Albania showcased at Prizren’s DokuFest

Albania is participating with four documentaries and short films in this year’s DokuFest, Kosovo’s biggest international film festival held in the historic town of Prizren, just 18 km from the Albania-Kosovo border.
In addition, two other movies on Albania by Spanish and British directors are participating in the festival.
Anija (The Boat) has been shortlisted to participate in the Balkan Dox category. The 80-minute documentary by Albania’s Roland Sejko features the Albanians’ exodus to Italy in the early 1990s just as the 45-year communist regime was collapsing.
Two other short films by Canada-based director Paul Kurti and Tirana-based Suela Bako will compete in the National category.
“The Hidden documentary,” a UK-Albania co-production directed by UK-based Albanian director Fabian Kati will feature as an out-of-competition special screening.
Meanwhile, Spanish director Roser Corella has been shortlisted in the International Dox category for her 30-minute “Prisoners of Kanun” documentary featuring the centuries-old customary code which still governs life in some remote parts of the country.
British director Mark Cousins researches the political and cultural landscape of Albania in his “Here Be Dragons” documentary.
“This year DokuFest is full with films that show us that there is no other art form capable of moving us to tears, bringing us joy, taking us to places of horror and making us stand and want to change the world we’re living in, all at the same time,” said Veton Nurkollari, Artistic Director of DokuFest. “From the work of emerging filmmakers to the masters of the craft, and from filmmakers who are first timers to the ones who are returning, we are delighted to present an outstanding selection of films for this year’s edition,” he told the festival’s website.
Some 237 films from 56 countries have been shortlisted to compete in six categories of DokuFest which will run from August 16 to 24 in Prizren.