Biography
Tanja was born in Belgrade, Serbia, and studied Film and TV Directing at the Faculty of Dramatic Arts, University of Arts, Belgrade. Post-graduate studies of directing finished at University of Hamburg. She worked as a director and screenplay writer in Berlin, Hamburg and Belgrade. During her career she made about 15 short movies, 2 middle length movies and three feature documentaries.
Her films were shown on film Festivals all over the world (Los Angeles, Cannes, Paris, Prague, Moscow, Hong Kong, London, Rome, Kiev, Tokyo, etc.) and won prizes : Sehsüchte in Potsdam 2003, Shocking Short Award von 13th Street 2002 (award Master Studies at Universal Studios LA), Deutscher Filmschulpreis in silver 2002, Bergischer Filmprize 2007, Palermo 2009 and others.
She is member of European Film Academy.
Since 2004 she is intensively involved in media education of children and young people. She conducts workshops for youngsters at the age from 9 to 18. Through the theory and practice she tries to bring the young generations closer to the handcraft and creation of filmmaking and TV.
http://www.perlenkind-filmwerkstatt.de
http://startart-verein.de
Filmography / selection
2018 >> GOD`S WILL << short fiction // author, director, coproducer // Filmkraftwerk
2018/19 >> SCENES FROM THE LIFE OF A MUTT << documentary // author, director // Talas Film
2017 >> THE CHINESE WILL COME << (72 min) << documentary // author, director, editor // Talas Film
2015 >> JOVICA AND HIS TEETH << (74 min) //documentary // author, director, editor // Talas Film
2008 >> JELENA‘S WORLD << (80 min) // documentary // author, director, producer // Talas Film // Filmkrafwerk
2006 >> ‘ROUND MIDNIGHT << (61 min) // feature // author, director, producer // Filmkraftwerk Production
2002 >> BY MY SIDE << (25 min) // short fiction // director // Hamburger Film Werkstatt
2001 >> WEDDING DAY << (10 min) // short fiction // director // Hamburger Film Werkstat
News
SCENES FROM THE LIFE OF A MUTT
documentary
Producer Talas film
Production supported by Film Center Serbia
in development
TEASER
GOD`S WILL
short fiction
in postproduction
Producer Filmkraftwerk
WHITE WIDOWS
fiction feature
Producer DCM Pictures
At the East-West Coproduction Market at Filmfestival Cottbus and “FEST Forward Women in Film” industry programme
Künstlerinnenstipendium Berlin 2017
Artistic fellowship for the development of documentary „Traces- Oscar Fischinger“, Senatsverwaltung für Kultur und Europa.
Synopsis: Farmer’s family, living on cities edge, fighting with their own ignorance and state bureaucracy; young couple, withshop in province, torn between obligations toward family in China and their personal ambitions; female ensemble ofmiddle-aged shop owners, escaping the monotony of their moldy shops in a dance; worker in a shopping mall, lostbetween his Chinese and his Serbian identity; girls growing up between shop shelves and products with etiquettes“Made in China” from Italy and Turkey. Chinese President in his official tree-day visit to Serbia. Prime Minister ofSerbia is celebrating this visit as “historical”- the beginning of economical rescue of Serbia.
The Chinese will come
feature documentary
Producer Talas film
Production supported by Film Center Serbia
Director: Tanja Brzakovic
Camera: Aleksandrija Ajdukovic
Editing: Tanja Brzakovic
Music: Janja Loncar
Sound Design: Milos Drobnjakovic
Producer: Nebojsa Miljkovic
JOVICA AND HIS TEETH
feature documentary
Produced by Talas Film
Director: Tanja Brzakovic
Camera: Aleksandrija Ajdukovic
Producer: Nebojsa Miljkovic
Editing: Tanja Brzakovic, Branka Pavlovic
Music: Janja Loncar
Sound: Koca Kastavarac
Sound Design: Milos Drobnjakovic
Production supported by Film Center Serbia
Belgrade, Beldocs film festival
Tirana, documentary film festival
Short Synopsis
Jovica lives in Kosovo, in Serbian enclave, in village situated in the hills, with 30 Serbian children, 11 of which are his brothers and sisters. The first thing you notice about Jovica are his teeth. They are black, rotten, devastated by caries. His family lives on the social help and child allowance. With cutting and selling the logs Jovica can’t contribute a lot to the improvement of their life standard. This is why he has to find better job. For the work in the catering, he has to repair his teeth. Naturally, one needs a lot of money for new teeth. Where could he earn it when there is no job in enclave? New teeth, passport, any kind of job, leaving enclave - that is the route Jovica is dreaming of. But how can he leave when they all depend on him?
JELENA’S WORLD
feature documentary
Produced by Talas Film
Cinema distribution Art Vista
Director: Tanja Brzakovic
Producer: Nebojsa Miljkovic
Camera: Miona Bogovic, Tanja Brzakovic
Editing: Tanja Brzakovic, Branka Pavlovic
Music: Janja Loncar
Paladion D’Oro for best Editting at Palermo, Sport Film Festival
Synopsis: Jelena is a young, talented tennis player from Serbia, and is right about to become the world number 1!
The last 20 years were very difficult for Balkan countries because of the wars, economic crises, etc. These difficult times affected every individual, not only adults, but also children and their moral values. Young people looked for their idols among criminals, bad-taste performers, and war ”heroes.” The same could have happened to Serbian tennis stars Jelena Jankovic, Novak Djokovic, and Ana Ivanovic. Only, they had the luck to be blessed with extraordinary talent and the will to work hard and fight for their goals. The idea behind the documentary “Jelena’s World” was to show, through the example of Jelena Jankovic, to all young people, even those who seem to have lost the right path, that they can be in control of their own life if they keep on fighting and believing in their own abilities.
BY MY SIDE
short fiction
Cast: Claudia Renner, Georg Jüngermann
Director: Tanja Brzakovic
Script: Frank Posiadly
Producer; Marc Minnecker
DoP: Kathleen Herbst
Production: Hamburger FilmWerkstatt
Berlin, First Step Award Nomination
Potsdam, Sehsüchte, producer award
Wuppertal, Bergischer short film award
München, int. student FF- silver award
Dortmund, inter. film festival “Femme totale” Taiwan, Golden Lion inter. student festival
WEDDING DAY
short fiction
Cast; Nina Kunzendorf, Peter Knaack
Director: Tanja Brzakovic
Script: Frank Posiadly
Producer: Sören Hüper
DoP: Kai Rostasy
Production: Hamburger FilmWerkstatt
Shocking Short Award 13th Street, Universal Studios
Cannes, int. film festival Program Next Generation
Saarbruecken, Max Ophils FF
Hong Kong, MAX! Film Festival
etc.
‘ROUND MIDNIGHT
middle length fiction
Cast: Peter Knaack, Katharina Lorenz, Tim Porath, Julia Berke, Thomas Wodianka
Director: Tanja Brzakovic
DoP: Kathleen Herbst
Production: Brzakovic/Herbst
Zagreb, Film, One Take Film Festival
“I'm suspicious of people who don't like dogs, but I trust a dog when it doesn't like a person.”
Bill Murray
Contact
kontakt@tanjabrzakovic.de