A Mini Retrospective of Slovenian Experimental Film in Uppsala
At Sweden’s largest short film festival, Uppsala Short Film Festival, this year’s programme will feature a special selection of Slovenian experimental films, presented in two sections titled Slovenian Avantgarde Now: Of Glitches and Prophecies and Slovenian Avantgarde Then: Of Zeitgeist and Vertigos. The selection was prepared by FeKK – Ljubljana Short Film Festival in collaboration with the Slovenian Cinematheque, and curated by Matevž Jerman.
The first section presents a selection of works by contemporary Slovenian filmmakers who explore the boundaries of cinematic expression, blending documentary and fiction, analogue and digital, personal and political. The retrospective offers an insight into the vibrant and diverse landscape of recent Slovenian experimental cinema, which moves between poetic visuality, formal exploration, and auteur reflection on time, space, and identity. The films included in the programme reveal the creative power and boldness of a new generation of filmmakers who, through a thoughtful use of film language, establish a dialogue with the rich tradition of Slovenian and European avant-garde cinema.
The second section focuses on works by filmmakers from the 1960s and 1970s — a period marked by political and social upheavals that also deeply influenced the activities of local film clubs. Films by Vinko Rozman, Karpo Godina, Vasko Pregelj, Davorin Marc, and the collective OM produkcija explore the interplay between the personal and the political, the materiality of film stock, and the breaking of boundaries between experimentation and artistic freedom. These works bear witness to the rich yet long-overlooked history of Slovenian experimental film — a heritage that the Slovenian Cinematheque has brought to light over the past decade through systematic collection and restoration efforts.
Representing FeKK in Sweden will be Peter Cerovšek, who will serve as a member of the festival’s international jury, evaluating films in the competition programmes.