04/07/2006

Vladimir Perisic’s directorial debut, the French/Serbian/Swiss co-production The Ordinary People, will start its six-week shoot on the spring of 2007 in and around Belgrade.

The majority French production from TS Productions (Miléna Poylo and Anthony Doncque), written by the 30 year-old director, will star non-professional actors and explore the permission to kill and the disappearance of humanity in a man.

Set over the course of one day, The Ordinary People will follow the downfall of Drazen, a young soldier whose army is mysteriously brought to an abandoned farm in the middle of a sun-drenched field, where an anguishing feat of killing entire convoys of soldiers awaits them.

The film tells the story of how a man not predisposed to murder can – out of fear of being judged and excluded from a group – be more afraid of emptiness than horror and fight for the other side, while resistance becomes unknown territory. "For me, making this film is not about showing but seeing, trying to see in the darkness," explained the director.

Born in Belgrade in 1976, Perisic studied at the Fémis in Paris and his graduation short Dremabno oko, presented in Cannes in 2003 in the Cinéfondation programme, was selected at several festivals (Angers, Clermont Ferrand, Montpellier, Best Film at Munich).

Produced by TS Productions (60%), The Ordinary People is being co-produced by Swiss outfit Lago Films and Serbian outfit Trilema (20% each). The €1.2m film also includes a co-production and pre-sales agreement with Arte France Cinéma for an overall sum of €300,000, as well as €220,000 in backing from Eurimages.

The Swiss Federal Office of Culture provided €120,000 in funding, which was complemented by the city of Geneva and broadcaster TSR. The film also received support from the Hubert Bals Fund and scriptwriting funding from the Centre Images (formerly APCVL).

The French release of The Ordinary People is scheduled for autumn 2007, with international sales being handled by Wild Bunch.

(Translated from French)