Ognjen Sviličić (born 1971 in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

) is a screenwriter and film director, based in Berlin, noted for his critically acclaimed 2007 films ''Sorry For Kung Fu'', ''

Armin Armin is a male given name and surname of Indo-European languages, Indo-European origin. In the Balkans, Armin is popular among Bosniaks in the former Yugoslavia, Yugoslav nations. The name is a modification of Amin (name), Amin, following a pat ...

and

These Are the Rules ''These Are the Rules'' () is a Croatian 2014 drama film written and directed by Ognjen Sviličić. Plot Maja (Jasna Žalica), Ivo (Emir Hadžihafizbegović) and their 18-year-old son Tomica (Hrvoje Vladisavljević) are an ordinary family from Zag ...

''.

Career

Sviličić was born 1971 in Split, in a family of

journalists A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

. He started his career with a series of TV features which had a mixed critical response. At the beginning of the 2000s, Sviličić often worked as a co-writer or

script doctor A script doctor is a writer or playwright hired by a film, television, or theatre production company to rewrite an existing script or improve specific aspects of it, including structure, characterization, dialogue, pacing, themes, and other elemen ...

on films by other directors ('' What Iva Recorded'' by

Tomislav Radić Tomislav Radić (8 December 1940 – 7 March 2015) was a Croatian film director and screenwriter. Born in Zagreb, Radić graduated from both University of Zagreb's Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and Academy of Dramatic Art. Lived in ...

, ''

The Melon Route ''The Melon Route'' () is a Croatian drama film directed by Branko Schmidt. It was released in 2006. Cast * Krešimir Mikić - Mirko * Sun Mei - Chinese girl * Leon Lučev - Seki * Armin Omerović - Meho * Emir Hadžihafizbegović - Gojko * ...

'' by

Branko Schmidt Branko Schmidt (born 21 September 1957) is a Croatian film director. His 2012 film '' Cannibal Vegetarian'' was selected as the Croatian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the 85th Academy Awards, but it did not make the final shortli ...

). Many of the directors with whom he worked made significantly better films than usual while co-working with Sviličić. Sviličić was therefore sometimes nicknamed " Mabuse of Croatian cinema", who "resurrects irectorsfrom the dead". Sviličić's first international success was the comedy ''

Sorry for Kung Fu ''Sorry for Kung Fu'' () is a 2004 Croatian drama film directed by Ognjen Sviličić. The plot follows a pregnant unmarried woman played by Daria Lorenci, who returns to her village in Croatia after living in Germany during the Croatian War of ...

'', in which a young woman from the

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

n highlands comes back from Germany to her native village. Girl (

Daria Lorenci Daria Lorenci Flatz (; born 13 April 1976) is a Bosnian-born Croatian television and film actress. She appeared in more than twenty feature films since 2000. She lives and works in Zagreb. Personal life Daria Saltagić was born in Sarajevo to ...

) is pregnant, but does not reveal the identity of the father. Their old-fashioned parents try to find a husband for her, but she stubbornly refuses. The film was screened in a Forum program of

Berlinale The Berlin International Film Festival (), usually called the Berlinale (), is an annual film festival held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the festival has been held every February since 1978 and is one of Europ ...

. Sviličić's next film, ''

'', was also screened in Berlin Forum. That is the story about a teenage musician and his simpleton father who travel from Bosnia to Zagreb to audition for a German coproduction film. Son is skeptical and bitter, and father is naive and overtly enthusiastic for anything that is "Western" and "European". His next internationally recognised film was

, premiered in the Orrizonti section at the

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

, where it won the award for the best actor. Sviličić is continually working as a script writer, he wrote the script for "The Father" together with director

Srdan Golubović Srdan Golubović ( sr-cyr, Срдан Голубовић; born August 24, 1972) is a Serbian film director and university professor. Biography Golubović's father was a film director Predrag Golubović. His first feature film '' Absolute 100'' ...

(Premiere

2020, Panorama audience award). He was working as a script consultant for many European script development platforms like First Film First, EAVE or Nipkow Program. At the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb, he has worked as a screenwriting tutor, later he started teaching at a smaller art academy in Široki Brijeg in Bosnia Herzegovina. Sviličić signed the

Declaration on the Common Language The Declaration on the Common Language ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Deklaracija o zajedničkom jeziku, Декларација о заједничком језику, separator=" / ") was issued in 2017 by a group of intellectuals and NGOs from Bosnia and He ...

of the

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

Bosniaks The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...

and

Montenegrins Montenegrins (, or ) are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common ancestry, culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Montenegrins are mostly Orthodox Christians; however, the population also includes ...

.Signatories of the Declaration on the Common Language
official website, retrieved on 2021-01-06.

Filmography

* ''

Wish I Were a Shark ''Wish I Were a Shark'' (''Da mi je biti morski pas'') is a 1999 Croatian film written and directed by Ognjen Sviličić Ognjen Sviličić (born 1971 in Split, Yugoslavia, Split) is a screenwriter and film director, based in Berlin, noted for ...

'' ''(Da mi je biti morski pas)'' (1999) — writer and director * ''

'' ''(Oprosti za kung fu)'' (2004) — writer and director * '' What Iva Recorded'' ''(Što je Iva snimila 21. listopada 2003.)'' (2005) — writer * ''

'' ''(Put lubenica)'' (2006) — writer * ''

'' (2007) — writer and director * ''

Metastases Metastasis is a pathogenic agent's spreading from an initial or primary site to a different or secondary site within the host's body; the term is typically used when referring to metastasis by a cancerous tumor. The newly pathological sites, ...

'' (2009) — writer * ''

Two Sunny Days 2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and the only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many ...

'' (2010) — writer and director * ''

'' (2014) — writer and director * ''

We Will Be the World Champions ''We Will Be the World Champions'' () is a 2015 Serbian Sports film, sports drama film directed by Darko Bajić. It was one of six films shortlisted by Serbia to be their submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 88t ...

'' (2015) — writer * '' The Voice'' (2019) — writer and director * ''

Father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...

'' (2020) — writer

References

External links

*
Ognjen Sviličić at film.hr

Ognjen Sviličić at hrfilm.hr
Croatian film directors Croatian screenwriters Living people 1971 births Film people from Split, Croatia Golden Arena winners Vladimir Nazor Award winners Signatories of the Declaration on the Common Language {{Croatia-film-director-stub