HALIMA’S PATH
TITLE
Original title – HALIMIN PUT, In English – HALIMA’S PATH, In German – HALIMAS WEG, In French – LE CHEMIN DE HALIMA
ABOUT
HALIMA’S PATH is Arsen’s third feature film, one that he also produced together with his partner, cinematographer Slobodan Trninic. The film was shot during the 30 shooting days in March and April of 2012 and completed by mid-July, to meet the deadline for the Croatian national film festival, the 59th Pula Film Festival.
Halima’s Path was an unexpected winner of the Audience Award at the 59th Pula Film Festival, beating out even the most popular regional comedy of the decade, with the record-high score of 4.86 out of 5. In addition to the Audience Award, Halima’s Path received Young Cinephiles’ Jury Award and Special Mention from FEDEORA, while Olga Pakalovic received Gold Arena for the Best Supporting Actress.
The premiere of the film in Sarajevo was on October 17, 2012, while the premiere in Zagreb was on October 23, 2012. The film was the official Croatian candidate for the 86th Annual Academy Awards. Until May of 2016, the film participated in and out of competition at more than 50 film festivals around the world and was awarded with 32 awards and accolades, becoming Croatia’s most awarded feature film in the past several decades.
BRIEF STORYLINE
Halima’s Path tells the tragic but inspiring story of a grieving, but strong-willed Muslim woman Halima who tries, without success, to find the remains of her son who was killed in the Bosnian War and buried in one of the many mass graves. She realizes that she must track down her estranged niece, who we find carries a mysterious connection to him. After finding her, Halima discovers a horrifying fact from her worst nightmares. With this discovery, the spiral of tragic events from the past would continue in the present, disrupting once again the troubled lives of the characters.
LOG LINE
In order to recover the body of her son lost during the war in Bosnia, a grieving, but strong-willed Muslim woman, Halima, must track down her estranged niece, who we find carries a mysterious connection to him.
PRINCIPAL ACTORS
Halima – Alma Prica, Safija – Olga Pakalovic, Slavomir – Mijo Jurisic, Avdo – Mustafa Nadarevic, Mustafa – Miraj Grbic, Rapka – Daria Lorenci Flatz, Salko – Izudin Bajrovic, Nevzeta – Emina Muftic, Jovan – Dejan Acimovic, Rastko – Miodrag Krivokapic, Zora – Gordana Gadzic
CREW
Director – Arsen Anton Ostojic, Producers – Slobodan Trninic, Arsen Anton Ostojic, Screenwriter – Fedja Isovic, Director of Photography – Slobodan Trninic, Editor – Dubravko Slunjski, Composer – Mate Matisic, Art Director – Ivo Husnjak, Costume Designer – Branka Tkalcec, Makeup Artist – Martina Subic Dodocic, Sound Designers – Damir Kljucaric, Miljenko Pusic, Production – Arkadena Zagreb, Studio Arkadena, Produkcija F.I.S.T, Co-producers – Croatian Radio Television, RTV Slovenija, RTV Federacije BIH
Year – 2012, Format – Super 16mm – DCP, Duration – 93 minutes, Aspect Ratio – 1:1,85, Color – Color, Sound – 5.1
SYNOPSIS
After the end of the war in Bosnia, Halima, a good-natured peasant woman from a remote Muslim village in Western Bosnia, searches for the remains of her husband and her teenage son, who were taken by Serbian paramilitary forces and executed. Using DNA analysis, the UN Committee for Missing Persons manages to identify the remains of her husband in one of the mass graves, but the Committee still can’t identify the remains of her son, since Halima refuses to give a blood sample for DNA testing. There is something that the Committee doesn’t know, something that Halima is hiding from others: her beloved son wasn’t actually her biological son.
The story takes us back two decades ago, during the period of Yugoslavia, where we learn how Halima and her husband became adoptive parents, after fruitless efforts to have a child on their own. Along with that story, we follow Halima’s path nowadays while she is searching for the biological mother of her son, the only person who can give a blood sample, to help identify the remains of her adopted son. We learn that the biological mother of Halima’s son is her own niece, her brother’s daughter, who had an affair with a Serbian boyfriend from a nearby village. Since Halima’s brother strongly disapproved of his teenage daughter’s relationship with a Christian boy, his daughter has secretly given the unwanted child to her aunt Halima, hiding this from the others, and more importantly, from her own Serbian boyfriend who thought that the baby had died.
As Halima searches for her estranged niece, who now lives in the Serbian controlled part of the Bosnia with her husband and three daughters and doesn’t want to have any links to her previous life, Halima discovers a horrifying fact from her worst nightmares which stops her from searching further. Still, with this discovery, the spiral of tragic events from the past would continue in the present, disrupting once again the troubled lives of the characters.
Once the remains have been identified and buried with dignity, the characters manage to overcome their differences from the past and come together, ending Halima’s path with redemption and understanding.
FESTIVALS
59th Pula Film Festival, Croatia, July 2012
– Audience Award
– Young Cinephiles’ Jury Award
– Gold Arena for Best Supporting Actress
– Special Mention FEDEORA
22nd Cottbus Film Festival, Germany, November 2012
– Audience Award
– Jury’s Special Mention
16th Tallinn “Black Nights” Film Festival, Estonia, November 2012
– Special Jury Prize
35th Cairo International Film Festival, Egypt, December 2012
– Human Rights competition program
29th Mons Int’l Film Festival d’Amour, Belgium, February 2013
– Grand Prix for Best Film
– Best Actress Award
– Cinefemme Award for Best Film
20th Int’l Fim Festival Febio Fest, Prag, Czech Republic, March 2013
– Out of competition program
19th Int’l Festival of Mediterranean Films, Tetouan,Morocco, March 2013
– Grand Prix for Best Film
– Best Actress Award
37th Cleveland International Film Festival, USA, April 2013
– Competition program
8th Festival of Bosnian Films, Chicago, USA, April 2013
– Out of competition program
8th SEE Film Festival, Los Angeles, USA, May 2013
– Audience Award
10th Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival in New York, USA, May 2013
– Jury Award for the Best Feature Film
– Audience Award
Days of Balkan Cinema, St. Petersburg, Russia, May 2013
– Out of competition program
39th Seattle International Film Festival, USA, May/June 2013
– Out of competition program
12th Transilvania Int’l Film Festival, Cluj, Romania, June 2013
– Out of competition program
29th Festroia International Film Festival, Setubal, Portugal, June 2013
– Best Actress Award
19th MedFilmFestival, Rome, Italy, June 2013
– Multicultural Jury’s Best Feature Film Award
16th Motovun Film Festival, Croatia, July 2013
– Finalist, Regional program
21st Varna Int’l Film Festival, Bulgaria, August/September 2013
– Critics Award
3rd Balkan Film and Food Festival, Albania, September 2013
– Grand Prix for Best Film
Festival Slovenskega Filma, Portoroz, Slovenia, September 2013
– Coproductions program
10th Miskolc Int’l Film Festival Jameson Cinefest, Hungary, Sept. 2013
– Competition program
2nd Let’s CEE Film Festival, Vienna, Austria, September 2013
– Competition program
15th Film by the Sea Int’l Film Festival, Vlissingen, Holland, Sept. 2013
– Out of Competition program
26th Helsinki International Film Festival, Finland, September 2013
– Out of competition program
5th Prishtina International Film Festival, Kosovo, September 2013
– MEDIA Award
19th Int’l Festival of Authors’ Films, Rabat, Morocco, Sept/Oct. 2013
– Out of competition program
15th Napoli Film Festival, Napoli, Italy, September/October 2013
– Competition program
21st Raindance Film Festival, London UK, Sept/October 2013
– Best International Feature award
6th East-West Int’l Film Festival, Orenburg, Russia, October 2013
– Best Actress Award for Alma Prica
1st Chelsea Film Festival, New York, USA, October 2013
– Best Screenplay Award
– Best Actreess Award
– Best Supporting Actress Award
28th Ft. Lauderdale Int’l Film Festival, USA, October/November 2013
– Competition program
7th European Psychoanalitic Film Festival, London, UK, November 2013
– Out of competition program
11th Daytona Beach Film Festival, Florida, USA, November 2013
– Best Foreign Language Film
27th Braunschweig Film Festival, Germany, November 2013
– Out of competition program
19th Kolkata International Film Festival, India, November 2013
– Out of competition program
22nd St.Louis International Film Festival, USA, November 2013
– Interfaith Jury, Honorable Mention
39th Seoul Independent Film Festival, S. Korea, Nov./Dec. 2013
– Out of competition program
13th Festival Cinema Mediterraneen, Bruxelles, Belgium, Dec. 2013
– Competition program
4th Human Rights Film Festival “Ubrzaj”, Podgorica, Montenegro, 2013
– Out of competition program
2nd Delhi International Film Festival, India, December 2013
– Competition program
86th Annual Academy Awards, Los Angeles, USA, 2014
– Official Croatian candidate
14th Palm Springs International Film Festival, USA, January 2014
– Competition program
Irvine International Film Festival, USA, January 2014
– Competition program
6th Jaipur International Film Festival, India, February 2014
– Competition program
5th Cinema Mundi, Int’l Film Festival, Brno, Czech Republic, March 2014
– Out of competition program
9th Int’l Festival of Oriental Films, Geneva, Switzerland, April 2014
– Special Mention
Vama Veche Int’l Film Festival, Romania, August 2014
– Out of competition program
23rd Chichester Int’l Film Festival, United Kingdom, August 2014
– Audience Award for the best film in “East Meets West” program
10th Kazan Int’l Festival of Muslim Cinema, Russia, September 2014
– Grand Prix for the Best Film
2nd SlavoniceFest, Czech Republic, August 2015
– Official program
4th Festival of European Films, Montevideo, Uruguay, May 2016
– Audience Award for the Best Film
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
– Filmhelg, Galerie Spektrum, Lindkoeping, Sweden, March 2013
– Days of Mediterranean Films, Algiers, November 2013
– Days of Bosnia-Herzegovinian Films in Zagreb, Croatia, November 2013
– BalkanFilmTage, Munich, Germany, February 2014
– Korean Film Archive, Seoul, Korea, February 2014
– CinéFemme, Galeries Cinéma, Bruxelles, March 2014
– “Remembering Srebrenica” Media Museum, Bradford, UK, July 11, 2015
– “Balkanale”, Vienna, Austria, September 2016
– 55th Rencontre Cinématographique de Pézenas, France, February 2017
AWARDS
59th Pula Film Festival, Croatia, July 2012
– Audience Award
– Young Cinephiles’ Jury Award
– Gold Arena for Best Supporting Actress
– Special Mention FEDEORA
22nd Cottbus Film Festival, Germany, November 2012
– Audience Award
– Jury’s Special Mention
16th Tallinn “Black Nights” Film Festival, Estonia, November 2012
– Special Jury Prize
29th Mons Int’l Film Festival d’Amour, Belgium, February 2013
– Grand Prix for Best Film
– Best Actress Award
– Cinefemme Award for Best Film
19th Int’l Festival of Mediterranean Films, Tetouan,Morocco, March 2013
– Grand Prix for Best Film
– Best Actress Award
8th SEE Film Festival, Los Angeles, USA, May 2013
– Audience Award
10th Bosnian-Herzegovinian Film Festival in New York, USA, May 2013
– Jury Award for the Best Feature Film
– Audience Award
29th Festroia International Film Festival, Setubal, Portugal, June 2013
– Best Actress Award
19th MedFilmFestival, Rome, Italy, June 2013
– Multicultural Jury’s Best Feature Film Award
21st Varna Int’l Film Festival, Bulgaria, August/September 2013
– Critics Award
3rd Balkan Film and Food Festival, Albania, September 2013
– Grand Prix for Best Film
5th Prishtina International Film Festival, Kosovo, September 2013
– MEDIA Award
86th Annual Academy Awards, Los Angeles, USA, 2014
– Selected as the official Croatian candidate
21st Raindance Film Festival, London UK, Sept/October 2013
– Best International Feature award
6th East-West Int’l Film Festival, Orenburg, Russia, October 2013
– Best Actress Award for Alma Prica
1st Chelsea Film Festival, New York, USA, October 2013
– Best Screenplay Award
– Best Actreess Award
– Best Supporting Actress Award
11th Daytona Beach Film Festival, Florida, USA, November 2013
– Best Foreign Language Film
22nd St.Louis International Film Festival, USA, November 2013
– Interfaith Jury, Honorable Mention
9th Int’l Festival of Oriental Films, Geneva, Switzerland, April 2014
– Special Mention
23rd Chichester Int’l Film Festival, United Kingdom, August 2014
– Audience Award for the best film in “East Meets West” program
10th Kazan Int’l Festival of Muslim Cinema, Russia, September 2014
– Grand Prix for the Best Film
4th Festival of European Films, Montevideo, Uruguay, May 2016
– Audience Award for the Best Film
CRITICS COMMENTS
“I will go as far as to say that Ostojic has created a masterpiece; telling the story of a grieving mother in a most perfect way, in a way, that will not leave its reviewers indifferent to the story of Halima.”
(Ulkar Alakbarova, MoviesMovesMe.com)
“Halima’s Path is a very touching, human story, with an emotional level that very few films, especially Hollywood films, are able to reach; films you simply cannot watch without tears and a feeling of compassion. “
(Ulkar Alakbarova, MoviesMovesMe.com)
“The performance that is delivered by Alma Prica, as Halima, is truly astounding and contributes greatly to the sadness of the story. The performances of Olga Pakalovic, as Safija, and Mijo Jurisic, as Slavomir, are as amazing as the rest of the cast.”
(Ulkar Alakbarova, MoviesMovesMe.com)
“The big discovery … was a film from Croatia entitled “Halima’s Path”, a minor key masterpiece that deals with post war trauma after the Bosnian civil war…”
(Alex Deleon,FilmFestivals.com)
“What makes this film so special apart from the gripping subject matter, is the overall esthetic conception, the brilliant cinematography, the authenticity of the settings (Satyajit Ray would have loved it) — the absolute world class acting, and the direction, which, as one viewer remarked in the post screening Q and A, “puts Hollywood to shame”.
(Alex Deleon,FilmFestivals.com)
“The direction is so skillful that the viewer is simply swept up and drawn along in one perfectly constructed scene after another to the shocking conclusion and a deftly touching cemetery coda”.
(Alex Deleon,FilmFestivals.com)
“Every character is perfectly drawn and portrayed by an amazing ensemble cast… “Halima’s Path” is a stunner and jaw dropper…”
(Alex Deleon,FilmFestivals.com)
“Wherever it has been shown so far audiences have been wowed.”
(Alex Deleon,FilmFestivals.com)
“Powerful and moving, the film has been picking up awards at festivals worldwide…”
(Nick Holdsworth, The Hollywood Reporter)
Ostojic is more than familiar with the region and its subtleties, their predicaments and family dynamics and that very insight is what makes “Halima’s Path” an unforgettably moving and important picture.
(Carlos Aguilar, Indiewire)
“Ostojic’s latest film “Halima’s Path” deservedly merits the epithet of a masterpiece.”
(Aida Vida, Harvard University)
“Another Masterpiece from the Balkans”
“Best Bosnian film so far!”
“Film for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film”
“Masterpiece”
“Heartbreaking”
“Brilliant Balkan War Film”
“An Engaging and Moving Story!”
(Headlines for Users Reviews, IMDB)
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