After years of spiraling addiction, 32-year-old Dejan arrives at a secluded monastery commune, run by a strict but magnetic priest. Isolated from the outside world, the commune treats addiction through labor, discipline, obedience and faith. Immersed in a rigid daily routine, Dejan begins a slow journey toward recovery. But when a disturbing video surfaces showing a patient violently enforcing the rules, Dejan is forced to choose between protecting the system that gave him purpose or confronting the truth he can no longer ignore.

Goran Stanković, Dejan Prćić, Ognjen Sviličić and Maja Pelević penned the script, and the main cast consists of Vučić Perović, Boris Isaković, Goran Marković, Dado Ćosić, and Lazar Tasić.

"The story is inspired by a real event, and its themes remain painfully relevant in today’s world where individuals, shielded and empowered by institutions, often become the enforcers of silence, submission and abuse“, Goran Stanković told FNE.

Snežanavan Hauvelingen produced the film through Serbia’s This and That Productions in coproduction with Ines Vasiljević of Italy’s Nightswim, Marina Andree Škop of Croatia’s PomPom Film, Ognen Antov of North Macedonia’s Dream Factory, Montenegro’s Marija Perović at Kino, Srđan Šarenac at Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Novi Film, and Igor Vranjković at Serbia’s Cineplanet.

Ivan Krstović and Milica Putnik Lukovac are line producers.

The project was supported by Film Center Serbia, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Serbia, the Ministry of Culture of Italy, the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, the Film Centre of Montenegro, the North Macedonia Film Agency, Film Fund Sarajevo, MEDIA Creative Europe, and the RE-ACT Fund. The project was delevoped through First Films First and MFI Script2Film Workshop programmes.

The shooting took place during January and February 2024.

The Serbian premiere and cinema distribution are planned for the end of 2025.

Goran Stanković directed the awarded TV drama series Operation Sabre / Sablja (2024, RTS – Radio Television of Serbia), as well as episodes of other popular Serbian TV series. His short film Way in Rye / Raž (2013) was nominated for a Student Academy Award for best narrative short.

Production Information:

Producer:
This and That Productions (Serbia)
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Coproducers:
Nightswim (Italy)
PomPom Film (Croatia)
Dream Factory (North Macedonia)
Kino (Montenegro)
Novi Film (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Cineplanet (Serbia)

Credits:
Director: Goran Stanković
Scriptwriters: Goran Stanković, Dejan Prćić, Ognjen Sviličić, Maja Pelević
DoP: Dragan Vidović
Editor: Marko Ferković
Production designer: Zorana Petrov
Costume designer: Dejana Sremčević
Composers: Nenad Sinkauz, Alen Sinkauz
Sound designer: Miloš Drndarević
Re-recording mixers: Vladimir Živković, Carlo Purpura
Make-up designer: Ana Tepčević
Cast: Vučić Perović, Boris Isaković, Goran Marković, Dado Ćosić, Lazar Tasić, Jasna Žalica, Toni Mihajlovski, Nenad Heraković, Petar Novaković, Nikola Šurbanović, Goran Slavić, Baškim Jakupi, Tatjana Kecman, Nataša Miovčić, Danica Mitić