North American Premiere
In this quietly affecting, deeply personal debut, Stefan Djordjevic subtly but notably occupies both sides of the camera, painting a delicate portrait of a young man processing the loss of his mother. On his way to reunite with family at their lake house to celebrate his grandmother’s birthday, he hits a dog with his car. As he rescues and nurtures the wounded animal back to health, his own heart begins to mend.
Featuring an award-worthy canine performance and a cast of mostly the director’s own relatives, this gentle meditation on family and loss is steeped in the cadence of natural life, the passage of time, and moments of stillness. Stefan’s assured docufictional methodology and use of personal footage give the film a gravitas that is sensitively repurposed into a celebration of life — the ultimate nod to those no longer with us.
Vanguard Award, VIFF 2025; Heart of Sarajevo (Best Feature Film), Sarajevo 2025
Media Partner
Community Partner
Negrica Djordjevic, Stefan Djordjevic, Bosko Djordjevic, Djordje Davidovic, Budimir Jovanovic, Ljiljana Jovanovic
Serbia/Slovenia/Croatia
2025
In Serbian with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Credits & Director
Producer
Dragana Jovovic, Stefan Ivancic, Ognjen Glavonic, Stefan Djordjevic
Screenwriter
Stefan Djordjevic
Cinematography
Marko Brdar
Editor
Tomislav Stojanovic, Dragan von Petrovic
Production Design
Dragana Bacovic
Original Music
Ivan Judas
Stefan Djordjevic
Stefan Djordjevic (born 1987, Serbia) was introduced to film through his leading role in Nikola Lezaic’s debut Tilva Rosh (Locarno, 2010), which was nominated for the European Discovery – Prix FIPRESCI at the 2011 European Film Awards. He completed his MA in Camera at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade. His graduation film A Handful of Stones (2017) premiered in Cannes’ ACID program. His shorts The Last Image of Father (2019) and Portrait of a Dying Giant (2023) received international acclaim.
Filmography: The Last Image of Father (2019); Portrait of a Dying Giant (2023)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
FernGully: The Last Rainforest
VIFF Kids Club is our monthly family series with films, crafts and more! Doors at 11 am for activities, film at 12. FernGully is a magical adventure where fairy Crysta and her friends seek to protect their rainforest home.
Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other
This intimate and candid film by a younger husband and wife artist team is a delicate and immensely moving dual portrait of two artists, husband and wife, together and apart, at that point in life when the end casts a shadow over even the sunniest day.
Image: © Manon et Jacob and Final Cut For Real
Agatha's Almanac
Shot over six years on vibrant 16mm film, Agatha’s Almanac is an artful documentary portrait of filmmaker Amalie Atkin’s octogenarian aunt, who has fashioned herself an endearingly simple and self-sustaining lifestyle on her Manitoba farm.
Blue Road - The Edna O'Brien Story
Judging by this candid, funny, passionate biographical documentary, it would have been a wild ride to have been Irish novelist Edna O'Brien, or even to have been in her circle of friends and lovers. Well, for an hour and a half we can pretend we were.
The Art of Adventure
The unbelievable adventure story of how painter Robert Bateman and ecologist Bristol Foster drove a Land Rover from Africa to Australia in 1957, developing a love of nature to last a lifetime. An inspirational love letter to the adventure of life itself.