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This was followed on Monday evening by a screening on Montenegrin TV channel Vijesti as part of the show ‘Bez Granica’, along with an interview with BIRN regional director Gordana Igric.

BIRN launched its promotion of the documentary last month with a premiere of the full film in Skopje, Macedonia, followed by inaugural screenings in Belgrade, Zagreb, Pristina, Sarajevo and Novi Sad. The film’s premiere in Tuzla is scheduled for Friday, while screenings in Podgorica, Kraljevo and Subotica will follow.

“The film documents the journey of six young people through the region and their encounter with nationalism, ethnic tensions, prejudice – key ingredients in the bloody menu of the Balkan wars,” the head of BIRN Macedonia, Ana Petruseva, told the audience of journalists, diplomatic and NGO representatives before the Skopje premiere.

A three-episode version and six-episode version of the documentary is being aired on TV channels across the Balkans.

In the film, the six young people from six Balkan countries examine how the conflicts of the past have influenced both their present and their prospects for the future.

Along the way, they come face-to-face with some of the ghosts of the past in the shape of impoverished refugees, military veterans and unrepentant nationalists.

They also see how the nationalist ideas that led to war have been reflected in the region’s economy, culture and even architecture, as they muse on how genuine tolerance and reconciliation can develop in places that have endured such divisive violence.

The Majority Starts Here was produced by BIRN and directed by award-winning film-maker Lode Desmet. In 2006, Desmet and BIRN also produced the film Does Anyone Have a Plan?, about the future status of Kosovo.

The documentary is part of BIRN’s Balkan Transitional Justice project, which aims to improve public understanding of transitional justice issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

Find out more at: http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/page/balkan-transitional-justice-movie-home

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network’s new documentary, which follows six young people from six Balkan countries as they travel across the region examining how the conflicts of the past have affected their lives, was screened on Monday in Novi Sad.

BIRN’s regional director Gordana Igric said that the film showed that young people from former Yugoslav countries could still establish friendly relations.

“We were surprised how these young people were not burdened by the war and how they managed to overcome the ethnic differences.  They even played paintball in Kosovo, without any resemblance to the war in the 1990s,” Igric said.

The event was attended by 120 people from including journalists, civil society representatives, students from the media studies department of Novi Sad philosophy faculty and general public.

The film was first shown in Skopje in late September, then in Sarajevo and Belgrade, followed by screenings in Zagreb and Pristina.

A three-episode version of the documentary will also be aired on TV channels across the Balkans.

The documentary is part of BIRN’s Balkan Transitional Justice project, which aims to improve public understanding of transitional justice issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network’s new road-movie documentary, which follows six young people from six countries as they travel across the former Yugoslavia examining how the conflicts of the past have affected their lives, had its first Croatian screening in Zagreb on Thursday – the latest in a series of cross-regional premieres.

The screening at the Gric art cinema was followed by a discussion with film’s participants, who during their journey across the region met war veterans, refugees, unrepentant nationalists and people who advocate reconciliation.

Zvonimir Zvonar, the participant from Croatia, said that it was very important for young people to face up to what happened in the recent past.

“I have never before had the opportunity to meet people from other former republics at one place, let alone spend almost a month with them. Besides making new friends, I improved my knowledge of history and learned many new things which I did not even think about before. This documentary allowed me to have an invaluable life experience,” he said.

Simona Milanovic, the participant from Serbia, said that working on the film changed her perception of what was happening in the 1990s in the Balkans.

“I admit I knew very little about the conflicts of the 1990s and I am glad I was able to hear stories firsthand about what really happened,” she said.

“I met people who, unfortunately, had to experience war personally, but what was most important to me is that during the shooting I made friends for life,” she added.

Meanwhile Bardh Skhreli, the participant from Kosovo, said that in order for young people from the Balkans to understand each other and the region in which they live, they need to get to know each other.

“Every young person living in the Balkans should find a little money and time to visit neighbouring countries and experience all the wonderful things the region has to offer,” he said.

“It is important that we meet people, hang around with them and develop friendships. Instead of Brussels, London or some other European city, visit the Balkans and meet people who live around you,” he urged.

Besides Zagreb, the film has also been shown in Belgrade, Sarajevo, Skopje and Pristina, with a further screening in Novi Sad on Monday.

A three-episode version of the documentary will also be aired on TV channels across the Balkans.

The documentary is part of BIRN’s Balkan Transitional Justice project, which aims to improve public understanding of transitional justice issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

The first episode of the documentary was aired on Macedonian cable TV station 24 VESTI on Wednesday afternoon, the second and third episodes follow on Thursday and Friday, while the whole movie will air on Saturday.

The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network launched its promotion of the documentary last week with a premiere in Skopje, Macedonia, followed by premieres in Belgrade, Zagreb, Pristina, Sarajevo and Novi Sad.

“The film documents the journey of six young people through the region and their encounter with nationalism, ethnic tensions, prejudice – key ingredients in the bloody menu of the Balkan wars,” the head of BIRN Macedonia, Ana Petruseva, told the audience of journalists, diplomatic and NGO representatives before the Skopje premiere.

A three-episode version of the documentary is being aired on TV channels across the Balkans.

In the film, six young people from six Balkan countries travel through the region, examining how the conflicts of the past have influenced both their present and their prospects for the future.

Along the way, they come face-to-face with some of the ghosts of the past in the shape of impoverished refugees, military veterans and unrepentant nationalists.

They also see how the nationalist ideas that led to war have been reflected in the region’s economy, culture and even architecture, as they muse on how genuine tolerance and reconciliation can develop in places that have endured such divisive violence.

The Majority Starts Here was produced by BIRN and directed by award-winning film-maker Lode Desmet. In 2006, Desmet and BIRN also produced the film Does Anyone Have a Plan?, about the future status of Kosovo.

The documentary is part of BIRN’s Balkan Transitional Justice project, which aims to improve public understanding of transitional justice issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

Premiere screenings of BIRN’s new documentary, which follows six young people from six Balkan countries as they travel across the region examining how the conflicts of the past have affected their lives, were held on Thursday evening in Belgrade.

During their journey, the six young participants from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia meet war veterans, refugees, unrepentant nationalists and people who advocate reconciliation.

The screening in Belgrade on Wednesday evening was followed by a debate about the legacy of the conflicts for the younger generation.

Maja Micic, from the Youth Initiative for Human Rights, said that the next step for the region was to have politicians who genuinely face the past.

“This is the moment when the state needs to show with its actions that it is aware of the horrific war that took place and needs to show understanding for the victims,” Micic said.

Dejan Remetic from the youth wing of the governing Progressive Party, said that ordinary people also had to get involved and not rely completely on politicians.

“The government has that responsibility, but it also important to have youth, some new generation, like we saw in this movie, that will bring about change,” Remetic said.

Biljana Cincarevic, a Serbian painter, said that the media as well as the state has a crucial role in informing the younger generation about what happened during the wars.

“It is important to speak about this and say that nationalism is very dangerous. That is what the state needs to say to its youth through education and the media,” Cincarevic said.

Two of the six participants in the film, Simona Milanovic from Serbia and Zvonimir Zvonar from Croatia, also spoke at the post-screening discussion.

Milanovic said that during the cross-Balkan road trip that formed the basis for the film, “I expected I would have problems, because I come from Serbia, which is always perceived as the aggressor”.

“Luckily, this was just a prejudice,” she said.

Zvonar said that although he was already informed about the conflicts which have taken place in the Balkans over the past few decades, it was a powerful experience to meet some of the people who had been directly involved.

“You hear and know about Chetniks, but it is very different when you meet all that face to face,” he said.

The film was first shown in Skopje in Wednesday and also on Thursday in Sarajevo, while further screenings are set for Pristina on October 2, Zagreb on October 3 and Novi Sad on October 7.

A three-episode version of the documentary will also be aired on TV channels across the Balkans.

The documentary is part of BIRN’s Balkan Transitional Justice project, which aims to improve public understanding of transitional justice issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.

BIRN’s new documentary, The Majority Starts Here, is launched across the region this week, starting on Wednesday with premieres in Skopje, with further premiere screenings to follow in Sarajevo and Belgrade on Thursday, Pristina on October 2, Zagreb on October 3 and Novi Sad on October 7.

In the film, six young people from ex-Yugoslavia make a journey through the region, examining how the conflicts of the past, which they were too young to understand fully at the time, have influenced both their present and their prospects for the future.

Along the way, they come face-to-face with some of the ghosts of the past in the shape of impoverished wartime refugees, military veterans and unrepentant nationalists.

They also see how nationalist ideas which led to war have been reflected in the region’s economy, culture and even architecture, as they muse on how genuine tolerance and reconciliation can develop in places which have endured such divisive violence.

BIRN director Gordana Igric said that the idea behind the film was to find out how much the younger generation knew about the recent past, and whether they believed that these conflicts should be discussed or set aside for the sake of looking to the future.

Despite some disturbing encounters during their journey however, there was a positive message: “They learned that divisions are still strong between people, but they don’t take up guns to solve the problem,” Igric said.

The Majority Starts Here was produced by BIRN and directed by award-winning film-maker Lode Desmet. In 2006, Desmet and BIRN also produced the film Does Anyone Have a Plan?, about the future status of Kosovo.

The documentary is part of BIRN’s Balkan Transitional Justice project, which aims to improve public understanding of transitional justice issues in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia.