The Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports (MPNKS) has no ear for the field of culture, and the change at the head of the Film Center of Montenegro (FCCG) is a picture of blindness and arrogance, which is the result of a lack of capacity for conversation, dialogue and agreement. This is the conclusion of producer and professor at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts (FDU) Vuk Vuković regarding the circumstances and the appointment of Aleksandra Božović to the position of FCCG director.
On September 16, the Government of Montenegro appointed Aleksandra Božović as the director of this public institution, at the proposal of the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports. Even before the Government adopted the Decision on the appointment, part of the professional public in Montenegro reacted with indignation at that decision. She says that she first saw the appointment decision on the "Vijesti" portal, and she also told "Vijesti" that she "accepts the position with pleasure and great responsibility".
Answering the questions of "Vijesti", the newly appointed director Božović said that she understands the interest of the profession.
"I completely understand the guild's interest in this issue, but I will do my best to clarify all doubts that some of them may have. There are many talented, creative and educated people in Montenegro and I look forward to future cooperation with Montenegrin producers and directors. Regardless of certain doubts expressed in the public, it was my work biography and experience, and nothing else, that recommended me for this position," she points out.
References
The Association of Film Directors and Producers of Montenegro (UFRP) expressed concern because, they announced, "there is a possibility that the position of director of the Film Center will be filled by someone who does not know enough about the context of film production in Montenegro and whose work biography does not indicate expertise and experience who would deserve the most responsible position of Montenegrin cinema".
On the other hand, both MPNKS and VCG in the proposal, that is, the Decision on the appointment of the director of the JU Film Center of Montenegro, said that she is an established expert in the field of culture, that is, cinematography. Božović substantiated this by sharing a part of her biography with the readers of "Vijesti".
"I am a graduated film and television producer and I have been involved in film, television and commercial production for more than 15 years. First in Belgrade, then in Novi Sad and since five years ago in Montenegro. Since 2006, I was the director of a production company that was primarily involved in the production of commercials, and at that time we worked for the largest domestic and foreign clients, such as Telekom Srbija, Coca Cola, NLB Bank, Apatinska pivara, DDOR Novi Sad, the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Serbia and second, and in 2007 we received the award for advertisement of the decade at the Night of Reklamožder for the TV spot 'Ten years in a relationship with you' Telekom Srbija. Since 2012, I have been part of a team that ran a large and important institution such as the Cultural Center of Novi Sad, and it was there that I gained the managerial, not to say clerical, experience that is necessary to run an important institution such as Film Center of Montenegro. During that period, I was the manager of Euro-in Festival, Novi Sad Jazz Festival and INFANT. I am most proud of my work on Novi Sad's candidacy for the European Capital of Culture in 2021 and the digitalization project of Novi Sad's cultural heritage," Božović enumerates.
Vuk Vuković says that he does not recognize Božović "as a person who immanently belongs to the field of film, that is, to the sector of cinematography".
"Apart from the information from the Appointment Decision that she is a manager in culture and art, we as the public, but also as a profession, do not have any information about her references that can guarantee the continuation of the successful work of the Film Center", he is clear.
Božović told "Vijesta" that she "knows Montenegrin cinematography very well, and has followed the work of the Film Center since its foundation" and added:
"Five years ago, I tied both my personal and my professional life inextricably with Montenegro. In those five years, in Montenegro, I was involved in film production, promotion, that is, the organization of two film festivals, that is, in all segments that make up cinematography - production, marketing, distribution," she says.
The previous director of the FCCG, Sehad Čekić, was dismissed by the Government after his four-year mandate expired on September 14. The Association of Film Directors and Producers also asked why the replacement for Čekić "could not come from the Film Center itself, from the extremely professional people who are in that team and who are part of the success of Montenegrin cinematography, and who could most easily overcome the transition that is occurring with the departure of the director", and the first Montenegrin director and associate professor at FDU, Marija Perović, believes that it was primarily necessary to offer Čekić a new mandate, and based on his achievements...
"That was the only logical thing, and even if he wasn't interested, it was necessary to negotiate. The proposal certainly had to exist. I am a member of the UFRP, so I stand behind the announcement and I believe that in the entire region, and I know personally and professionally most of the directors and ex-directors of film centers, a professional and a man of Sehad's capacity is a rarity. There are few experts, and Sehad is one of them", says Perović to "Vijesta".
Producer and founder of the production company "Artikulacija" Ivan Đurović says that the new director has an easy task.
I tell Mrs. Božović, when she has already accepted this position, that on the one hand she has an easy task - she has a well-established and very transparent institution such as the FCCG, with which even more relevant film professionals in our country and beyond will agree and that, based on that, she she has an easy job of picking up where her predecessor left off. What I sense as a problem is its international contacts and influence, which Sehad had to the greatest extent, who built it with his knowledge, broad education and essential knowledge of film both as an art and as an industry, with his diplomatic nerve, which, between among other things, resulted in the financing of several Montenegrin films by Eurimages, the most important film fund, which, before the establishment of the Center, we could only dream about... I don't know what the capacities of the new director are, the results can be easily measured and then we will completeness to be able to evaluate her engagement", Đurović tells "Vijesta" and adds that the best solution was to appoint someone from the Film Center who is already familiar with how the center functions, how much and how it is recognized in Europe, as the head of the umbrella institution of Montenegrin cinematography the continuity of the previous results would be maintained.
Vuković points out that it was Čekić who was appreciated for his work both in Montenegro and beyond.
"It is incomprehensible that the Ministry, in the work of the previous, as well as the first director of the Film Center, did not recognize the European measurable results in the cinematography sector. This is a person who established a clear, transparent, professional system based on European standards and who made the Film Center recognizable in the region and Europe. This does not happen spontaneously, but through dedicated work and persistence, but they must be preceded by knowledge and a clear vision of the institution's development," he says.
Film director and university professor Nikola Vukčević told "Vijesta" that FCCG has gained a lot since its establishment until today, during which Čekić led it.
"The moment we got the FCCG, Sehad Čekić directed Montenegrin cinematography on the right path, using the best regional experiences, in my opinion, which come from the best results of something called the 'Israeli Film Fund' (which was the first to divide the competition, which means that money is not received for the realization of the film in its entirety, but support through several development phases is also financed). Proof of that quality are the films that received FCCG grants and that later received grants in the region and much further away from the region," emphasized Vukčević.
Politics and citizenship
The day before yesterday, the citizenship and political involvement of the newly appointed director, Aleksandra Božović, was also discussed, who confirmed to "Vijesti" that she has the citizenship of the Republic of Serbia, but also that her political career was exaggerated.
"That's right, I'm a citizen of the Republic of Serbia, with a permanent residence in Montenegro based on marriage to a citizen of Montenegro... I'm afraid that my political career has been seriously exaggerated in some media. It is true that as a non-party candidate in the 2012 elections, I was on the "Dveri" list, precisely because they thought I could help them in the field of cultural politics and the media. "I was never even a member, let alone a founder of 'Dveri,'" she said.
The Serbian Parliament "Dveri" is a parliamentary political party and an association of citizens in Serbia, which is considered to be based "on Svetosava and Serbian nationalism, Euroscepticism and anti-globalism"...
Nevertheless, Đurović points out that political engagement is less important than professionalism and reminds of similar examples. "As for the new director, I must point out that we, as the Association of Film Directors and Producers of Montenegro, or at least I did not recognize it, in the announcement did not deal with her political background, but with her previous professional involvement. I personally do not know the director or her previous work, but I think it is not good for her personally and professionally to take office in this way and in these circumstances, even though she has a well-trodden path which, if she wants to continue, I believe she will have the support of the guild . As far as her political engagement is concerned, I would not like to be a hypocrite, so I would like to remind you that we, as a public, did not react very violently to the similar background of the previous Minister of Defense and his tattoos, so in the end he took us to NATO, although I do not expect such a 'purification' ' from the new director of FCCG", says Đurović.
Đurović points out that the FCCG has so far functioned outside of all political frameworks, which is a rare case when it comes to state institutions and institutions (in Montenegro).
"Given the experience I have, and I have been dealing with cinematography in Montenegro for 20 years, I think I can notice that - the FCCG really made great strides and I claim that it was the most independent state institution, perhaps because of this, because the annual budget itself is not interesting to high politics. What is more important is that the results of the FCCG are very exact and can be measured by the participation of our films at respectable festivals before the foundation and now, by regional and international funds that have been consistently financing our films in the last few years, which before was at the level of incidents and so on. further. I don't want to sound like someone who advocates FCCG, I believe that I am quite realistic, and this is supported by the fact that I did not receive support from FCCG for the co-production of the film "Quo vadis, Aida?" who was a candidate for the Oscar, but at no point did I look at it as a conspiracy theory against me, but as an autonomous decision of the jury, even if, as it turns out, they were wrong," the producer points out.
The new director says that politics and political engagement will be outside the Film Center.
"There will certainly be no place for any political influence in the work of the Film Center of Montenegro, nor will anyone be disqualified or favored in any way because of their political affiliation or activity. The Film Center is the home of all Montenegrin filmmakers, and I hope that all daily political conflicts and misunderstandings will be left in front of its doors," she said.
Competitions and consultations
Previously, Nikola Vukčević proposed the introduction of public competitions for managers of cultural institutions, which would perhaps make appointments more transparent, and the profession and the public more satisfied, but everything remained as it was. In the complete situation, Vuk Vuković notices the already seen practice of appointing people to leading positions.
"MPNKS, in charge of the field of culture, did not try to convince us in any way that this is a person who has the knowledge, skills and abilities to manage a national institution of culture, and I am especially concerned that in such actions I recognize the arrogance of the system, the party's and the political power that was characteristic of the previous government, that is, the previous Government", says Vuković.
In the reaction of the Association of Film Directors and Producers, it is also stated that they are "unpleasantly surprised" that as a professional association they were not consulted about the selection of such an important position and emphasize that they are open and ready for constructive cooperation with MPNKS, which they have informed the competent department several times before. ..
"When there was no hearing and skill, and it had to be, to insist on extending Sehad's mandate, first of all he, and then other professionals had to be consulted. Because everyone involved in film cares about film. It is a long-term process with several steps and a lot of obstacles, which in Montenegro, which is a pioneer in production in its own field and lacks professions and film workers, is not undertaken by anyone to whom this activity is not important," Perović pointed out.
Đurović, on the other hand, reminds that there were no consultations with the profession before, but decisions were made differently.
"The previous decision-makers didn't consult us too much either, but from time to time they knew to respect what we said. So, they were smarter in that sense, although neither they, nor these people now, have a legal obligation to explain (their decisions) or consult anyone. However, this one is actually just continuing the worst practice and policy that they themselves despised with their predecessors. It is so logical that MPNKS should have directly consulted the film industry, trade unions, and even the FCCG director himself, because that institution is not just a mere consumer of state money, like the majority of state institutions, but it is an institution that finances, promotes and also regulates a industry such as film. To summarize, the head of the FCCG must be a good manager in culture and film with strong contacts, and when I say that, I don't mean 'connections' as we would immediately formulate it in the Balkans, because that doesn't work in Europe, but a person is needed which, with its competence, protects the domestic film in the best way", says Đurović.
Vuković adds that "there must be broad agreement on such issues" because it is the most important cultural institution in the field of cinematography.
"If we do not already have a competition as a transparent institution, we must have information on the basis of which criteria the Ministry made such a decision, that is, on the basis of which projection of the development of the Film Center Božović accepted this leadership position. I am uncomfortable even talking about the other allegations that appear in the media, because they cannot in any way reflect the values that have been established in the Film Center of Montenegro. The Film Center is an institution that operates according to the highest standards, and the question is whether it is possible to maintain such standards", concludes Vuković.
Goals
When asked what kind of expert profile should be at the head of an umbrella institution in the field of film, Nikola Vukčević says that production experience (which Božović has) is necessary.
"It means that that someone participated, either as a director or as a producer, in the realization of at least one feature film. Someone who has to decide whether other feature films should be financed or not can't be a person who has never done it. The commander of the ship must know how to steer the ship", says Vukčević clearly.
Vuković, like Đurović, says that there is not enough information on the basis of which they could set expectations from the new director of the Film Center of Montenegro. While Đurović believes that she has an easy task ahead of her, director Perović claims that it is not at all simple, and Vuković is afraid that FCCG will deviate from the beaten path...
"To what extent Božović is ready to improve the system or - let's lower the criteria - to maintain the system, I'm not sure, because I don't have enough information to form an opinion, but I have the fear that the Film Center will become another one of the clumsy and bureaucratic institutions that there are many in Montenegro. ", says Vuković.
When asked what her goals are when it comes to Montenegrin cinematography, Aleksandra Božović answers:
"My goal is for all of us together, including the Film Center and all the actors of our cinematography, to open new perspectives for Montenegrin cinema. On the one hand, this means the placement of Montenegrin films abroad, because film art is one of the most important means of promotion that any culture can have in the modern world. We want cinema connected not only with traditional regional partners, but also with the greatest European cultures.
On the other hand, we also want to strengthen the connection between cinematography and the domestic audience, because this is also an extremely important part of the cultural life of a society. Without a domestic film in domestic cinemas, there is no real communication between the artist and his audience and society as a whole", concludes the new director of the Film Center of Montenegro.
To deal with the situation in which Montenegrin cinematography can flow
Marija Perović recalled similar examples from the region:
"We are not the only ones, this also happened with HAVC (Croatian Audio-Visual Center) a few years ago, in Kosovo they changed the director after a year that has never been successful internationally for Kosovo film, and in Serbia, people who think professionally are changing like "socks ". This does not happen here, we carry them, and even when we establish professional standards, we easily give them up. I'm really angry about Montenegrin cinematography, which had a perspective... And I will personally work here or here or there, because professionals are few and far between. And our language is the language of the profession. And true professionals love this profession. And Sehad is like that," she says and concludes:
"The challenge of all professionals and those who want to be one is to deal professionally and at all levels with the situation that Montenegrin cinematography can flow into", without specifying what he specifically means...
Bonus video:
