10-01-2011

PRODUCTION: Little Gypsy Witch in Production

By Goran Kovac

    ZAGREB: Tomislav Žaja's feature film for children and adults Little Gypsy Witch (Duh babe Ilonke, screenplay by Irena Krčelić) began shooting on 28 December 2010.

    Little Gypsy Witch is a musical comedy with elements of fantasy, portraying the life of an unusual family of Gypsies, seen through the eyes of 10-year-old only child Manuša. Mother Aska works in a light bulb factory, father Hrast plays the trumpet in a funeral orchestra and Baba (grandma) Ilonka, the famous local fortune teller, unerringly predicts the neighbours' fortunes until the morning she herself gets the Death card. After Baba Ilonka's death, Aska is fired from her job, father loses his musical talent and his trumpet disobeys him, and the family pet skunk Baltazar turns grey from stress and eventually fades away and disappears. With help from Baba's ghost (trapped in a painting on a living room wall), Manuša and her classmate Zdenko discover the truth that lies behind 'Baba's curse' and a big family secret.

    The film is shooting on location in Zagreb, Skopje and Vienna through 7 February 2011. The premiere is expected at this year's 58th Pula Film Festival.

    The cast includes Selma Ibrahimi and Marin Arman Grbina, along with young actors we will be watching Rakan Rushidat, Aleksandra Balmazović, Sabina Ajrula, Krunoslav Šarić and Vesna Pernarčić.

    Marko Delić is director of photography and Vjeran Šalamon and Goran Trajkovski composed the film score.

    Boris Dmitrović (Formula Film, Croatia, www.formulafilm.hr) is the producer of the film, and the co-producers are Zoran Ristevski (Geyzer Film Production, Macedonia) and Knut Ogris (Knut Ogris Films, Austria, www.knutogris.tv).