Sarajevo Film Fest interview with Serbian star Mirjana Karanovic

Mirjana Karanovic’s star shines brightly over this year’s Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF).

The Serbian actress-turned-director is presenting the world premiere of her latest feature Mother Mara, a film that circles the world of a middle-aged woman and how she deals with death that is also a film bursting with life.

Karanovich’s international breakthrough came in Emir Kusturica’s Palme d’Or-winning and Oscar-nominated When Father Was Away on Business (1985) and the veteran actress spent decades establishing herself as one of the most acclaimed acting talents in Southern Europe, with starring turns in such acclaimed features as Requiem for Mrs. J and Grbavica, before, aged 60, she decided to move behind the camera.

Her feature debut as a director, A Good Wife (2016), premiered at Sundance will Karanovic starring as an unassuming Serbian wife and mother forced to confront her own mortality, and her husband’s dark secrets. “Karanovic’s quiet intelligence and innate humanity have been an asset in many of her roles and her debut in the director’s chair displays similar qualities,” read The Hollywood Reporter‘s review at the time.

Now comes Mother Mara, in which Karanovic again directs and stars in another story of a woman of a certain age struggling to break free from what the filmmaker describes as “the patriarchal rule of life.”

“I love unexpected things in life, especially in what I do. I love things that are not visible at first glance, things that I can imagine into existence,” Karanovic told THR in the lead-up to this year’s Sarajevo Film Festival.

In a wide-ranging conversation, she also spoke about her life and career, the current state of European cinema, and why, these days, she’s not one for late festival nights.

What drew you towards the character of Mara, and what do you think we can all learn from her journey?

My patriarchal upbringing made me view women over the age of 40 or 50 throughout my life as if they had fulfilled their role and were only good for being some kind of noble aunt, grandmother – quiet women in the background. However, my personal experience told me something completely different. During my 40s and 50s, I struggled with that patriarchal experience and my need to develop as a female being in a society where women are still viewed as objects. All my heroines, both in The Good Wife and now in the film Mother Mara, are women of my age.

I wanted to tell something about them – something that, it seems to me, in the films of my country, and, maybe even in the whole region, is a different, unusual story. For me, Mara is a woman who conformed to that patriarchal rule of life and deeply buried within herself everything that is her true essence. With the death of her son, that hidden content lost its armor, its cocoon, and what I see as her impact in this film is a tremendous longing for life, which, well, was triggered by death. So, for me, this is truly a clash of Thanatos and Eros, and such a story and such a character are something very exciting and very unexpected for me. Just as I surprised myself that at the age of 60, I still have curiosity, energy, and a desire for something different and new.

Is it fair to say that when so much of life is being presented as either right or left, right or wrong, the film shows us that there are shades of gray in everyone’s lives?

Absolutely (laughs), absolutely. I think that our life is, for the most part, in that gray area, and only those who are lucky actually experience those extreme points, such as great happiness or great tragedy, great misfortune. I think that the majority of the human race tends to remain somewhere in the middle, in that gray, undefined space. I believe that in most people, there is a fear of too much happiness or too much tragedy, so that everyone tries to stay somewhere where they are, where they know how it is, and where they are sure that nothing will change. I believe that is a question of youth. Only young people truly long for some kind of change in their lives. But when they attain any of the set goals, they no longer want anything to change.

People like me, who reach a certain age and who struggle with that urge within themselves — the urge for things to remain unchanged — have the ability to create a certain creative space. Honestly, I am afraid of change, but that doesn’t stop me from moving towards it and doing everything to ensure that things in my life do change. That is what, somehow, keeps my spirit young. And that is what I recognize in people I admire: the youthful spirit, the spirit that is not afraid of change.

What can you share with us about your experiences as a director? What led you behind the camera and in what ways do you feel you are developing?

For me, the position behind the camera, the position of a director, is my expanded creative space. It is something in which I feel like a beginner, and I think it’s wonderful. It gives you a lot of confidence to be a beginner at 60 years old. It makes me extremely proud. Unlike other people, as an actress, I don’t feel the need to have hobbies to somehow fill some monotony or emptiness in my professional and private life. I decided to expand the creative space I occupy as an actress by starting to direct and write, to build a well-rounded work that, call it art or don’t call it art, it is a space of enormous creative possibilities, and that is what is extremely interesting to me at this moment in my life. It gives me a certain validation, drives me to be a better version of myself. This means that I don’t just depend on other people’s initiatives, in the sense that someone else will write a story, a script, someone else will direct it, and then someone will invite me to play a role in a film. I decided not to immerse myself in waiting, but to build the stories I would like to participate in on my own.

In general terms, how would you describe the landscape for Southern European cinema at the moment? What excites you and, maybe, what worries you?

Well, I started working in film back in the 1980s, and a lot has changed since then. What characterizes today’s time is the extremely difficult and complicated struggle for every director and producer to finance their projects. There are no longer any state companies that provide as much money as needed. However, back then, that was also tied to a certain political suitability and other requirements that were expected from directors.

Nowadays, in my country, and I believe in the region as well, films are mostly made by young directors. It seems that only they have the energy and time to deal with all those funds, over and over again. Despite my age, I am still a young director (laughs). I have the energy to fight, but film is a very expensive art form, and small countries like mine don’t have large funds or significant resources. Even though what we receive now might be a lot for us, it’s still not enough to independently make a film with just the money we receive from the state. So, when you get money in your country, a long and painstaking battle unfolds, to secure additional funds so you can create the film you want. A lot has changed. I think that every era has its own rules, and I believe that people who really care either try to adapt to those rules or try to find a way around them. Both then and now, talent alone was never enough. A certain level of personal persistence is necessary, as well as a way to communicate with people and convince them that what you’re doing is important and needs to be funded. So, I don’t have that “in my day it was better,” or “everything is worse now” mindset. I just think that when you’re seeking money from the state for your art, it’s always very, very complicated and exhausting.

What role do you think the Sarajevo Film Festival plays in terms of Southern European cinema?

The Sarajevo Film Festival is the most important and most well-known regional festival in this part of Europe. It has the best image. They put a lot of effort into bringing interesting films, and the city itself, along with its atmosphere, is definitely something that captivates many people who come there, whether for the first time or repeatedly. I think that participating in the Sarajevo Film Festival is a sign of quality. I am very glad that the team who organized it does not compromise on their principles.

Do you have any tips you can share on how festival-goers can stay healthy during all the late nights and extra shots of coffee?

I’m not really the best advisor for younger people (laughs). I stopped staying up late and partying a long time ago. At some point in my life, I simply stopped enjoying it and realized that my pleasures were elsewhere. So, I can’t advise them to “just drink water and don’t drink alcohol.” I had my fun back in the day, I had a lot of fun. I think that’s something individual, and the only advice I can give is to listen to your body, pay attention to what’s happening to you, and don’t overburden yourself with lack of sleep or with bad food or drink that you consume. That’s it.