A quickly sketched work of art becomes a saving grace in I Believe the Portrait Saved Me.
Telling the story of a specific, terrifying instance in his father’s experiences during the Kosovo War, Alban Muja’s short film seeks to both reconstruct and evoke the tensions of that moment, a quarter century later. A combination of recreation and record, this disquieting but ultimately hopeful film is part of the documentary short film competition at Sarajevo Film Festival and has already been nominated for the 2025 European Short Film award after a successful festival run.
The event itself took place in April 1999, in a school turned into a detention camp in Skenderaj. Skender Muja was amongst those rounded up and then held indefinitely. His account is presented in voiceover narration and covers various facets of life in the detention centre, from the generally miserable conditions to the terrifying day he and others were driven to a field and used to test for landmines. However, the focus is on a bizarre moment in which Skender – an artist and art teacher – was commanded to draw a chalk portrait of an officer and his fate tied to the success or failure of this endeavour.
I Believe the Portrait Saved Me sees the now much older Skender reliving this moment, sketching this policeman on a blackboard, while a room full of nervous comrades watch on, breath held. The outcome of this strange scene is perhaps obvious, but this recounting of the tale serves as both a beacon of light – artistic intervention in this dark episode of human history – and shadow – with life and death decided on such a whim. The portrait is both humanising and chilling and Muja’s film all the more affecting for it.
Director, screenplay: Alban Muja
Cast: Skender Muja Producer: Edon Rizvanolli Cinematography: Samir Karahoda
Editing: Enis Saraci
Sound: Pellumb Ballata, Labinot Krasniqi
Music: Sam Slater Production companies: 038 Studio (Kosovo), Asfalt Films (Netherlands)
Venue: Sarajevo Film Festival (Competition – Short Documentary Film) In Albanian 10 minutes
