others about us

I received numerous invitations from my colleagues from Požega to attend their summer workshop as one of the mentors. Unfortunately, I was only free to respond to the call three times. I say, unfortunately, because the first encounter with the practice of the Filmart team and participants of the workshop surprised me very pleasantly. Everything worked great – about fifteen girls and boys applied and arrived, not only from Serbia and the region, but also from other continents. I stayed in touch with several young directors for many years, and I met one of my best assistants – with whom I later worked on a couple of projects, and hopefully will continue in the future – as a student, attending the Interdoc master class. In my mentoring experience with summer documentary film schools over the last two decades, from Novi Sad and Belgrade, through Ljubljana and London, to New York and Sao Paulo, I can claim that the creativity of the Interdoc participants and the quality of the films made in Požega during the Interaction project, are in line with results from the mentioned ‘world addresses’. Congratulations!

The Interaction film camp was one of the most important experiences of my life as a filmmaker. Attending the camp in Serbia allows you to resize the world, discover a wonderful place with people who make you feel at home. As a Latino American, I felt very welcomed in Serbia. It is amazing how many things we have in common. The possibility of sharing with people of such diverse countries, allows you to have and feel a global vision of cinema and to network and build very genuine and lasting friendships thanks to the special dynamic of the camp.

I have been teaching at various film workshops for fifteen years, for very selfish reasons. The workshops force me to systematize my experiences, to organize a ‘big cleaning’. And then one discovers many things, both pearls and holes. Interdoc gathers participants from all over the world. That meeting of cultures is wonderful. Sometimes it surprises me how similar we are, and sometimes how big and diverse the world is. And, although apparently it is I who teach them, and they learn from me, the truth is often quite the opposite. In that exchange, I receive the greatest gift – I learn how much, in fact, I don't know.

My participation in Interaction hugely influenced my interest in documentary filmmaking, and for the first time, I had the chance to work in an international crew, which I find very important. I think I met partners for future projects and friendships that I cherish to this day.

Every year, Interaction brings together young filmmakers from completely different parts of the world. At the beginning, they are colleagues and strangers. At the end of the programme they become friends and mates who won a great battle together: they made three films! Transformed by this intense experience, they learned a lot not only about filmmaking, but also about themselves. And that excitement radiates from them. The first thing that comes to my mind whenever I think of Interaction is the irresistible creative energy. It is not surprising that a significant number of these films later found their place at prestigious film festivals. Interaction is a valuable experience, both for young creators and for all who attend it in one way or another.