Serbia

Serbian music professor, Misha Brankov, discovers his real family origins, and starts piecing together the full story through visits to a former concentration camp. After discovering that his real father, who was killed in the Holocaust, was in the middle of composing a new musical piece when he died, Brankov attempts to stage the song’s first performance at the site of his death. Emotional and empowering, When Day Breaks is a reminder of the many stories still yet untold in the aftermath of Europe’s darkest chapter.

A group of gay activists in Belgrade strikes a tense alliance with a Serbian crime boss, whose fiancée demands an extravagant wedding that only struggling gay theater director Mirko and his friends can provide. In exchange, Macho the Boss reluctantly agrees to provide security for the group’s Pride parade. It’s a tall order: previous attempts to march met with mass violence from right-wing skinheads.

Simmering tension, gorgeous cinematography, and an indomitable examination of revenge and reconciliation mark this Serbian drama as a must-see during this year’s Festival. Marco, a Serbian soldier, performs a kind gesture during wartime with repercussions that echo out for more than a decade.