It’s 1999 and NATO is bombing Serbia’s military infrastructure, as well as a number of civilian targets. On the potential buildings to be hit is the national TV tower in the country’s capital Belgrade. Ana, Sloba and Bojan each work and live at or nearby the tower. Ana is an actress who doesn’t want to involve herself with politics. TV studio engineer Sloba has brought his family to safety and feels it’s his duty to keep manning the boards. His young colleague Bojan is swept up in the party scene, and is preoccupied with an ex-girlfriend. By living their life as normally as possible, all three try not to give in to fear.
Produced by CTM Films
The Sky Above Us is a drama in which three people’s stories slowly intertwine. All of them live under the psychological pressure of impending doom, not knowing when it will strike. Dutch writer and director Marinus Groothof made his first feature film in Belgrade with an entirely Serbian cast. He previously made two short films set in Belgrade, including the award-winning Sunset from a Rooftop (2009), which explores similar themes to The Sky Above Us.
It is the first movie about the Yugoslav war from an outsider’s perspective. Marinus Groothof is not interested in the moral aspect of the strikes, but focuses on the lives of the people living through this particular period and place. When reality becomes too suffocating and intense, people tend to create their own in order to survive mentally. But for how long is it possible keep up such an act?
Produced by CTM Films
