Jasmila Žbanić (; born 19 December 1974) is a Bosnian

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and producer, best known for having written and directed ''

Quo Vadis, Aida? ''Quo Vadis, Aida?'' ( '' Where are you going, Aida?'') is a 2020 Bosnian film written, produced and directed by Jasmila Žbanić. An international co-production of twelve production companies, the film was shown in the main competition section ...

'' (2020), which earned her nominations for the

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

, the

BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language The BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language is given annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and presented at the British Academy Film Awards. The award was first given at the 36th British Academy Film Awards, rec ...

, and the

BAFTA Award for Best Direction The BAFTA Award for Best Direction, formerly known as David Lean Award for Achievement in Direction, is a British Academy Film Award presented annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to a film director for a specifi ...

Early life

Žbanić was born in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

on 19 December 1974 into a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

family. Žbanić went to local schools before attending the

Academy of Performing Arts in Sarajevo The Academy of Performing Arts in Sarajevo () is a faculty within the University of Sarajevo in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, dedicated to the performing arts. History The Academy of Performing Arts in Sarajevo was officially opened in 1981 w ...

, where she got a degree. She worked for a time in the United States as a puppeteer in the

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

-based

Bread and Puppet Theater The Bread and Puppet Theater (often known simply as Bread & Puppet) is a Political radicalism, politically radical puppet theater, active since the 1960s, based in Glover, Vermont . The theater was co-founded by Elka and Peter Schumann. Peter is ...

and as a clown in a Lee De Long workshop. In 1997, she founded the artist's association "Deblokada" and started making documentaries and short films.

Career

Žbanić went to the United States in order to work as a puppeteer in the

-based

. She also learned to act as a clown in a Lee De Long workshop. After her return to Bosnia and Herzegovina, she founded the artists' association "Deblokada" (meaning "de-blocking.") Through Deblokada, Žbanić wrote and produced many documentaries, video artworks, and short films. Her work has been seen around the globe, screened in film festivals and shown at exhibitions such as the Manifesta 3 in

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

in 2000, the Kunsthalle Fridericianum in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

in 2004, and the Istanbul Biennale in 2003. Since then she has made well-received feature films. Jzbanic

Žbanić's 2006 feature film '' Grbavica,'' won the

Golden Bear The Golden Bear (german: Goldener Bär) is the highest prize awarded for the best film at the Berlin International Film Festival. The bear is the heraldic animal of Berlin, featured on both the coat of arms and flag of Berlin. History The winn ...

at the

56th Berlin International Film Festival The 56th Berlin International Film Festival was held from 9 to 19 February 2006. The festival opened with ''Snow Cake'' by Marc Evans. Digitally restored version of Sam Peckinpah's 1972 film ''Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid'' served as the closing ...

, the Grand Jury Prize at the International Feature Competition Festival in 2006, and was awarded the Best European Film and best European actress award in 2006. Her 2010 film '' Na putu'' (''On the Path''), which explores the relationship of a young couple living in

, was screened at the

60th Berlin International Film Festival The 60th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 11 to 21 February 2010, with Werner Herzog as President of the Jury. The opening film of the festival was Chinese director Wang Quan'an's romantic drama ''Apart Together'', in comp ...

. Žbanić's 2020 war drama film ''

'' won the Audience Award at the 50th

International Film Festival Rotterdam The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Since its foundation in 1972, it has maintained a focus on independent and experimental fi ...

, the Best International Film Award at the 2021

Gothenburg Film Festival Göteborg Film Festival (GFF), formerly Göteborg International Film Festival (GIFF), known in English as the Gothenburg Film Festival, formerly Gothenburg International Film Festival, is an annual film festival in Gothenburg, Sweden and the larg ...

, entered into the

77th Venice International Film Festival The 77th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 2 to 12 September 2020, albeit in a "more restrained format" due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Australian actress Cate Blanchett was appointed as the President of the Jury. '' The Ti ...

and also won the Best International Film Award at the

36th Independent Spirit Awards The 36th Film Independent Spirit Awards, honoring the best independent films and television series of 2020, were presented by Film Independent on April 22, 2021. Though it was initially intended for the ceremony to air on April 24, 2021, it was ...

. Further more, in March 2021, the film was nominated for

Best Film Not in the English Language The BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language is given annually by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and presented at the British Academy Film Awards. The award was first given at the 36th British Academy Film Awards, r ...

and Žbanić was nominated for

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...

at the

74th British Academy Film Awards The 74th British Academy Film Awards, also known as the BAFAs (or BAFTAs), were held on 10 and 11 April 2021 at the Royal Albert Hall in London, honouring the best national and foreign films of 2020 and early 2021. Presented by the British Aca ...

. On 15 March 2021, Žbanić's film was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the

93rd Academy Awards The 93rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released from January 1, 2020, to February 28, 2021, at Union Station in Los Angeles. The ceremony was held on April 25, 2021 ...

. At the 34th European Film Awards held in December 2021, ''Quo Vadis, Aida?'' won the Award for Best Film. Also, Žbanić won the Award for Best Director and cast member

Jasna Đuričić Jasna Đuričić (; born 16 April 1966) is a Serbian actress and academic, best known for playing the titular role in the Bosnian film '' Quo Vadis, Aida?'', which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign International Feature Film i ...

won the Award for Best Actress at the same awards.

Themes and characters

Žbanić acknowledges that her films deal chiefly with the people of

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

. She says that she uses film to explore problems and issues relating to her life. Žbanić strives to create characters that are not just "black and white," as real people are not that simple. She does not create characters who are strict saints and heroes, but who might be weak and also brave and tolerant. In 2017, Žbanić signed the

Declaration on the Common Language The Declaration on the Common Language ( sh, Deklaracija o zajedničkom jeziku / ) was issued in 2017 by a group of intellectuals and NGOs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia who were working under the banner of a projec ...

of the

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, G ...

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

Bosniaks The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry ...

and

Montenegrins Montenegrins ( cnr, Црногорци, Crnogorci, or ; lit. "Black Mountain People") are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common Montenegrin culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Genetics Accordin ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards

References

External links