Our director Mina Radović curates the international retrospective The Power of Three: The Triptych in Yugoslav Cinema at the Anthology Film Archives from 18 to 29 September 2024 in New York City.

“Three stories, three directors, three perspectives on the world. The cinematic triptych is a form that has recurred throughout the history of film. The heyday of the triptych (or omnibus film) occurred in Europe during the 1960s, as directors such as De Sica, Fellini, Godard, Pasolini, and Visconti took turns creating short “films within a film” that were interwoven thematically or visually with works by other directors to form feature-length anthologies. This tradition later migrated to the U.S., where triptychs proliferated anew in the late 1980s, in projects such as Woody Allen, Francis Ford Coppola, and Martin Scorsese’s NEW YORK STORIES (1989). However, nowhere did the triptych receive such a vital and lasting treatment as in Yugoslav cinema, where it took on a life of its own.

Yugoslav triptychs diversified the possibilities of episodic narration, articulated radical socio-political critiques, and burst into free-form poems, sometimes all within one film. They experimented with the power of three and brought out its full aesthetic potential in character studies and omnibus films, existential dramas and rock ‘n’ roll pictures.

Guest-programmed by Mina Radović, who will be here in person to introduce selected screenings. The series is presented with generous support from The Njegoš Endowment for Serbian Language and Culture and the East Central European Center at the Harriman Institute, Columbia University. Special thanks to Vladimir Angelov, Damjana Ivanovska, and Aleksandar Trajkovski (Cinematheque of North Macedonia); Aleksandar Erdeljanović (Archive of Jugoslovenska Kinoteka); Slavoljub Gnjatovic (Delta Video); Ines Tanović (Film Center Sarajevo); and Dinko Majcen, Vjeran Pavlinić, and Lucija Zore (Croatian State Archives – Croatian Cinematheque).” -Anthology Film Archives

The programme represents the first international exhibition of Yugoslav cinema spanning the Classical Studio System to the Prague School and invites the rediscovery of cultural heritage and a range of master directors including Branko Bauer, Aleksandar Petrović, Živojin Pavlović, Hajrudin Krvavac, Lordan Zafranović, and Srđan Karanović.

The retrospective combines brand new restorations and 35mm-to-DCP prints, introductions and film chapters on each film written by Mina Radović.