Retrospective Oriente Vzhod / Occidente Zahod – Border Through Film and History presented a selection of films on 17 October at the ATAFF festival in Szolnok. In a city that, through dialogue between art and film, seeks new paths of cooperation, the themes of borders, memory and a shared European identity found an open and curious audience.
During the visit, the retrospective’s coordinator, Jasna Pintarič, and the project lead, Mateja Zorn, were present and also took part in the conversation “GO! 2025 — Tribute to Vision.” The discussion, attended by representatives of the city authorities, shed light on the experiences of the European Capital of Culture Nova Gorica and Gorizia, as well as Szolnok’s vision to make a successful bid for the title of European Capital of Culture in the next decade. The talk explored how film, cultural networks and long-term partnerships can foster the development of a city and its community.
After the discussion, we screened a curated series of short films that, from different angles, open up questions of borders, crossings and shared space: Vojna besed ali spoštljiva tišina (Leo Černic), Kje je železna zavesa? (Mako Sajko), Spovednica tihotapcev. Pogledi skozi železno zaveso (Anja Medved), Abesinija (Karpo Godina) and Il Carso (Franco Giraldi). Interweaving archival, documentary, essayistic and poetic cinematic languages, the selection invited the audience to reflect on how history and geography leave a lasting imprint on landscapes and people.
The festival was exceptionally hospitable, and the city itself was a beautiful backdrop to another successful stop of the retrospective. Our sincere thanks to the festival director, Éva Demeter, for the invitation and support. A week earlier, Éva also attended our festival Tribute to Vision, organised by Kinoatelje, further strengthening the fruitful two-way cooperation between partner communities.
