20/12/2022 - The Serbian filmmaker recently competed at the Muestra de Lanzarote with his debut film, focusing on a trans woman, which received a Special Mention from the Youth Jury

The 12th Muestra de Lanzarote was the incomparable setting for us to meet and talk to Serbian director Nikola Spasic, who was there to present his debut feature, Christina [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Nikola Spasic
film profile], focusing on a trans woman, in the gathering’s official competition section. We spoke to him after he received a Special Mention from the Youth Jury.

Cineuropa: Did you know the protagonist of your film beforehand? What was your first meeting like, and how did you decide to make a film with her?
Nikola Spasic: I didn’t know Kristina before. The first time we met was to discuss a possible collaboration. I wanted to do some research into overcoming the boundaries between documentary and fiction film, to make a movie in which one would not see the difference between the fictional and the documentary parts, in order to explore how fluid film genres can be. While searching for a protagonist with whom I could explore this as I had imagined, my screenwriter, Milanka Gvoić, suggested that we meet Kristina, whom she had seen on a TV show. As soon as I met Kristina, it was clear to me that, apart from the fact that she has an interesting life story, she could also act, and that was really important. I saw that she was a sufficiently strong, colourful and inspiring character, and it turned out that we made a good choice when we decided to do this cinematic research and play around with genre, with Kristina as the main character.

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What is life like for transgender people in Serbian society? Do they work in “normal” professions, or do they have to engage in prostitution to survive?
I think the younger generations have it easier than Kristina’s generation does. The biggest role when it comes to the integration of transgender people is played by their parents, and the next biggest by society. I believe that, lately, transgender people have had the support of their families because when their nature is accepted by the people closest to them, they can be more confident in public and, therefore, be accepted more easily by the environment around them. So they can go to school, graduate from college and have the jobs they want, rather than the jobs they are forced to do. However, if the ones closest to them do not accept them – like, for example, Kristina’s father did not accept her nature – then transgender people can easily find themselves on the margins of society and will try to get by however they can. More often than not, that “getting by” leads straight to prostitution.

What parts are fictional and what parts are reality in your film?
It is true that Kristina was born a boy and that, 14 years ago, she underwent gender-affirming surgery, which makes her a transgender person. It is true that Kristina engages in prostitution, and it is true that she is a woman of faith, that she visits monasteries and attends liturgies. Her house, her yard and the car she drives are genuine – ie, her own – as is the protocol of welcoming her clients, but everything else is fiction. That means that Kristina is not going to regression therapy; she only attended one session for the film. Marko is not her emotional partner, and Zvonko and Jelena are not her friends; they were chosen during casting as people with whom Kristina had natural and interesting interactions, and whose participation could prop up the film structure we wanted to create. The places Kristina visits serve to create the narrative, and represent a metaphor for her inner struggle and search for identity. The entire story about the series of chance encounters with Marko is a figment of the screenwriter’s imagination, and a way to talk about the topic of being torn between selling physical love and searching for unconditional love, which is, in fact, the cross that Kristina bears.

Does the main character prefer to be lonely, rather than renounce her very essence and personality?
One of the reasons why we decided to make Kristina our main protagonist is precisely the fact that she did not renounce her essence or her personality. We could say that this film is an invitation not to give up on yourself. Also, an important question is: what is loneliness? Other people, however close to us they may be, come and go, and we spend most of our lives with ourselves. Imagine how lonely it would be if, in those moments, when we are alone, we are with someone who renounces themselves. That would not be loneliness; that would be something much more terrifying. That would be a painful void.