TIFF 2020 | Quo Vadis, Aida? by Jasmila Zbanic

The movie “Quo Vadis, Aida?” on the genocide in Srebrenica by Bosnian director Jasmila Zbanic, will be included in the programs of the world’s largest film festivals.

Mavi Boncuk | 

Quo Vadis, Aida?

Director: Jasmila Zbanic 

Running Time: 101’ Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria, Romania, Netherlands, Germany, Poland, France, Norway, Turkey (TRT)

Main Cast: Jasna Ðuričić, Izudin Bajrović, Boris Ler, Dino Bajrović, Boris Isaković

Bosnian director Jasmila Zbanic's "Quo Vadis, Aida?,” will be screened at the 45th Toronto International Film Festival, to be held between Sept. 10 and Sept. 19.

The movie, co-produced by Turkey's state broadcaster TRT, will be featured in the festival's "Contemporary World Cinema" section.

Toronto International Film Festival is the largest in the Americas but will feature only 50 films this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Quo Vadis, Aida?" addresses the Srebrenica massacre and is set in a U.N. base, right when Serbian troops kill tens of thousands of Bosnians, including women and children, in the city of Srebrenica. 

The compelling drama follows the journey of Aida, who works as a translator for the United Nations peacekeeping task force at a camp where her husband and two sons are being held along with thousands of other Bosnian citizens. As the Serbian army’s threat to overtake the camp escalates, the horizon for Aida’s family and community gets out of hand.

The film will also compete for the "Golden Lion Award" at the 77th Venice Film Festival, one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world. This year's Venice Film Festival is scheduled for Sept. 2-Sept.12.

It was also selected to be shown in the main competition section of the 77th Venice International Film Festival.[1]

A well-established Bosnian filmmaker, Žbanic won the Golden Bear in 2006 with her debut feature “Grbavica.” Her second feature “On The Path” also competed in Berlinale in 2010. Her following films, including “For Those Who Can Tell No Tales,” screened at Toronto, and “Love Island” which played at Locarno.

[1] “The story of Srebrenica is a part of our recent European history. It shows what happens if we don’t react on time to warning signs,” said Žbanic.

“The Venice film festival – after such a horrible period in Italy – is for us the most truthful place to raise questions on empathy and solidarity, the main focus of our film,” added Žbanic.

“Quo Vadis, Aida?” is one of the 18 movies slated to compete at the Venice Film Festival, whose lineup was unveiled on Tuesday.

Nicolas Eschbach, Indie Sales’ CEO and co-founder, said the company was “proud to be part of the Venice competition with ‘Quo Vadis, Aida?’ as festivals resume their activities.”

“It’s an honor to work with an established director such as Jasmila who successfully managed to depict a very sensible moment in our recent history. The work she achieved with Jasna Đuričić, her main actress, is particularly impressive,” said Eschbach.

“Quo Vadis, Aida?” was produced by Sarajevo-based Deblokada, in co-production with Austria’s coop99 filmproduktion, Romania’s Digital Cube, the Netherlands’ N279, Germany’s Razor Film, Poland’s Extreme Emotions, France’s Indie Prod, Norway’s Torden Film, Turkey’s TRT, ZDF ARTE, ORF and BHRT.