After a period when nothing could be done due to the pandemic, both in other segments and in culture, now that we have learned to live with the virus, we have also learned to film, so the authors are working hard on the continuation of the small screen, crime-drama that has received praise and some awards since its launch in 2018.
In the first season, a good part of the action was related to Ulcinj, so it was hinted that the production, which is characterized by an international cast and technical team, which is being made even beyond the former YU area, will return to Montenegro. And not only that, in the second season of "Besa" we will see Montenegro twice as much, reveal the authors who spent forty days of filming in our country.
They did most of the work along the Montenegrin coast, but they also managed to go a little deeper, more precisely in Crmnička nahija, where the "Vijesti" team found them during the penultimate day of filming.
After several days of rain and storms, which made the crew of the series somewhat nervous, although none of them wanted to admit it, a beautiful, sunny day came that illuminated and even more beautified the area around Rijeka Crnojević and brought smiles to everyone present on the set. . A casual passer-by would notice that something is happening as he approaches Dujeva, where vans and SUVs parked along the narrow roads, still wet and muddy from the previous rainy nights, appear more and more often.
But the rain has already been forgotten, it ruined some plans, but the shooting mostly took place with good weather, they tell us on a hill above the village where the logistical headquarters of the series is located. There was already space here to park several trucks along with the mentioned jeeps and set up a tent for the team that supervises the transport and movement of the actors and the necessary material, while the guards control the traffic below the hill.
They tell us that logistics, even on such a not very accessible terrain, are never a problem if you start on time, and on the shooting of "Besa" everything goes smoothly. Messages from the walkie-talkie are ringing out, the atmosphere is noticeably positive while everyone is enjoying the sun, and nearby it is possible for those who want to refresh themselves with juice, coffee, water...
We are welcomed there by Dušan Kovačević, co-producer for Montenegro, whose production of Natenana is also responsible for the Montenegrin sitcom "Dojč caffe".
"What's the situation?", he asks the team under the tent. "Okay, they're shooting a series," someone replies jokingly. Then they comment that they saw Kovačević in an advertisement for the Tax Administration, and he replies that they will get bored with how many times he will appear on TV in the coming days, because the announcement for the new season of the series "Biser Bojane" will also be shown, as well as an advertisement for a humanitarian action in which he participated. "I am especially pleased when I do something like that for a humanitarian cause," he points out.
An all-terrain 4x4 vehicle is arriving for Kovačević and the "Vijesti" team, and they will also deliver food for the cast to the set. A few hills later, we find ourselves on the set of "Besa", where Arben Bajraktaraj, who plays one of the most important characters - the Albanian drug lord Dardan Berisha, films his scenes in an old house. The team welcomes the arrival of the jeep with enthusiasm, and we quickly understand why.
“Food is coming, finally! We're starving," one member of the series' crew comments with a laugh, while Arben asks if he has to eat lunch quickly, on his feet, because he would like to be able to sit down and do it in peace. However, he will need much more time for such a thing.
"I can't act immediately when I have lunch, I need to digest all that," explains the main actor.
Bajraktaraj phenomenally embodied Dardan Beriša in "Besa", radiating danger from the small screen, so it was interesting to see him outside the set, where he is a little shorter than he looks on TV and with less aggression in terms of sitting alone on a chair from which he stretches a wonderful view of the nearby hills and the valley lit by the sun, still retaining a dose of mysticism that adorns it in the series as well.
He admits that it is difficult for him to get out of his role between scenes, but he agrees to the interview without any problems. The actor of Kosovar origin who lives and works in France and who played in Hollywood hits such as "Harry Potter" and "Taken" franchises, especially emphasizes the internationality of the team. As many as ten languages are spoken in the series.
"Cooperation is necessary if we are going to build something good, where viewers will say - well, I'm interested in that! Well, that attracts me! I have to follow up on this story! The cooperation of all these Balkan countries is necessary, because those who thought they could do it alone didn't do anything alone, to be honest. To let go of that Balkan forum that we are the best, the most intelligent, we know everything... What are we? One bitch", said Bajraktaraj sharply, but also realistically.
He believes that respect for diversity is most important and that it is precisely this diversity that gives the Balkans its authenticity.
"The Balkans is diverse, all those nations, people, regions are very diverse, they have their own identity and that's nice to have. But it is important to respect other people's identity. His language, his religion, his nobility, what not, it's nice to have, it's wealth. And not the uniform superiority of one over the other. Those who think that they are superior to others, what has already happened to them with our generation will unfortunately happen to them, and we know what that is - wars, suffering...", he assesses.
When the shooting starts again, literally only a fly can be heard passing by, everyone is standing as if someone has stopped time, about thirty people on the set are waiting for the director's signal to move. "Stop, bought", shouts Igor Stoimenov, one of the creators of the series, who also took over the director's reins from Nikola Ljuca, who was ill that day, and is otherwise in charge of the Montenegrin story line.
The second album syndrome among famous rock and roll bands is well known - when they make a debut release that conquers the world, many succumb to the pressure and the result on the next one is not of the same quality. Stoimenov is convinced that "Besa" will overcome that with the second season. He revealed some new information related to the upcoming season and explained why Montenegro was chosen as the location where an important part of the action takes place.
"We chose Montenegro, i.e. the city of Ulcinj first of all, and everything else builds on it, because it is a mythological place where Albanians and Muslims and Catholics and Serbs and Montenegrins live in one place and there are no major conflicts and problems unlike other places. That's how we conceived the first season that everything breaks in Ulcinj, and in the second season we upgraded, rejuvenated the series a bit with new characters, introduced a conflict between two generations - older and younger. And what is new is that we no longer have a main character, now we have five or six parallel courses of action where the characters intertwine, and the action takes place from Estonia, through Austria, Serbia, Montenegro, Italy, Kosovo to Albania, and it is seriously interwoven. ", says Stoimenov.
The director and producer points out that at the end of filming in Montenegro, he is extremely happy and satisfied, because things turned out even better than he imagined when he wrote the script. He regrets that Montenegro does not have a more developed cinematography, because he sees it as one big, wonderful film studio where various locations can be "invented" - from the Cote d'Azur to the Amazon.
Temperature measurement is mandatory for everyone who comes to the set, so even the "Vijesti" team could not avoid it. Kovačević says that the corona situation, along with a couple of days of rain, was the biggest challenge, but that the team took care of themselves, was isolated and implemented all the necessary measures, rapid tests were regularly used, in order to successfully complete the filming in Montenegro.
"We filmed from Ulcinj to Tivat, and now we are in the village of Dujeva, Rijeka Crnojevića, a phenomenal area of the Crmnik nahija, and all the locations that were chosen are recognized as tourist destinations that are very interesting in terms of promotion and presentation of Montenegro, and I think that they will only have potential in terms of the development of the film industry and film tourism in general. Ulcinj, Bar, Budva, Cetinje, Tivat, Kotor, these are the locations, we also filmed a part in Luštica, we are very satisfied with the locations and how it all looks", reveals Kovačević.
In addition to the co-producer role, he also has an acting role in "Besa", which, however, he was not allowed to reveal much about.
"I play the role of Rescuer, which I also played in the first season, but Rescuer has now progressed a bit in his service, he is an interesting character. My partner is Miloš Timotijević, whom I really appreciate both as an actor and as a person, so it is a real pleasure to work with him and the director Ljuc. Of course, with Igor Stoimenov, who has now taken over the direction due to circumstances, and who is also the creator of the series", Kovačević adds.
It was his involvement as an actor, as well as his work on last year's Gordan Kičić's film "Realna priča" and other projects, that served as the basis for producer cooperation on the second season of "Rage".
"They saw that it would be good to collaborate and they invited me and it was really challenging for me, I felt a responsibility because I am aware of how big a project this is. However, as they say, everyone is very satisfied with the performance of the Montenegrin co-producer, with all the crew I brought, and we really tried to provide them with the conditions for recording that hardly anyone has. I can see from the team that they are very satisfied, I can see from the material that it looks fantastic and I think that the second season will be much more successful than the first, even though it may seem impossible now", assures Kovačević.
On our way out, local residents ask us when they will be able to see the story in the newspaper, while the landlady of the house where the filming is taking place brings coffee for the actors. They wave at us as we get into the jeep that will take us back. And there we are introduced to, as we were told, one of the most important members of the "Besa" series.
"This is Krle, our driver, he drove you around the Jaz, he overturned... If it weren't for him, there wouldn't be a series either," comments his co-driver with a laugh.
We chose Montenegro, i.e. the city of Ulcinj first of all, and everything else builds on it, because it is a mythological place where Albanians and Muslims and Catholics and Serbs and Montenegrins live in one place and there are no major conflicts or problems Filmed we are from Ulcinj to Tivat, in Bar, Budva, on Cetinje, on Luštica, and now in the village of Dujeva, Rijeka Crnojevića, Crmnička nahija and all locations were chosen for the promotion and presentation of Montenegro as a tourist destination, Montenegro will in the second season be twice as represented
Bonus video:
