.jpg)
Yesterday evening, with the presence of distinguished guests and film fans, the 47th FEST was officially launched in packed Sava Centre. Numerous guests walked down the Red Carpet, such as the members of the Jury Nada Šargin, Lazar Bodroža, Bojan Vuletić, actors Slaven Došlo, Nikola Vujović, Matea Milosavljević, as well as the guest of the Festival, Oleg Ivenko, the protagonist of the film The White Crow.
The hosts of the Opening Ceremony were the actors Jelena Gavrilović and Zoran Pajić, music was played by a string quartet, and the Ceremony began with a dance performance.
The Artistic Director of the Festival, Jugoslav Pantelić, greeted the audience and gave a short speech. "FEST has its own symbols, FEST itself is a symbol of this city that must be preserved. FEST must always move forward and yet remain the same as it was when it was created. We need FEST, it teaches us, gives us the opportunity to enjoy films that we otherwise would not able to watch, " Pantelic said. He also added that FEST had its own symbols, and one of them was Milena Dravić, the first recipient of the Belgrade Victor Award for outstanding contribution to film art (2015), who left us between two Festivals.
The audience paid tribute to the legendary actress with a thunderous applause, who will be remembered at every FEST
One of the most important Serbian directors, Dušan Makavejev, was posthumously awarded the Belgrade Victor for outstanding contribution to film art. The hosts reminded the audience about the urban legend that it was Makavejev who suggested the Festivals’s name, and he was also one of its founders. The actress Anita Mančić received the award on behalf of Makavejev, who acted in his film Gorilla Bathes at Noon. She expressed her thanks with the following words: "Mak, we know you are prevented from receiving the Belgrade Victor tonight. We imagine you say this: "It seems I will not be able to experience this victory. But the rest of you surely deserve it. Freedom or nothing!" The audience greeted this speech and the great director who recently left us with another roaring applause.
At the very end, the honor to open the Festival was given to the young Argentine actor Chino Darin, who is known to our audience for one of the most watched films of FEST, The Queen of Spain, and this year the audience will have the opportunity to watch him in the film The Angel. He said that he was very pleased to have the opportunity to see so many people in front of the cinema screen, and officially declared the Festival open.
After the ceremony, the audience had the opportunity to watch the film The Favourite by Yorgos Lanthimos.
