LOGLINE

A couple for whom life has in store extraordinary challenges decide to fight back one last time.

SUMMARY

Hektor, a middle-aged man, works in a dog shelter built by a German foundation. The shelter is built away from the city because dogs are considered as unwanted animals among humans and wherever they are found, they are killed by organized groups. The distance from work to home means that Hektor is away from his family, or rather say his wife Minka, every other week.
In fact, Hektor and Minka, even when near each other, they haven’t talked to one-another for over 15 years now. They continue to live together for the sake of a beautiful past, which was broken, by the bitter event that ruined their lives.
Minka and Hektor are summoned to court to testify about the act of violence that was committed towards them. In order to protect his integrity and deny rumors that he and his wife were sexually abused during the war Hektor refuses to testify. However, the facts speak otherwise! There are 101 children, one of them brought to life by his wife Minka, who roam the streets and are not noticed by anyone. They are the conscience of the whole society, but they continue to remain the “shame” denied by all.
Sleepwalking is the next common destiny of this couple. Limited by “shame” to communicate in reality, they meet and love each other in another parallel universe, where moral conventions set by people do not matter.
In the coldest winter that can be remembered, Hektor is trapped by snow at the dog shelter along with Peter, a German artist, who comes to perform with the piano for 72 hours live on ZDF. An artistic performance in defense of dogs. This organization does not go well, since on the first day of the performance, the snow interrupts the broadcasting. Peter is trapped, inside the small hut where Hektor stands. This closeness to Peter reveals another side of Hector.
After a few days, with lots of incidents and love, Peter and Hektor decide to set off for the city despite the heavy snow. The hut burns down the night before and Peter barely rescues Hektor, who falls into his characteristic deep sleep. From this state, Hektor can only wake up if he hears the dog barking, a sound that reminds him of painful moments. The road to the city incites a completely banal conflict between Hektor and Peter, which turns out to be fatal for the latter.
Hektor returns home and finds Minka asleep. He notices that she had eaten food while sleepwalking, a characteristic of her, which keeps her overweight. The tired Hector falls asleep, this time a deeper sleep than ever. He wakes up in spring. He is violently brought to court by the police, but refuses to testify before another incident unfolds. At the trial break, Hektor and Minka, after many years of distance between them, lean on the corridor seats. This long-lost energy makes Hektor fall back into a deep sleep. Unable to obtain his testimony, the case is closed in Court. The lights of the courtroom go out, while inside on the public seats, in the shape of silhouettes, stand only 101 teenagers, waiting, for the truth to come out.

SHORT BIO of Director

Ismet Sijarina is a Film Director, Producer, Scriptwriter, and Professor living in Pristina, Kosovo. Ismet is a staunch advocate on social issues, which has led him to be engaged in the field of Documentary Film for years.  His debut Feature Film “COLD NOVEMBER” had its premiere at San Sebastian’s 66^th International Film Festival in 2018. Ismet presented his films and won numerous awards in many festivals, amongst which at San Sebastian, Thessaloniki, Sarajevo Film Festival, Zurich IFF, Bosporus, Goteborg, Karlovy Vary, RiverRun, goEast, Saint Louis, and many more. Currently, he is working on the development of his next Feature Film “BUREK” supported by the Kosovo Cinematography Center. Ismet is a Member of the European Film Academy since 2018.

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

This story centers around justice. But is it possible to bring justice through law? Or, laws and courts are a tool that allows killers to become ex-killers, perpetrators to become ex-perpetrators, and criminals of various natures to become ex-criminals. Every individual who goes through the filters of law and who is punished, after serving the sentence, feels washed, in front of the deed he/she has done. While the victim can never be described as one ex-victim. She/he remains in her/his suffering, forever. There is no punishment for the criminal, in proportion to the pain inflicted on the victim! On this attitude lies “JERËM” (Sleepwalking), a story which follows the fate of a couple, for whom, life has in store extraordinary challenges. Through the story of Hektor and Minka, I first address the subjective point of view. But, the subjective one cannot be isolated from the collective mosaic. Therefore, sociopolitical developments, mentality, legitimacy, transition, and everything else around the characters are the other important pillars of “JERËM” (Sleepwalking). And by sleepwalking the characters act in the light of the moon, not to illuminate some dark moments of their lives but to illustrate metaphorically the walk of an entire society on the long path of socio-economic transition. All of the above makes JERËM “Personal & collective story at the same time”.

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