''Državni posao'' ( sr-Cyrl, Државни посао; ) is a
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
n comedy television series starring
Dimitrije Banjac
Dimitrije Banjac ( sr-cyr, Димитрије Бањац; born 6 July 1976) is a Serbian actor, comedian and screenwriter. Together with Nikola Škorić and Dejan Ćirjaković he is the creator and actor of several popular Serbian television s ...
,
Nikola Škorić and
Dejan Ćirjaković. They are also the authors of the show. The show began airing in September 2012. It is one of the most-watched TV shows and TV programmes of the
Radio Television of Vojvodina
Radio Television of Vojvodina, sr-Lat, Radio-televizija Vojvodine, , , , Rusyn: Радіо Телебачення Воєводини; abbr. РТВ/RTV (RTV) is the regional public broadcaster in the Serbian province of Vojvodina, headquartered ...
.
Synopsis
The show has the format of a three-character
chamber play with each episode depicting another work day at the archive department of an unnamed state-owned company in
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...
. Torbica, Boškić and Čvarkov are fellow employees sharing the same office.
They are often talking and discussing the current events in the country including sports, entertainment, films, TV series, and politics. The show also features a variety of
unseen character
An unseen character in theatre, comics, film or television, or a silent character in radio or literature, is a character who is mentioned but not directly known to the audience, but who advances the action of the plot in a significant way, and w ...
s that are only referenced in the conversations between the three characters.
Episodes
Characters
Main characters
Đorđe Čvarkov
Đorđe Čvarkov is the chief
archivist
An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...
in the office. With only four years left before becoming eligible for retirement, he spent most of his career at the company—though, prior to joining the archive department, he had been the company's
chief financial officer
A chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization who is assigned the primary responsibility for making decisions for the company for projects and its finances; i.a.: financial planning, management of financial risks, ...
during the
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization.
CEOs find roles in variou ...
term of his close friend Marjanović. However, both were removed from their posts in 1988 in the midst of the so-called
Yogurt Revolution. Still embittered about the sudden removal all these years later, Čvarkov feels he was victim of a political witch hunt while many in the company view it as comeuppance since CFO Čvarkov and CEO Marjanović were apparently known to engage in non-transparent business practices such as
nepotism
Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...
in the hiring process or knowingly signing damaging contracts on the company's behalf. In the years since their joint professional downfall from top managerial positions, Čvarkov's and Marjanović's personal friendship soured and they haven't been on speaking terms ever since Čvarkov's apparent failure to be discreet about Marjanović's
womanizing
Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as promiscuous by man ...
in front of Marjanović's wife. Čvarkov detests the subsequent CEOs—Dobrosavljev and Dobromirov.
Hailing from
Titel
Titel ( sr-Cyrl, Тител, ) is a town and municipality located in the South Bačka District of the province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The town of Titel has a population of 4,522, while the population of the municipality of Titel is 13,984 (2022 ...
, young Čvarkov attended the
Ludvig Bavarski School for Gifted Children in nearby
Perlez. Musically inclined from an early age, he was a member of Vitezovi Salajke — a band that achieved a measure of local prominence around
Bačka
Bačka ( sr-Cyrl, Бачка, ) or Bácska (), is a geographical and historical area within the Pannonian Plain bordered by the river Danube to the west and south, and by the river Tisza to the east. It is divided between Serbia and Hungary. ...
. Apparently quite a
ladies man himself in his youth, Čvarkov frequently brags about his conquests that potentially include Boškić's mother and her sister. He possibly has a son in
Pečuj. Čvarkov's marital history is not entirely clear though it is undeniably connected to a woman with last name Bugarski whom he either married and then divorced or was about to marry before their passionate relationship broke apart at the last minute. He lives with his grandmother at
Pejićevi Salaši
Pejićevi Salaši ( sr-cyr, Пејићеви Салаши) is a suburban settlement of the city of Novi Sad, Serbia. It is located on the outskirts of Novi Sad proper area, close to Čenej and Kać.
It is not regarded as a separate populated plac ...
, a suburban hamlet on the outer city limits of
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...
, where they run a
poultry farming
Poultry farming is the form of animal husbandry which raises domesticated birds such as chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese to produce meat or eggs for food. Poultry – mostly chickens – are farmed in great numbers. More than 60 billion c ...
operation, raising and selling small roosters. Being a good source of supplemental income, Čvarkov's private rooster operation often overlaps with his work at the company since he frequently uses the company's time and resources when setting up deals with potential customers. Also living with them at the house is grandmother's close friend Frau Šilovička, a very old,
Vienna
Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
-educated lady who remembers the
Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...
. Čvarkov moved her there from her centrally-located Novi Sad apartment, which he now leases out and collects the rent.
Proud local booster of Bačka and
Vojvodina
Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...
, Čvarkov often complains about the contemporary times. Considering his ilk to be a culturally
autochthonous part in the fabric of Vojvodina, he frequently displays disdain for "dođoši", first and second generation newcomers. Furthermore, he dislikes
Belgrade
Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
and isn't too keen even on other parts of Vojvodina outside of Bačka, such as
Banat
Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...
. In addition to being an admirer of the
k. und k. and
Mitteleuropa
(), meaning Middle Europe, is one of the German terms for Central Europe. The term has acquired diverse cultural, political and historical connotations. University of Warsaw, Johnson, Lonnie (1996) ''Central Europe: Enemies, Neighbors, Friends' ...
cultural values, he is known as a devotee of
Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...
and
communist
Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...
period in Yugoslavia. He often brings up
Živan Berisavljević and
Boško Krunić, top communist politicians from the Vojvodina provincial leadership who got removed during
Yogurt Revolution, in positive light, considering them to be exemplary leaders and individuals. Feeling cultural superiority over the people from other parts of former Yugoslavia, Čvarkov only occasionally makes an exception to praise the
Slovenes
The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( ), are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Slovenia and adjacent regions in Italy, Austria and Hungary. Slovenes share a common ancestry, Slovenian culture, culture, and History of Slove ...
, albeit not hesitating at other times to express his dislike of them, allegedly on the grounds of an unpleasant encounter with an
olm
The olm () or proteus (''Proteus anguinus'') is an aquatic salamander which is the only species in the genus ''Proteus'' of the family Proteidae and the only exclusively cave-dwelling chordate species found in Europe; the family's other extant g ...
— a species endemic to Southern Slovenia — which actually serves as a
running gag
A running gag, or running joke, is a literary device that takes the form of an amusing joke or a comical reference and appears repeatedly throughout a work of literature or other form of storytelling. Though they are similar, catchphrases are no ...
throughout the show.
Many of his stories revolve around his grandmother, Frau Šilovička, and his drunken friend Žika who hails from
Majdanpek
Majdanpek ( sr-cyr, Мајданпек; ) is a town and municipality located in the Bor District of the eastern Serbia, and is not far from the border of Romania. According to 2022 census, the municipality of Majdanpek had a population of 14,559 ...
, all of whom are
unseen characters
An unseen character in theatre, comics, film or television, or a silent character in radio or literature, is a Character (arts), character who is mentioned but not directly known to the audience, but who advances the action of the plot in a signi ...
.
Dragan Torbica
Dragan Torbica, a
Bosnian Serb
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...
from an unnamed village in
Bosanska Krajina
Bosanska Krajina ( sr-Cyrl, Босанска Крајина, , ) is a geographical region, a subregion of Bosnia, in western Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is enclosed by several rivers, namely the Sava (north), Glina (northwest), Vrbanja and Vrba ...
region, is Čvarkov's deputy.
Growing up in rural surroundings somewhere between
Šipovo
Šipovo ( sr-cyrl, Шипово) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in the southern part of the Bosanska Krajina region. As of 2013, it has a population of 10,293 inhabitants, while the town of � ...
and
Mrkonjić Grad
Mrkonjić Grad ( sr-cyrl, Мркоњић Град, ) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the Bosanska Krajina region, between Banja Luka and Jajce. As of 2013, the municipality has a populatio ...
near the Janj river, he left his modest home to go to
Sarajevo
Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...
for high school studies. He also spent time at various
youth work actions such as 1971's construction of the
Belgrade–Bar railway
The Belgrade–Bar railway ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Пруга Београд–Бар, Pruga Beograd–Bar) is a long electrified main line connecting the Serbian capital of Belgrade with the town of Bar, Montenegro, Bar, a Port of Bar, major seaport ...
's
Užice
Užice ( sr-cyr, Ужице, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative centre of the Zlatibor District in western Serbia. It is located on the banks of the river Đetinja. According to the 2022 census, the city proper has a popu ...
-
Sevojno stage. His pursuits after high school are somewhat unclear. Teenage Torbica either commenced
security management studies at the
University of Sarajevo
The University of Sarajevo (Bosnian language, Bosnian, Croatian language, Croatian and Serbian language, Serbian: ''Univerzitet u Sarajevu'' / Sveučilište u Sarajevu / Универзитет у Сарајеву) is a List of universities in Bo ...
or he immediately entered the workforce, spending time in a series of low-skilled labour jobs. The specifics of his possible time as labourer are also sketchy as details change frequently depending on what effect he's going for in a given discussion since he mostly brings up personal past when arguing a point. He thus may have been employed at the Pobeda
metallurgical
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys.
Metallurgy encompasses both the ...
plant in Novi Sad, spent two years in
SR Slovenia doing
road construction
A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved.
The ...
, worked in
Šipad's
wood production
Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin ...
facility in
Travnik
Travnik ( cyrl, Травник) is a town and a municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the administrative center of the Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, ...
, or even tried his luck as
carpenter
Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...
in
West Germany
West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
where his uncle brought him as part of the
gastarbeiter program.
Eventually, sometime during the early 1980s, Torbica ended up in Novi Sad where he got a driver job at the company, often acting as personal chauffeur to the upper management which at the time consisted of Čvarkov and Marjanović. In time, he moved up to the archive department desk job as Čvarkov's second-in-command. Though on surface he and Čvarkov share an antagonistic business and personal relationship with digs and strongly worded insults flying back and forth, they also have a bit of a friendship and are known to socialize outside of work. At first glance, Čvarkov considers Torbica to be an uncultured and boorish peasant from Bosnia, completely incompatible with the Vojvodina cultural model — the way Čvarkov sees that model to be — while Torbica sees Čvarkov as an irrelevant and pompous
poseur covering up his own inadequacies by hiding behind someone else's culture. Most of the time, though, they manage to find enough common ground either via being from the same generation or through mutual financial interest.
Torbica participated in the
Yugoslav Wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place from 1991 to 2001 in what had been the Socialist Federal Republic of ...
during the 1990s. He was an ardent supporter of the
Serbian Renewal Movement
The Serbian Renewal Movement (, abbr. SPO) is a liberal and monarchist political party in Serbia. It was founded in 1990 by writer Vuk Drašković, who served as the party's president until 2024. Aleksandar Cvetković is the incumbent leader. ...
(SPO) political party and its leader
Vuk Drašković
Vuk Drašković ( sr-cyrl, Вук Драшковић, ; born 29 November 1946) is a Serbian writer and politician. He is the co-founder and former leader of the Serbian Renewal Movement, serving as president from 1990 to 2024. He also served as th ...
and an active participant in the
9 March 1991 protests in Belgrade.
He has been living with his wife Smiljka, a
Serb from Zagreb, and their three children — sons Miloš and Milan and daughter Milica — in a Novi Sad
studio apartment
A studio apartment, or studio Condominium, condo also known as a studio flat (United Kingdom, UK), self-contained apartment (Nigeria, Ghana), efficiency apartment, bed-sitter (Kenya), or bachelor apartment, is a small apartment, dwelling in ...
his retired
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army (JNA/; Macedonian language, Macedonian, Montenegrin language, Montenegrin and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian language, Croatian and ; , J ...
(JNA) general father-in-law bought them. Living in accommodation paid for by an
in-law
In law and in cultural anthropology, affinity is the kinship relationship created or that exists between two people as a result of someone's marriage. It is the relationship each party in the marriage has to the family of the other party in th ...
makes Torbica feel emasculated. Furthermore, on occasion, he acknowledges personal frustration over the perceived discrepancy in his and his wife's background and upbringing — the perception being that he, a rural guy with not much in way of material possessions, "married up" by managing to get with a city girl from a relatively well-off family. He's also paying off an unspecified
bank loan
In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money.
The document evidencing the debt ( ...
pegged against the
Swiss franc
The Swiss franc, or simply the franc, is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) iss ...
, which he frequently whines and complains about. During the show, he is showing his love for his homeland. He has a
love–hate relationship
A love–hate relationship is an interpersonal relationship involving simultaneous or alternating emotions of love and hate—something particularly common when emotions are intense. The term is used frequently in psychology, popular writing and ...
with his longtime friend Čvarkov.
Boškić
Boškić, a recent hire without much work experience, came to the archive department courtesy of his older brother who is well-placed in Serbia's
particracy
Particracy, also known as partitocracy or partocracy, is a form of government in which the political parties are the primary basis of rule rather than citizens or individual politicians.
As argued by Italian political scientist Mauro Calise in 1 ...
. Before coming to the company, Boškić worked as an entry-level employee (pripravnik) in another state-owned enterprise, Zavod za izgradnju grada (ZIG), where his brother held a management position. Following the
2012 Serbian parliamentary elections where the incumbent coalition led by the
Democratic Party (DS) lost power to the coalition formed by the
Progressive Party (SNS), Boškić's older brother—who had been closely associated with DS—often has to cover his tracks and come up with
alibi
An alibi (, from the Latin, '' alibī'', meaning "somewhere else") is a statement by a person under suspicion in a crime that they were in a different place when the offence was committed. During a police investigation, all suspects are usually a ...
s and/or
plausible deniability
Plausible deniability is the ability of people, typically senior officials in a formal or informal chain of command, to deny knowledge or responsibility for actions committed by or on behalf of members of their organizational hierarchy. They may ...
in regards to previous work. However, he possesses enough skills, contacts, and connections, allowing him to smoothly overcome this power handover at the top. With an
UDBA
The State Security Service, also known by its original name as the Directorate for State Security, was the secret police organization of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Communist Yugoslavia. It was at all times best known by the acrony ...
-connected father, also a long time politically-appointed
functionary
An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of the ...
under various authorities throughout the decades, the entire Boškić family is well-off as they continue to successfully navigate through various political changes in Serbia.
Despite his affluent background in the Serbian societal context, young Boškić is mostly withdrawn, shy, and
socially awkward, which older and more experienced Čvarkov and Torbica skillfully use against him.
Supporting characters
Grandma
Čvarkov's grandmother, an old woman who lives with her grandson Čvarkov and takes care of their farm. She is best friend with frau Šilovička and responsible for cooking in the house. In her long life, she was a professional gambler, truck-driver, kung-fu instructor etc.
Frau Šilovička
An extremely old yet still vivacious woman, Frau Šilovička is best friends with Čvarkov's grandmother. Exuding old Viennese splendor from the
Habsburg-Lorraine
The House of Habsburg-Lorraine () originated from the marriage in 1736 of Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor, Francis III, Duke of Lorraine and Bar, and Maria Theresa of Habsburg monarchy, Austria, later successively List of Bohemian monarchs, Queen ...
times, she is greatly revered by Čvarkov. She's been married at least six times, outliving each of her husbands, one of whom was
Marijan Varešanin, the early 20th-century governor of the
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north a ...
condominium within
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
.
Čika Žika
Živan Radosavljević ("d" is
silent) is a neighbour of the Čvarkov family. Čvarkov describes him as being an
alcoholic
Alcoholism is the continued drinking of alcohol despite it causing problems. Some definitions require evidence of dependence and withdrawal. Problematic use of alcohol has been mentioned in the earliest historical records. The World Hea ...
and mentally unstable.
Marjanović
The company's former longtime politically-appointed CEO, Marjanović got pushed out in October 1988 during the
Anti-Bureaucratic Revolution. Unlike Marjanović who got removed from the company altogether, Čvarkov — the company's
CFO under Marjanović's tenure — comparably made off better, only getting demoted as a result of the political coup. By all accounts, the two ran the company as private property, with nepotism and misuse of
public funds
Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual o ...
the norm. Despite the fact that their friendship deteriorated in the years since, apparently due to Čvarkov not being discreet about Marjanović's womanizing in front of Marjanović's wife, Čvarkov remembers his former boss and close friend fondly, often bringing up anecdotes from their business trips to places such as
Chad
Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...
.
Višekruna
Known to be
Serbian police's ''
éminence grise'' and a prominent member of the country's security apparatus (
UDBA
The State Security Service, also known by its original name as the Directorate for State Security, was the secret police organization of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Communist Yugoslavia. It was at all times best known by the acrony ...
as well as its successors), inspector and security operative Višekruna's commanding presence and abrasive personality are the stuff of legends. His harsh reputation precedes him thus often acting as deterrent to potential lawbreakers — though he doesn't shy away from employing direct violence either, personally administering
slaps that can "wipe your memories".
Count Sekereši
A
vampire
A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...
from
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, Sekereši was Frau Šilovička's lover. Sekereši was originally an unseen character, however, he made an appearance in the 5th season of the series, played by Srđan Timarov, he has since been a series regular.
Cast
Main
Supporting
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drzavni posao
Serbian comedy television series
2012 Serbian television series debuts
2010s Serbian television series
Vojvodina in fiction
Novi Sad in fiction
Television shows set in Serbia
Television shows filmed in Serbia