showcase films from the former Yugoslav region.

Open Air Program

The Pavilion – Opening Film

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, 2025, 100 min.

Director: Dino Mustafić

Cast: Rade Šerbedžija,...

The 31st edition of the Sarajevo Film Festival has unveiled the lineup for its Open Air Program, consisting of two sections, Open Air and Open Air Premiere.

The program set for the Coca-Cola Open Air Cinema will be “showcasing some of the most important arthouse films of the year, as well as cinematic classics,” organizers said. “Some of the films in this program will be presented by acclaimed directors, actors, and screenwriters, [2025] recipients of the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo, including Paolo Sorrentino, Willem Dafoe, Ray Winstone, Stellan Skarsgård, and Michel Franco,” who received the honor several years ago.

Meanwhile, the new Open Air Premiere lineup will “showcase films from the former Yugoslav region in the unique setting of the Uniqa Open Air Cinema Stari Grad,” fest organizers highlighted.

Check out the full Sarajevo open air lineups below.

Open Air Program

The Pavilion (Paviljon) – opening film

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia,...

The 2025 edition of the Sundance Film Festival is a little over a week away and it’s time for us to talk about movies that will be the talk of Sundance, movies that push the envelope of imagination and reality, movies that should not be missed and lastly underrated movies that are a must watch as well. The list below is not comprehensive and the goal is not to rank order any of the movies in this list. From films by critically acclaimed directors like Ira Sachs and Richard Linklater to actors like Benedict Cumberbatch, Diego Luna, Olivia Coleman, Dev Patel, Jennifer Lopez and Rose Bryne, the list also focuses on independent films by new exciting directors and filmmakers to look out for in the future. In no particular order, we are listing 25 feature films that are a must watch if you are planning to check out the festival.

Jimpa...

The UK industry gathered at the Cannes UK pavilion yesterday (May 16) to celebrate the work of the eight projects taking part in this year’s Cannes Great 8 showcase.

Christopher Andrews’ Bring Them Down starring Barry Keoghan and Christopher Abbott, Sean Dunn’s The Fall Of Sir Douglas Weatherford and Marianne Elliott’s The Salt Path were among the eight titles taking part, with filmmakers taking to the stage to discuss their projects.

Scroll down to see the full line-up

The only documentary in this year’s line-up is Witches, from Elizabeth Sankey, in which the filmmaker explores the unexpected connections...

Christopher Andrews’ Bring Them Down starring Barry Keoghan and Christopher Abbott, Sean Dunn’s The Fall Of Sir Douglas Weatherford and Marianne Elliott’s The Salt Path, featuring Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs, are among the eight films taking part in the Great 8 showcase, which presents new UK feature films from first-and second-time UK filmmakers to international distributors and festival programmers.

Now in its seventh year, the 2024 Great 8 showcase is funded and produced by the BFI and the British Council, with support from the Great Britain & Northern Ireland campaign, BBC Film and Film4.

In preparation for Cannes, unseen footage from...

Watching a film that reminds you so much of your own experiences can be either a pleasure or a torture. “A Tale of Three Sisters” reminded me how similar Greek and Turkish people are, but some “missteps” here and there did not allow me to call it a pleasure, at least not completely. Let us take things from the beginning though.

“A Tale of Three Sisters” is screening at Thessaloniki International Film Festival

The story revolves around three sisters, who find themselves together after many years, under the roof of their father, Sevket, in the mountains of Anatolia. Havva, the youngest, has just returned from the job she had in the city, taking care of a child, after a tragedy that ended up with the kid dead. Nurhan, the middle one, is also dismissed from a similar job in another house, after her temper got the best of her, ending...

Lendita Zeqiraj’s feature debut Aga’s House also snagged some major awards in the international section. Burak Çevik’s sophomore feature, Belonging, and Ukrainian director Nariman Aliev’s Homeward were the big winners of the Best National and International Film Awards, respectively, at the seventh Bosphorus Film Festival, which ran from 18-25 October. The National Feature Film Competition jury, led by Turkish director Mahmut Fazıl Coşkun, and comprising actress Cemre Ebuzziya, screenwriter and art director Ebru Ceylan, author Mustafa Çiftçi and actress Nalan Kuruçim, handed the 100,000 Tl Golden Dolphin to the director of Belonging. Çevik doubled the Golden Dolphins as he was also awarded for the Best Screenplay for his film. The Best Director Award was bestowed upon Semih Kaplanoğlu for his latest feature, Commitment. In the acting categories, Best Actress went to Nihan Dengiz Okutucu for her role in Long Time Ago directed by Cihan Sağlam, and Best Actor to.

Turkish writer-director Ali Aydın had a promising start: he impressed audiences with his 2012 debut feature “Küf” (“Mold”) presented during the 69th Venice Film Festival, where he got Lion of The Future Award. Since then, he has kept people waiting but finally he comes back with his second feature movie. “Chronology,” launched internationally in Busan, is now screening at the Warsaw International Film Festival. Was the wait worth it?

“Chronology” is screening at the 35. Warsaw Film Festival

His previous work, “Küf,” was an intimate yet tense drama with minimalistic story-telling and contemplative pace that offered insight into character’s soul, combined with a sharp socio-political critique. It had a bit of Ceylanesque touch, but at one point, it turned more toward Hitchcock. With “Chronology” (“Kronoloji”), the director leaves Anatolian province from his previous film for an urban setting and immolates profound slowness to favour brisker techniques of genre cinema. However, his...

A Tale of Three Sisters

Turkish director Emin Alper returns with his third feature, A Tale of Three Sisters, a 1980s set period piece. Produced by Nadir Operli (who also produced Alper’s sophomore film Frenzy in 2015 as well as the Jessica Woodsworth and Peter Brosens title The King of the Belgians), the feature stars Kayhan Açikgöz, Cemre Ebuzziya, Helin Kandemir, Müfit Kayacan, and Ece Yüksel. Emre Erkmen lensed the feature. Alper’s 2012 debut Beyond the Hill won an award out of Berlin’s Forum sidebar. His 2015 sophomore film Frenzy competed in Venice and won a Special Jury Prize.…...