Conversation with Miloš Timotijević

Last year you were a cohost of the Opening Ceremony, this year you play the principal role in the film which opens the festival...

It was a huge honor last year to participate in the Opening Ceremony, a unique experience. Again, I feel honored that Vlažnost opens this year’s FEST. Perhaps it would be preposterous to say that Nikola (Ljuca, director) deserved to have his film open the festival, but given the long and arduous process of working on this film and seeing him tackle on each and every detail in such a professional manner… I think that he really deserves this opportunity. 

-You have already collaborated with Nikola on his short films. Tell us something about this collaboration and how you reacted when he offered you the role.

The two of us met when he was still a student of film directing and we connected immediately. Until now, Nikola has not invited me to work with him only when he did not have a role for me to play. He is one of a few people whose artistic, aesthetic and moral approach to work I find truly trustworthy. First time when we discussed the script, he wanted me to play a different role; however, as the screenplay changed during the work process, he realized that I should play Petar. Nikola and I have an excellent relationship, it is beyond my comprehension how he finds these things in me, which buttons he presses... He says “I know that this indication would make no sense to anybody else, but I am confident that you will comprehend it the way I want.” 

-The entire film rests on your shoulders. How did you take this responsibility?

Of course, I was worried, but Nikola and I worked through it during the preparations and he removed my trepidations quite quickly. I had a long period of preparations, I had received the screenplay 18 months before the filming began, I had physical preparations for six months and at the end of the process I was in total command of the role. 

-What was the hardest part about playing this role?

For me it is always difficult to portray the darkest sides of my characters. The darkness that you find when you dig into your soul is never a pleasant sight. These things leave me with a certain unease, although I quite enjoy my work.

-While building the role, were you inspired by some people that you know?

I actually do not know many people from these social circles. However, when I read the script, I had an immediate emotional reaction, which has never happened to me before. There is plenty of sadness there in all the characters. For me, the main thing is to defend the character that you are playing, no matter what he does - you must find an essentially human reason for his actions and opinions. This is why our job is not so easy as some people think. Humidity rests 99% on Petar, and his emotional turmoil remains hidden from the rest - he is calm on the surface. All this had to be tackled on delicately. Music helped me a lot during the preparations, especially during the breaks from filming, to get into a certain emotional state. My playlists changed as the work progressed.

-Humidity leaves the doors open for various interpretations and individual perceptions. In your opinion, what is this film about?

The film differs from the original screenplay, the feeling is different. Now, after all this time, I understand that it is a film about lies, about hiding, about misrepresenting oneself and about the importance of creating and manipulating a certain self image in the eyes of the others.

-What are your expectations concerning the reception of the film in Serbia, since it is a breakthrough in our cinematography?

I really do not have a clue. For instance, Ničije dete (No One’s Child by Vuk Ršumović) received so many awards in Serbia and abroad, but Serbian film audience did not go to see it in cinema, to show support to our cinematography. When you see how many thousands of people went to see the Fast and Furious 7, how can you say that people do not want to go to cinema? The fact is that they do go to cinema, but they do not want to be troubled, they do not want to use their heads. Humidity ranks among quality European films, and as much as I am proud of the fact, I am also worried about its box office performance in Sebia.  

-What do you make of the divide between ‘festival films’ and ‘cinema films’?

I know for sure that Nikola made Humidity for cinema. I saw it both on TV and on the big screen and it is simply not the same; it is as if you were watching a theatre play in theatre and then its recording on a DVD. Nikola wanted to tell a story, to make a good film, and that is the key. It is not so important whether a certain title is commercial or art house, the point is that it should be good. I think that this film is interesting in terms of its genre, that it ‘drags you in’, and I hope that these qualities will attract the audience to it. Personally I am not opposed to commercial films, because they should generate money for art house films. The problem is that we do not have studios nor big production houses, and that everything is done on a day to day bases, thanks to ambitious producers who are trying to make a difference with very little money.  

-Humidity does look ‘like a million dollars’ despite its very modest budget. Directors often use limited budgets as an excuse when a film flops, but this is an evidence that a lot can be done with little money.

This is above all the result of Nikola’s effort and perfectionism, and also the contribution of the best director of photography in Serbia Maja Radošević. Humidity will prove that in art there can be no excuses and no compromise.