Aida Begić for "Vijesti": Our essence is invisible, like air

Family relationships, the patriarchal matrix maintained by women, the poetic in everyday life, human stumbles, seemingly insignificant conversations in which much is said through subtext, are some of the themes, but the guidelines that the director and screenwriter follow Aida Begić leads in his work.

The Bosnian-Herzegovinian director is recognized for her poetic style, characters who subtly build the story, and who mostly talk about women, war and its consequences, trauma... Her films are real, they expose and do a lot without great works... She has a significant number of internationally successful film achievements behind her, and with her latest project “Air in a Bottle”, or “Air in a Bottle”, she earned the support of the “Support Program for Women Filmmakers” fund. This is an initiative of the “Uniqa See Future” Foundation, which aims to empower women in the film industry of Southeast Europe by providing them with financial support, professional development and networking.

It is important to recall that she gained public attention with her first feature film, “Snow,” which won the Grand Prix at the Semaine de la Critique in Cannes and was nominated for a European Film Academy Award. This was followed by “Children,” a film that entered the official selection of the Cannes Film Festival (Un Certain Regard), where it won the Special Jury Mention.

"Air in a Bottle", like her previous films, combines everyday life, life's challenges, individual and social problems, with the experience of war and what it leaves behind. The film is in the development phase, and filming is expected to begin next year.

"The film follows Sabina (60), a tireless energy, prone to grand gestures and small problems. Upon her return to Sarajevo, she is determined to make up for lost time: she organizes a humanitarian action, helps her friends, starts selling "magic crystals" and plans her daughter's glamorous wedding, all while discreetly dealing with her problem: gambling addiction. Her solutions are unconventional, the outcomes often unexpected, but Sabina remains true to herself: brave, witty and larger than life," the synopsis states.

The film is being created as a collaboration between Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Croatia, with the support of international co-producers, and Begić previously announced that some Montenegrin actors will also be cast in "Air in a Bottle", which she will announce when the time comes.

In an interview for "Vijesti" she points out that she is currently most occupied with the development of the new film, and that she looks forward to every next step, reveals that her (anti)heroine is a character who is "larger than life", talks about the position of women in cinematography, the time when she started and today, but also about what she is particularly interested in conveying to the students she teaches...

Women are often the focus of your work, but not as slogans, but as characters. How important is it to you to offer viewers a universal or unique story from a female perspective, and what or who inspires you?

I am most often inspired by real people, real events, so I usually start from that. Later, when I develop a film story, I deal with the characters and how those characters deal with the circumstances I put them in. In parallel with writing the script, I always research life, talk to people. Women's worlds are particularly interesting to me and I often discover aspects that were not known to me before. In the end, the women I talk about are a combination of my experience, the experience of the people around me, and what I learned during my research.

You said that you are interested in “women who are not ideal”. On the other hand, women have often been presented to us either as ideal or in a completely different light. How do you see regional and global cinema today in terms of this gender issue? Has the time finally come for us to see quality and complex female characters?

The fight for a greater presence of women in cinema is a global process and we are already reaping some of the fruits of that struggle. The number of female directors in the main programs of major festivals has increased, and more and more girls are deciding to pursue filmmaking. Although we must not limit women to those who only deal with women's stories, that phase must be passed. In contemporary cinema, thanks to the presence of an increasing number of aware female authors, as well as male authors, we encounter more complex, more realistic, more colorful female characters.

Your new film project “Air in a Bottle” is a story about a woman who doesn’t give up, even though she feels like it might be easier. Sabina returns to Sarajevo with the idea of ​​starting over, and there’s also the story of her relationship with her daughter. How would you describe “Air in a Bottle” and the protagonist Sabina?

This is the story of Sabina, a woman approaching her sixtieth birthday who returns to Sarajevo after twenty-five years of living in Germany, ready for a new beginning. She wants to make up for the best years that war and life in exile took from her. She enthusiastically believes that the combination of Western pragmatism and Balkan charm will be the ideal recipe for her new business - selling magical crystals and stones from the Bosnian Pyramid of the Sun. She hopes that money and success could restore the long-lost trust of her daughter Lara, who does not want to return to Bosnia. Lara is getting married soon and Sabina decides to organize a dream wedding for her in her hometown. The obstacle to healing their relationship is Sabina's addiction to gambling. She is a woman of a cheerful spirit, but a compulsive character. Her problem is not small, but she brings joy wherever she goes and does nothing with malicious intent. That is why the tone of this film is not depressing, because Sabina is a character who is "larger than life".

In the film, Sabina sells crystals and bottles air from a Bosnian pyramid. It sounds humorous, but also a commentary on a society that craves hope, even if it comes in packaging labeled “energy-balanced.” The elements of humor act as a way of survival, not as decor or entertainment. Is this “bottled air” or “air in a bottle” a metaphor, and for what?

The things that make our lives meaningful are invisible, our essence is invisible like air, love is invisible. Sabina sincerely wants to help people, but she can't even help herself, so her solution is closer to illusion than real help. We are all searching for meaning, we cling to things that can make it easier for us to survive in this turbulent world. Air in a bottle can be a metaphor for many things, I hope everyone will decide for themselves what it represents.

It could be said that “Air in a Bottle” is also a very concrete commentary on today's reality, life in the region. What are the themes, events and characters that most inspire or occupy you when writing, creating, directing?

Making a film in our conditions means that the process will take about five years, so the topics I deal with must not be a reaction to something fleeting. I am interested in family relationships, the patriarchal matrix maintained by women, the poetic in the everyday, human stumbles, seemingly insignificant conversations in which much is said through subtext. What is particularly exciting to me is the language of film itself, an art that can be endlessly explored, built upon.

Sabina is trying to make up for lost time, but also to enrich the future, like many other people... How present is this longing in all of us, and perhaps most of all among members of the generation that was most affected by the collapse of Yugoslavia - the longing for time, home, self, country and identity?

Sabina belongs to a generation that spent its best years in Yugoslavia. She spent half her life abroad, in Germany, where she never found herself. After returning to Sarajevo, she also feels like a stranger. Sabina doesn't belong anywhere. It's not an easy position. Her compulsion and gambling certainly have something to do with everything she's been through, with a deep emptiness that nothing could ever fill.

Although it is still in its early stages, the film already has serious support and regional visibility. There is certainly support from the Uniqa Foundation program. How much does this visibility mean to you, which also brings certain expectations from the film?

Uniqa has taken a very important step and set an example of how corporations can play an important role in supporting the arts and raising awareness of the importance of women's presence in that scene. Although it may seem otherwise, women still represent a minority and every recognition, every encouragement is very important in this fight for visibility.

You previously pointed out that it is rare to see corporations that have a sensibility for culture. Is there a sensibility for culture among institutions and decision-makers, and how can we get society interested in culture and the arts?

Unfortunately, culture in Bosnia and Herzegovina is neglected. There is no serious cultural policy and development strategy, and this has consequences. The results we have had so far are amazing when you look at how little investment there has been. All the currently leading cinematographers have invested in culture for years in order to reap the benefits.

The film is a regional co-production. How important and necessary are they in our country?

Co-productions are the only way to make films in our small and relatively poor countries. Cooperation is a necessity, but also an advantage, because in this way our stories become more universal. The presence of authors, actors and crew members from different countries broadens and enriches the content of a film, but also broadens the circle of potential audiences. Regional audiences want to watch content that concerns them, in which they can recognize themselves, their problems, joys and hopes.

The road to equality is long.

This summer you were a guest in Herceg Novi, at the Film Festival, where you spoke on a panel about women in cinematography. What is the position of women in this industry?

Today, the position of women in cinema is a little better than it was a few decades ago when I enrolled at the Academy of Performing Arts in Sarajevo. One of the reasons is that with my generation, more women decided to work in film as directors, producers, and screenwriters. This has made women more visible, and more film stories are being told in which the main characters are complex female characters. The atmosphere on the sets has also changed, because the crews, as well as the audience, have become accustomed to the presence of women in responsible positions. Awareness of certain problems such as abuse and discrimination has also increased, which is a huge and extremely important thing for women to be protected and do their work in conditions worthy of a man. However, the road is long and we are far from being able to say that the problems have been solved and that women are completely equal.

From empty space to post-intelligence

You once said that the situation today is better than when you started. Can you compare the time then and now, what were the biggest obstacles and challenges, what has changed in the meantime and what is still a systemic problem?

We found ourselves in an empty space at the end of the nineties, which was a challenge, but also a kind of advantage. Like in a Western, we could shape this new world, redefine it. It wasn't easy, but we managed to establish a certain foundation. However, in the meantime, all the disasters of the so-called transition happened and what was built collapsed again. Right now, the whole world is falling apart and it seems to me that all the beautiful things are happening despite, not thanks to, the systems. However, it could happen that in these post-smart times, some of the most beautiful films of the twenty-first century are created.

Only through love can knowledge be transferred and a more beautiful world be created.

You teach directing. What is particularly important for you to convey to students, and are today's generations of students different in terms of interests, topics that occupy them, compared to the past? Do you notice anything in particular?

I try to convey to students a love for work, but also a love for life. Only through love can knowledge be transmitted. I notice that new generations are crying out for some new topics. They are fed up with war topics and the consequences of war. I hope that they will have the opportunity to create a more beautiful world and talk about it in their films and plays.