Mila Turajlić

Mila Turajlić (Serbian Cyrillic: Мила Tураjлић; born 1979) is a Serbian filmmaker. She directed and produced award-winning films The Other Side of Everything and Cinema Komunisto.

Background Turajlić was born in Belgrade, Serbia. Her mother is Srbijanka Turajlić, a pro-democracy activist. Turajlić studied film production at Belgrade University's Faculty of Dramatic Arts and political science at the London School of Economics.

Cinema Komunisto won for Best Documentary at the Chicago International Film Festival and also received an award at FOCAL International. It was screened at the IDFA and at the Tribeca Film Festival, as well as having theatrical releases in Europe and North America.

The Other Side of Everything The 2017 documentary, The Other Side of Everything, is about life in war torn Serbia seen through the eyes of Srbijanka Turajlić, the director's peace activist mother. The subject is depicted as "...a voice from yesterday which inspiringly refuses to be silenced. The country's recent and distant pasts are explored in the film. Permanently locked doors in the family's apartment refer to the absurdities of the old communist regime. Mila's great-grandfather, a wealthy politician, owned the apartment, which was sub-divided into smaller living quarters when the communists took power in the 1940s. Spied on by their new neighbors, the Turajlić family had to watch what they said and did at home. One of the "new" tenants, who lived in the subdivision for seven decades, died during filming, which resulted in the locked doors finally being opened.

Described as "accessible, informative and wryly humorous...", Turajlić won for best director at the RiverRun International Film Festival in North Carolina.

The Other Side of Everything made its American premiere at the 2018 San Francisco International Film Festival. Additionally it was presented at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and had a special screening in Montreal, Canada. The film also represents the first HBO Europe coproduction with Serbia and was broadcast by the network in 2017.

Tito’s Cameraman Turajlić is currently working on her next documentary Tito’s Cameraman, which is composed of archival footage and interviews with , whose camera lens "...recorded the birth of friendships that became the cornerstone of the Non-Aligned Movement." Labudović regularly accompanied Yugoslav president Josip Broz Tito during his international travels, documenting his visits with heads of state. Born in 1926 in Berane, Stevan Labudović died in 2017 in Belgrade.

Filmography