Shot on Hi8 video cameras, Emilija Gašić finds naturalism through the home-video diaries of 3 sisters during the 1999 NATO bombings of Serbia in her debut feature, 78 Days. We had the great pleasure to talk to her in Rotterdam.
Presented in the Bright Future section at the 53rd International Film Festival Rotterdam, Emilija Gašić’s debut feature film, 78 Days, shows a raw and natural look at 3 sisters during the 1999 NATO bombing in Serbia (belonging to the former Yugoslavia). Shot on Hi8 video cameras to visually portray the film’s diaristic home-video look, we follow from youngest to oldest; Tica, Sonja, and Dragana, seeing their lives under the threat of bombings in the countryside. Due to their father being conscripted during the bombings, the sisters begin filming home-video for their father to document their lives while he’s gone. From the youthful mischievousness to the formative milestones in childhood, Emilija presents a harrowing, yet natural depiction of sisterhood and coming of age during times of unease, evoking the tender nostalgia and spontaneity found in sisterhood from an early age. We had the great pleasure to talk to Emilija on her approach and process of her debut feature.
“I saw tapes that took place in 1999 during the bombing in Yugoslavia where I was 7 at the time.”
Michael Granados (Film Fest Report): How did this project begin?
Emilija Gašić: It started a long time ago, over 10 years ago because I have my family’s hi-8 tapes. I would normally watch it with my family and had to digitize additional ones and while watching, I found something cinematic about this material. When I was a student in Belgrade at the Academy of Arts, I made an exercise with this material with a self-portrait film.
When COVID hit in 2020, I had a lot of time and revisited these tapes. I saw tapes that took place in 1999 during the bombing in Yugoslavia where I was 7 at the time. There, it clicked for me that I wanted to make a story connected to this.
Michael Granados: Due to the use of Hi8 video, home-video structure, and the narrative of the 3 sisters during the 1999 NATO bombings, it seems personal and almost autobiographical. Why did you choose period this as your first feature?
Emilija Gašić: I wouldn’t call it autobiographical. Because it is my first feature, I wanted to make something in a world that I understand and know. Being the youngest of 3 sisters, I know the dynamic really well and even though it started with my family tapes, I dramatized it a lot. That’s what I learned in film school!
Michael Granados: What was the process in capturing the realism through casting?
Emilija Gašić: The casting took over a year because I wanted to shoot in the countryside in Serbia and I was OCD about accents. I wanted to be as real as possible so I knew it would take a long time.
We did casting calls in this region remotely to view the audition tapes. I was looking for non-actors and professional actors, but I was hoping the non-actors would be comfortable with this subject through exercises such as acting games or singing. We would then pair up the actresses to see who has the best chemistry.
“I also put out a questionnaire anonymously to see how people in my hometown remember this period.”
Michael Granados: Since the film’s shot from a point of view from the sisters, replicating the home-video format, can you tell me about the filming process and approach?
Emilija Gašić: It was a mix of different approaches in filming. My director of photography, Ines Gowland would film a couple of takes and I would either change the blocking or be open to improvisation depending on the day.
I would sometimes give the camera to the actresses to see what would happen and adjust as needed. In order to feel spontaneous and alive, you have to come up with new ideas for each take. In the screenplay, I had to be very specific who’s behind the camera and I would sometimes let them film and improvise.
I also put out a questionnaire anonymously to see how people in my hometown remember this period. I asked different generations who were parents or children at the time and since it was anonymous, people were more open and honest about their experience and feelings. There were a lot of teenagers who felt both excitement and frightened which made the bond between them much closer which I incorporated to the sisters.
Michael Granados: Lastly, I am curious about the research of the use of Hi8 cameras, can you talk about the research and use of it?
Emilija Gašić: I have my own Hi8 camera that is a bit fidgety, but we bought a few more because we didn’t want to take chances using this old technology. I didn’t want to send the tapes out to be digitally transferred, so we had to purchase a specific Hi-8 video player that was probably the most expensive camera-related purchase.
We filmed in my hometown so I didn’t want to send the tapes to be digitized in ProRes format, so we bought monitor recorder where we converted the Hi-8 to ProRes, so we were able to watch the dailies, usually the next day due to the time it takes to film and transfer everything we shot that day. But yes, we had 5 cameras total and one of them was mine from the 1990s!
