Theta Rhythm - Film

The 8th session of the Central Committee of the Communist League of Serbia was held on the 23rd and the 24th September 1987. Historians agree that this session represents a symbolic turning point that led to the rise of nationalism and wars in former Yugoslavia.  It was supposed to introduce ‘anti-bureaucratic revolution’ which would direct the anger of the popular masses towards transformation of the communist one-party system. Instead, it brutally increased social inequalities and caused ethnic conflicts.

Theta Rhythm* is a reconstruction of one day of the 8th session through the perspective of my father Mirko Fajfrić. It was initiated by the fact that he was present at the session but was caught on camera sleeping. Perhaps it’s a coincidence: the fact that he worked as an administrator at a department of Belgrade’s City Committee until 1989, and that the session was long and exhausting and broadcasted live on national television. However, this doesn’t diminish the fact that he failed to participate and therefore could have possibly influenced the moment in recent history that started the dramatic loss of “a better future”. This metaphor served as my entry point to cope with what Freud calls “the screen of memory” – the way of mapping certain problematic issues, a place of traumatic experience.

This film is comprised of a detailed re-creation of the period in 1987, and the daily routine of my father during that time. Meticulous reconstruction culminated when I inserted myself in the archive footage of the political sessions. The film is shot in HD Cam. Lasts 17 minutes and is presented in loop.

The first part of the project can be viewed here Theta Rhythm(While my father was sleeping...). It consists of documentary sources - interviews, recollections, documents and images.

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VIDEO EXCERPT