THE DAWN

Irreversibly damaged by a recent tragedy, Matija and Ika's family is divided over whether to leave their valley like their fellow villagers, who flee head over heels, afraid of the imminent political extremism which marks them as chosen or undesirable ones. During Matija's transformation from a man who has lost faith to a man who has found his true self, the dawn which illuminates the valley makes it clear that facing up with trauma and evil is the only way to fight against them.

DALIBOR MATANIĆ

Dalibor Matanić has graduated in film and TV directing from the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb. His film debut was The Cashier Wants to Go to the Seaside in 2000 and it achieved huge festival and cinema success, followed by the equally successful Fine Dead Girls. He then directed more feature films: 100 Minutes of Glory, Kino Lika, Mother of Asphalt, Daddy and Handyman, and several shorts: Party premiered internationally at the Cannes International Film Festival. His feature film The High Sun was included and afterwards awarded with Jury Prize in the official competition program “Un Certain Regard” of the 68th Cannes Film Festival. He is a member of the European Film Academy.

 

Contrary to the clear coding of “us” and “them” along ethnic lines in The High Sun, Matanić here goes for more complicated and abstract divisions, filling his film with a dense atmosphere and heavy-hitting symbolism.

Marko Stojiljković, Cineuropa