Mirjana Karanović ( sr-cyr, Мирјана Карановић; born 28 January 1957) is a Serbian actress, film director and screenwriter. Considered one of the best Serbian and Yugoslavian actresses of all time, she is probably the best known for her performance in her debut film ''

Petria's Wreath ''Petria's Wreath'' ( sh, italic=yes, Petrijin venac), is a 1980 Yugoslav film directed by Srđan Karanović. It won the Big Golden Arena for Best Film, with Mirjana Karanović picking up the Golden Arena for Best Actress at the 1980 Pula Film ...

'' (''Petrijin venac''), as well as for her frequent collaborations with film directors

Emir Kusturica Emir Kusturica ( sr-cyrl, Емир Кустурица; born 24 November 1954) is a Serbian film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and musician. He also has French citizenship.http://www.serbia.com/emir-kusturica-artist-builder-and-anti-glo ...

and

Jasmila Žbanić Jasmila Žbanić (; born 19 December 1974) is a Bosnian film director, screenwriter and producer, best known for having written and directed ''Quo Vadis, Aida?'' (2020), which earned her nominations for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Languag ...

. Karanović received international acclaim and a nomination for

European Film Award for Best Actress The European Film Award for Best Actress is an award given out at the annual European Film Awards to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding leading performance in a film industry. The awards are presented by the European Film Academ ...

for her role in Žbanić's '' Grbavica''. Karanović's directorial debut, ''

A Good Wife ''A Good Wife'' ( sr, Dobra žena) is a 2016 Serbian drama film written, directed by and starring Mirjana Karanović. It was shown in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition section at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. It was named as one of fiv ...

'' (''Dobra žena''), had its world premiere at the

2016 Sundance Film Festival The 2016 Sundance Film Festival took place from January 21 to January 31, 2016. The first lineup of competition films was announced on December 2, 2015. The opening night film was ''Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You'', directed by Heidi Ew ...

Early life

Mirjana Karanović was born on 28 January 1957 in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

. Her father Miloje was a soldier, and her mother Radmila was a tailor.

Acting career

She made her screen debut in the 1980 film '' Petrijin venac'' ("Petrija's Wreath"), earning accolades for her portrayal of an illiterate Serbian woman. She is best known to international audiences for her portrayal of the mother in the 1985 film ''

When Father Was Away on Business ''When Father Was Away on Business'' ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Otac na službenom putu, Отац на службеном путу) is a 1985 Yugoslav film by Serbian director Emir Kusturica. The screenplay was written by the Bosnian dramatist Abdulah Sid ...

''. In 1995, she appeared in the film ''

Underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground ...

'', directed by famous Serbian director

. In 2003, Mirjana Karanović again made history by appearing in

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n film '' Svjedoci'' (''Witnesses''). She was the first actor from

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

to appear in a Croatian film since the

breakup of Yugoslavia The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...

. In the film, she played a Croatian war widow. In 2005, she appeared in the film '' Grbavica'' by the Bosnian director

, in which she played a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

woman who had to come to terms with her teenage daughter regarding the nature of her birth. In this film, she portrays a

rape victim Rape is a traumatic experience that affects the victim (also known as 'survivor') in a physical, psychological, and sociological way. Even though the effects and aftermath of rape differentiate among victims, individuals tend to suffer from simil ...

abused by

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

during the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

Activism

Karanović has been an active supporter of

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 33 ...

. She is one of the founders of Incest Trauma Center, which provides psychological assistance to child and adult survivors of sexual violence and their supportive persons. In 2017, Karanović has signed the

Declaration on the Common Language The Declaration on the Common Language ( sh, Deklaracija o zajedničkom jeziku / ) was issued in 2017 by a group of intellectuals and NGOs from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia who were working under the banner of a projec ...

of the

Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, G ...

Bosniaks The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry ...

and

Montenegrins Montenegrins ( cnr, Црногорци, Crnogorci, or ; lit. "Black Mountain People") are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common Montenegrin culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Genetics Accordin ...

Personal life

Karanović was never married and she doesn't have children. She is an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

. In 2004, she dated Bosnian actor

Ermin Bravo Ermin Bravo (born 5 December 1979) is a Bosnian actor. He has appeared in more than ten films since 2001. He is most known for starring in the 2003 Bosnian film '' Remake''. Bravo is also remembered as a unique character in the 2017 film ''Men Do ...

, who is 22 years her junior.

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karanovic, Mirjana 1957 births Living people 20th-century Serbian actresses 21st-century Serbian actresses 20th-century Serbian writers 21st-century Serbian writers Actresses from Belgrade Serbian actresses Serbian film directors Serbian theatre directors Serbian television directors Serbian film actresses Serbian television actresses Serbian stage actresses Serbian voice actresses Serbian screenwriters Serbian LGBT rights activists Golden Arena winners Signatories of the Declaration on the Common Language Žanka Stokić award winners Croatian Theatre Award winners Theatre people from Belgrade Women television directors