Director Anja Koprivšek skillfully uses direct cinema and empathy to craft a raw, refreshing, touching, thought provoking short documentary, Between Summers, presented at the 19th Doclisboa International Film Festival.
Lisbon’s International Documentary Film Festival, Doclisboa, is currently in full swing, running from October 21st to October 31st. As part of its rich program, we delved into the short film section where we spotted Between Summers (Dir. Anja Koprivšek, Croatia, 2021, 33 min). After premiering at Zagreb Dox earlier this year, within the festival’s Regional Competition, the film was presented in Pula Film Festival’s Student Program, before making it to Lisbon, Portugal.
“Between Summers” chronicles the story of Zimka and Nazmija, sisters from a Roma family. Growing up in Zagreb, Croatia, their relationship is marked by the clash of their characters, as well as the strength of their sisterly bond. However, Zimka’s departure to a group home and her relationship with boyfriend Tino challenge their sisterhood. The film follows the two sisters during this turbulent time, raising the question of whether everyone has the right to a carefree adolescence or if it’s a special privilege.
Through the use of direct cinema and by fostering an intimate relationship with her subjects, director Anja Koprivšek successfully crafts an authentic and touching documentary. In an organic, sometimes chaotic manner, the director’s camera immerses us alongside Zimka and Nazmija, capturing them with impressive authenticity. The relationship between the director and her characters, coupled with her apparent empathy, enables her to aptly question or challenge the characters, who feel safe sharing their thoughts and concerns with the camera, and thereby with us.
As a result of the director’s approach and the sisters’ personalities, the film emerges as raw, refreshing, authentic, and deeply touching. It’s evident that the director manages to capture something real, something that jeopardizes the beautiful and symbiotic relationship between the two sisters when Zimka’s relationship with Tino becomes invasive in many ways, from her sister’s perspective.
The film also succeeds in prompting reflections and questioning the value of a teenager’s choices and decisions. Is everybody entitled to a carefree adolescence, or is it a privilege of only a few? On what grounds can a family approve of one of its members’ relationships? How can siblings or parents judge the value of a sister’s or daughter’s relationship?
Given that the filmmaker appears to have found the right balance to maintain the perfect distance from her subjects, allowing her to capture profoundly authentic scenes and prompting us to reflect on the teenagers’ situation simultaneously, one can easily wish that the film continued to chronicle the lives of Zimka and Nazmija.
