Macedonian cinema is reaching audiences across Croatia through a new traveling film festival created to present the country’s cinematic heritage beyond its borders. The Macedonian Cultural and Information Centre in Zagreb and the Cinematheque of Macedonia launched the Festival of Macedonian Film, dedicated to Macedonian film classics and designed to introduce Croatian audiences to some of the most important works in the country’s cinematic history. The initiative began in Zagreb around Macedonia’s Independence Day and was developed in cooperation with the Croatian Network of Independent Cinemas, allowing the program to travel beyond the capital and reach audiences in 13 cities across Croatia.
The opening program focused on the very beginnings of Macedonian filmmaking, with an exclusive screening of the digitally restored film work of the Manaki brothers, considered pioneers of cinematography in the Balkans. Their preserved film material represents an important part of the region’s early visual history and offers audiences an opportunity to see some of the earliest recorded images connected to the Balkans. By placing the Manaki brothers at the beginning of the festival, organizers also connected the history of Macedonian cinema with a wider regional story of photography, filmmaking and cultural development. The program was accompanied by an exhibition of Macedonian film posters from 1952 to 2022, presenting original posters from important Macedonian films and showing how film design developed alongside changes in society and culture.
The festival also introduced Croatian audiences to a selection of feature and short films that have left a lasting mark on Macedonian cinema. The program included works connected with prominent Macedonian directors such as Stole Popov, Ljubiša Georgievski, Milcho Manchevski, Dimitrie Osmanli and Mitko Panov. Organizers said the aim was not only to screen individual films, but also to present Macedonian film heritage as part of a broader cultural connection between Macedonia and Croatia. The cooperation with the Croatian Network of Independent Cinemas made it possible to take the program to 13 different cinema halls in 13 Croatian cities, creating a traveling format that allows Macedonian films to reach audiences who might otherwise have limited opportunities to see them.
The project is also being viewed as a form of cultural diplomacy and as a possible long term tradition rather than a one time event. The director of the Macedonian Cultural and Information Centre in Zagreb, Mimi Gjorgoska Ilievska, has described the festival as an effort to create a recognizable and continuing presentation of Macedonian film for Croatian audiences. The first edition attracted significant interest, encouraging the organizers and their Croatian partners to begin preparing another program for the following year. By combining film screenings, archival material and exhibitions, the festival gives Macedonian cinema an opportunity to travel outside the country while strengthening cultural connections between Macedonia and Croatia and introducing a wider audience to the history and development of Macedonian filmmaking.
