The program Together Again brings new films of well-known directors whose work Zagreb Film Festival has been following from the beginning. The program will feature the winner of this year’s Berlinale, directed by the famous Romanian director Radu Jude, the new film by Norwegian director Joachim Trier, regarded as a must-see film for “lost” millennials, as well as new films by Venezuelan maestro Lorenzo Vigas and the winner of the 14th ZFF, Egyptian director Mohamed Diab.

Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn, directed by the famous Romanian director Radu Jude, arrives at ZFF from Berlin with a Golden Bear. An absurd comedy with unconventional narration takes place in modern-day Bucharest dominated by betting shops, exchange offices and pharmacies. Through the story of a moral judgment visited upon the shy high-school professor Emi (Katia Pascariu), whose homemade porn was leaked on the internet, we get a broader picture of contemporary Romania and its deep-rooted hypocrisy, prejudices, sexism, and racism. A small co-producer of the film is the Croatian production company Kinorama.

The Worst Person in the World is the new film by Norwegian director Joachim Trier (Thelma) and the final part of his trilogy Oslo (Reprise, Oslo, August 31st), contemporary portraits of young people at the turning points in their lives. The heroine Julie (Renate Reinsve, Cannes 2021 – Best Actress) is still looking for her true calling, life passion and true love in her 30’s, and is not afraid to discard everything standing in the way of self-realization, such as medical school and a long-term stable relationship. This playful and goofy romantic drama of maturing in 12 chapters is described as an indispensable film for millennials who are still trying to find their footing.

The program also features the new film of Egyptian director Mohamed Diab, Amira. This is Diab’s third feature film after Cairo 678, which deals with sexual harassment in Egypt, and 14th ZFF winner, Clash, about protesters on opposing sides who find themselves locked in the police vehicle during a violent protest. Amira is a drama about the search for identity in a place mired in conflict. Teenager Amira (Tara Abboud) from the West Bank was conceived with the help of smuggled sperm of a Palestinian prisoner serving a life sentence in an Israeli prison. However, Amira’s life is turned upside down when she suspects that the man she’s idealizing might not be her father.

We became acquainted with Venezuelan director Lorenzo Vigas at 13th ZFF when we presented his debut film, From Afar, which won the Golden Lion in Venice. Vigas’ second film, The Box, is a dark psychological thriller about a boy who obsessively tries to infiltrate a stranger’s life, convinced he is his father. At the same time, it is a painful insight into the criminal activities in the heart of the Mexican labor market. Young Hatzin travels home from a distant mining town, carrying a box with the remains of his father, a migrant worker who died in an accident at work. Along the way, he sees a man who reminds him of his father. The film was featured at festivals in Venice, Toronto, and San Sebastián, and it owes its fascinating aesthetics to the cinematography of Sergio Armstrong, a frequent collaborator of Pablo Larráin.