1. Your short film Izidor Popijač Žiga of Bednja won the
Official Selection. How was the film inspired?
The film won
an honorary diploma for the Best Director Feature Film. First I met
Ziga Popijac some 20 years ago and when the time came for my first
author's project, I decided to make a film about him as he's a very
special character and a great artist and sculptor. Another motivation
was the fact that my father was a director so I wanted to try my hand
in direction.
2. Tell us about your background and when
did you decide to become a filmmaker?
I was born in 1973
in Zagreb, Croatia. I graduated cinematogaphy at the Academy of
Dramatic Art in Zagreb. Right after finishing high school for
photography, I decided to continue working with a camera and to
become a film maker.
3. Films that inspired you to
become a filmmaker?
A film that had a great influence
on me was "The Good, The Bad And The Ugly" by Sergio Leone.
I think it's one of the best films in the history of the world cinema
and definitely the best film of the 1960s, when it was made. It's a
real masterpiece.
4. Who is your biggest
influence?
From my family, it was above all my father,
who was a director. Since my early childhood, he used to take me to
his shoots and that's how I grew to like the film tape. Also, I was
inspired by the professors at the Academy. I wanted to make films
like them some day.
5. Do you
have a favorite genre to work in? Why is it your favorite?
The
older I get, the more I like the documentary genre because it's so
realistic and it's not easy to shoot. I don't have a favorite genre,
but from feature films, I like dramas, thrillers, psychological
movies…
