The Association of Film Workers of Bosnia and Herzegovina has chosen The Excursion directed by Una Gunjak as the Bosnian candidate in the Oscar category of Best International Film. The film is a minority Serbian co-production, which was supported by Film Center Serbia.
The film had its world premiere this summer at the Locarno Film Festival, and there it opened the “Cineasti del presente” program, dedicated to the first and second films of the most interesting new authors; In Locarno The Excursion was awarded with a Special Award. In addition, this film was shown as part of the Sarajevo Film Festival, Bihać Adventure Film Festival, where it won the Grand Prix “Unska Sirena”, as well as at the Montenegro Film Festival in Herceg Novi, where it won the Golden Mimosa for the best screenplay (Una Gunjak) and the award for best actress (Asja Zara Lagumdžija).
The film follows a schoolgirl Iman, as her class prepares for a field trip. Iman catches the attention of an older boy. After a truth or dare game, the rumor that Iman is pregnant spreads around the school, and it starts to threaten the excursion. Iman then finds herself in a storm of expectations and limitations, and the events she has caused spiral out of control.
The main roles in the film were played by Asja Zara Lagumdžija and Nađa Spaho, Maja Izetbegović, Mediha Musliović, Izudin Bajrović, Muhamed Hadžović. The film was written and directed by Una Gunjak, and the rest of the film’s author team consists of: director of photography Matthias Pilz, editor Clémence Diard, set designer Emina Kujundžić, costume designer Katarina Pilić, casting director Timka Grin, sound designer Igor Čamo, composer Draško Adžić and makeup artist Lamija Hadžihasanović-Homarac. The producers of the film are Amra Bakšić Čamo, Adis Đapo (SCCA/pro.ba), and the co-producers are Nukleus film (Siniša Juričić), Baš Čelik (Jelena Mitrović), Salaud Morisset (François Morisset), Mer Film (Gary Cranner).
The film was shot in Sarajevo last year, and was realized as a co-production of six countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, France, Norway and Qatar). The film was supported by the Sarajevo Cinematography Foundation, the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the KS, HAVC, Film Center Serbia, Sorfond, Doha Film Institute, Hubert Bals Fund and Eurimages.
Una Gunjak was born and raised in Sarajevo. She studied in Italy and Great Britain, where she obtained a master’s degree in editing at the National Film and TV School in London. She works as an editor, screenwriter and director. Her short film Chicken (2014) premiered at Cannes Critics’ Week and won the European Film Award for Best Short Film that year. “Chicken” screened at Sundance as well as 270 other festivals around the world, winning more than 70 awards.
Her short film “Salamat from Germany”, shot as part of the “Lebanon Factory” initiative, premiered in the “Quinzaine des Cinéastes” program of the Cannes Film Festival.
Una Gunjak is currently developing her second feature-length project, works as an editing consultant for the “First Cut Lab” program and is preparing for the filming of the series Komar by Timur Makarević, where she will direct part of the first season.