Canadian Premiere
A remote Slovenian convent is the backdrop of Urška Djukić’s lush and seductive debut that sees an all-girl school choir decamp for a weekend-long retreat. Surrounded by a group of hormonal teenage girls eager to push her buttons, 16-year-old Lucija finds herself both intrigued and resistant to the pressure to claim her sexual power. While she doesn’t return from the excursion the same doe-eyed maiden, she blossoms on her own terms.
Winner of the prestigious FIPRESCI award at this year’s Berlinale, Little Trouble Girls is an electrifying, regionally distinct addition to cinema’s record of female desire. Djukić’s take doesn’t shy away from the more provocative leanings of the likes of Catherine Breillat, but she thrives in her own stylistic and experiential playpen, offset by the religious and cultural context that adds another layer of moral complexity to the budding wants and needs.
Jara Sofija Ostan, Mina Švajger, Saša Tabaković, Nataša Burger, Staša Popović, Mateja Strle
Slovenia/Italy/Croatia/Serbia
2025
In Slovenian with English subtitles
At Alliance Française and VIFF Centre
At Fifth Avenue
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Credits & Director
Producer
Jozko Rutar, Miha Cernec
Screenwriter
Urška Djukić, Maria Bohr
Cinematography
Lev Predan Kowarski
Editor
Vlado Gojun
Production Design
Vasja Kokelj
Urška Djukić
Urška Djukić’s most recent short film, Granny’s Sexual Life (2021), has won over 50 awards, including the European Film Academy Award for best short film in 2022 and the 2023 Cesar Award for best animated short film. Previous short films include The Right One (2019), part of the omnibus film SEE Factory Sarajevo mon amour, which premiered at the 2019 Cannes Directors’ Fortnight. In 2019, Djukic participated in the 39th Cannes Cinéfondation Residency, where she began work on her first feature, Little Trouble Girls (2025), later awarded as the best work-in-progress project at the Les Arcs Film Festival.
Filmography: Bon Appétit, La Vie! (2016); After the Hunt (2019); The Right One (2019); Granny’s Sexual Life (2021)
Vanguard
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Little Trouble Girls
A remote Slovenian convent is the backdrop of Urška Djukić’s lush and seductive debut that sees an all-girl school choir decamp for a weekend-long retreat, and 16-year-old Lucija experience important awakenings.
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