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THE DOCTOR'S PRISON CELL

The Doctor's Prison Cell is a feature length documentary about international human rights abuses that occurred in the Croatian War for Independence (1991-1996). The city of Vukovar was surrounded by approximately 80,000 Serbian soldiers, 1,600 tanks and armored personnel carriers, 980 artillery weapons, 350 anti-aircraft guns with 750 rocket launchers. The defense of the city was mounted by approximately 1,850 lightly armed Croatian volunteers. The hospital became a haven for the sick, the wounded, and the living, all of whom saw it as the last ray of hope in the constantly bombarded city, where more than 1,500 shells hit each day. The film focuses on a young Bosnian physician who was head of the surgical recovery unit of the Vukovar Hospital during a 3-month siege of the city. She performed her duties as she stood knee-deep in blood in the basement of the bombed-out hospital. Many of the patients and medical staff at the hospital were slaughtered when the enemy Serbian troops occupied the city after the defenders were crushed. She was captured, imprisoned, tortured, raped and subjected to mock execution before a firing squad by the occupying Serbian military in 1992. Her heroic efforts during the three-month siege of the hospital and during imprisonment are depicted. She was eventually released in a prisoner exchange after her 21-day hunger strike. She provides detailed testimony used by the Hague Tribunal. The film includes numerous interviews with eyewitnesses, fellow medical staff, a nun and a priest who survived with her. 

BLEIBURG: TITO'S LICENSE FOR GENOCIDE

In 1945, just a few days after the end of World War II, Tito and his Partisans initiated an extermination campaign against men, women, and children they viewed as enemies of the regime. The mass slaughter began with the forced repatriation of 700,000 civilians and soldiers who fled Croatia and Slovenia seeking asylum in Austria immediately at the close of the war. The refugees, deceived by the British into believing they would be given safe haven by the Americans in Italy, instead were loaded onto trains and sent back to Yugoslavia. Large numbers were massacred outright, others died on forced death marches and in mass executions across the country.Through filmed interviews with survivors, confessed perpetrators, British officers, military intelligence officials, and scholars, as well as analysis of historical documents and newly released evidence of mass graves, the film traces violations of the Geneva Conventions and international law that resulted in what has come to be known as The Bleiburg Massacre and Operation Slaughterhouse.

BlajburgAA CelijazadoktoricuUSA WarRS SunnyA AmericanPrison
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SUNNY

The Republic of Croatia, when it declared its independence in 1991, was immediately attacked by the Serbian and Montenegran army and Chetnicks (Serbian terorist organization "Black hand"). The aggressors carried out vicious crimes deliberately targeting the civilian population. Sunny was just eight months old when she was trapped with her mother in the occupied city of Vukovar. She and her mother were held captive in in an apartment where her mother was subjected to multiple rapes by Serbian soldiers. When Sunny's cries were heard by the soldiers they hurled their heavy military jackets on her to muffle the sound of the child's weeping. Miraculously Sunny survived. This movie addresses the experiences and concerns of women, children and men who were raped in the war and are still awaiting prosecution of the victimizers. The victims are alone in their suffering. The criminals are among us. The videspread systematic use of rape as an instrument of war by the Serbian army and Chetniks between 1991-1997 in Croatia has been documented by the United Nations and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. The U.N. estimates that between 20,000 and 60,000 women were raped by the Serbian military.

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WAR, RAPE AND SURVIVAL

War, Rape & Survival received a Silver Remi Award at WorldFest International Film Festival in Houston, April 2014.  The film focuses on sexual violence against 20,000-60,000 women in the Balkan War.  Through interviews with survivors, witnesses and experts we relate their experiences in an effort to seek formal recognition of their legal status as victims of violent war crimes and compensation for their suffering.  

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AMERICAN PRISONS

Two young lawyers from dramatically different social and political backgrounds are appointed to represent prisoners by a visionary federal judge in Arkansas in the late 1960s.

This film traces the trajectory of their decades-long struggle for justice and the contemporary global implications of their victories for detainees in American prisons on foreign soil. Through interviews with attorneys, judges, prison administrators and through powerful narrative that highlights investigative reports, we seek and come to understand the significance of bringing the treatment of prisoners in American prisons at home and abroad in line with the U.S. Constitution and international law.

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Film Catalog

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The SPIRIT of TURTLE ISLAND

This powerful documentary captures the dignity and richness of Native American culture through the eyes and practices of a courageous group of individuals seeking to memorialize the lives of their ancestors in Texas. The film traces the path of Native Americans across the Bering Land Bridge into Turtle Island, their traditional name for the United States. With the recent discovery of the second largest Native American burial ground in Texas, elders and members of tribes have joined with city officials to commemorate the final resting place of the earliest residents of this region. Rich visual images and stirring music combine with the beauty and wisdom shared in interviews of old and young people to create an uplifting and inspiring message of hope drawn from their noble and often tragic history.

APACHE

The Apache are a group of culturally related Native American tribes. Apache people have moved throughout the United States and elsewhere, including urban centers. The Apache Nations are politically autonomous, speak several different languages and have distinct cultures. Historically, the Apache homelands have consisted of high mountains, sheltered and watered valleys, deep canyons, deserts. The film traces the path of Native Americans across Bering Land Bridge into Turtle Island, their traditional name for the United States. The Apache tribes fought the invading Spanish, Mexican, British, French peoples for centuries. The first Apache raids on Sonora appear to have taken place during the late 17th century. In 19th-century confrontations during the American-Indian wars, the U.S. Army found the Apache to be fierce warriors and skillful strategists.

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 51 minutes

Color, English

Country: USA

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: David Knez

Time: 31 minutes

Color, English

Country: USA

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Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 37 minutes

Color, English

Country: Croatia / USA

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 47 minutes

Color, English

Country: Croatia / USA

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 44 minutes

Color, English

Country: Croatia / USA

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 47 minutes

Color, English

Country: Croatia / USA

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 86 minutes

Color, English

Country: USA

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OPERATION STORM

Operation Storm was the single-most decisive battle of the Croatian War for Independence.  Launched by the Republic of Croatia in August 1995, it was the largest European land battle since the Second World War.  The success of this remarkable military action by Croatia came after four years of brutal fighting. Outnumbered, outgunned, but not outmaneuvered, this tiny new democracy prevailed in a David versus Goliath battle, a moral as well as military victory by an exceptional people. Storm ended the massive humanitarian disaster and genocide committed by the Serbian Army and Chetnik terrorists. It led to the liberation of one third of Croatian territory seized by the enemy, and it made possible the Dayton Agreement that brought peace to the region. This film documents the events surrounding this extraordinary battle, demonstrating that Croatia, along with its army and generals, deserve commendation from the world community, if not a Nobel Peace Prize.

Film Genre: Documentary

Director: Nikola Knez

Time: 57 minutes

Color, English

Country: Croatia / USA

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Award & Reviews

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Award & Reviews

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