The commission consisting of Prof. Dr. Nevena Daković – tenured professor of Film Theory at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts Belgrade (president of the Commission) and members: Miroljub Stojanović – film critic, member of the Film Center Serbia board, Dragan Marinkovicć- director, Siniša Bokan – professor at the Academy of Arts in Novi Sad, Zoran Janković – producer, Miloš Spasojević – director of photography and Tomislav Gavrić – film critic and film theorist, decided that the film Oasis directed by Ivan Ikić is Serbia’s candidate in the race for the 94th award of the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences – Oscar, for the International Feature Film Award).
The commission is pleased to note that this is one of the best years of Serbian cinema, when eight extremely distinctive and high-quality films were in the running for the candidacy.
In that sense, it was a great honor and responsibility for all members of the commission to decide on the best film.
After a long discussion and three rounds of voting, the Commission made the decision that the Serbian candidate for the 2022 award is Ivan Ikić’s film Oasis, produced by Sense Production. The story dealing with a delicate theme of a love triangle between atypical heroes – young people with special needs – grows into a metaphor, which resonates in all climates and times. In that sense, the director’s process is characterized by precision that adapts to the unpredictability of the situation of working with non-trained actors. At the same time, it follows a script written in the spirit of Italian neorealism and Romanian minimalism. Deft placement of narrative currents and dedicated work with actors in the end served to overcome all challenges and are the result of an effort by the entire creator team.
The high standards of production confirm that this film represents a step forward in every respect, making it a recognizable part of European neo-modern film.