The Slovenian director Marija Zidar, a former journalist with a PhD in Sociology from the University of Ljubljana, brings a rigorous, empathetic approach to her films. Her award-winning observational documentary Reconciliation (2021) screened at major international festivals, including CPH:DOX, IDFA, Sydney, and Sarajevo. The film follows an Albanian father pressured to forgive his daughter’s killer, with the mother’s presence providing its most cathartic and revealing emotional moment. Zidar explores social issues through nuanced visual storytelling that captures both human experience and structural forces behind it.

Photo: Lenart J. Kučić