COLD NOVEMBER

It’s the icy winter of 1992 in Prishtina: Yugoslavia is crumbling, war is raging in Croatia and threatening to spread to Bosnia. Serbian dictator Milošević is in the process of revoking Kosovo’s autonomous status, the Albanian population here is subject to widespread harassment. During the Serbian evening news broadcasts, people protest by banging on pots, pans and radiator pipes. Curfews and arrests are the order of the day. In the midst of this climate of constant danger and fear, archivist and paterfamilias Fadil attempts to make ends meet. When his boss is replaced one day by a militant Milošević supporter and his Albanian colleagues resign in protest, Fadil is faced with a dilemma: should he stand in solidarity and resist too, or keep his job to be able to continue to care for his family? Ismet Sijarina tells a tale of life and survival in evil times. Shot in the 4:3 format by cinematographer Sevdije Kastrati, the calm, focussed images create a sense of claustrophobia and hopelessness. Music plays a key role here too: “Cold November” is also the name of a song written by Fadil in the film, whose lyrics full of unanswered questions and uncertainty he accompanies on the guitar.