International premiere
Observing
Slovenia was on the news for a vicious crime after two friends beat a colleague and broadcast the event on Facebook Live to 20,000 people. This was a prank for the majority, and nobody called the police. The heart-wrenching thriller analyses the moral dilemma, examines the conscience, and imagines the scary aftermath of such a horrific incident. Janez Burger pushes paranoia to the extreme with unsettling phone calls, threatening messages, and invisible menace.
Paramedic Lara was in the ambulance with inhumanly wounded comatose Kristjan. The next morning, she receives an SMS of a smiley face. It is followed by a manipulatively edited video of a violent assault. Lara is not alone among the targeted receivers, who suddenly die or commit suicide. The unknown blackmailer continues to spread fear among all the curious observers.
Edvinas Pukšta
Janez Burger (1965) studied economics and film and TV directing. Together with director Jan Cvitkovic, he established the independent film production company Staragara in 2003. His films, including „Idle Running“ (1999, PÖFF 2000) and „Ruins“ (2004), have been recognized around the world earning over 40 Slovenian and international awards. His third full-length feature film „Circus Fantasticus“ was also shown in PÖFF programme in 2011. „Ivan“, Burger’s sixth full-length feature film was also screened at PÖFF in 2017.
Filmography:
V leru (1999, Tühijooks, PÖFF 2000), Ruševine (Ruins, 2004), Circus Fantasticus (PÖFF 2011), Priletni parazit ali kdo je Marko Brecelj? (2013, doc), Avtosola (Driving School, 2014), Ivan (PÖFF 2017), Opazovanje (Observing, 2023)
