I believe the portrait saved me

I Believe the Portrait Saved Me
dir. Alban Muja/Kosovo/2025/10 min

-> Film presented in the Short Competition. BLOCK 4

Twenty-five years after his abduction during the Kosovo War, painter Skender Muja recounts an extraordinary story of survival. During the war’s final months, Muja and many Albanian citizens from Mitrovica were captured while attempting to flee Kosovo. Detained in a school repurposed as a detention camp, they faced confinement, fear, and an uncertain fate. Narrated by Muja, I Believe the Portrait Saved Me explores resilience and the profound impact of art in even the most oppressive circumstances.

 

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projection time:
10 min
country/year:
Kosovo /2025
director:
Alban Muja
original language of the film:
Albanian
pictures:
Samir Karahoda
editor:
Enis Saraçi
production:
Edon Rizvanolli / 038 Studio, Asfalt Films
festivals and awards:
2025 - Berlinale, 2025 - Sarajevo IFF
sections:
competitions:
trigger warnings:
war and military operations (reference)
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