프로그램 노트

Program Note

The film begins at 10:36 AM on a Friday in 1992, when the phone rang—again and again, it returns to that moment. For 11-year-old Lana, the call that delivered the news of her grandfather’s death remains a vivid and specific memory, marking the beginning of the war. As the phone rings nine more times, we confront Lana's fragmented recollections—memories that echo the experiences of the director, who lived through the Yugoslav Wars and migration.

A childhood shattered by war and displacement is bound to the unforgettable ringing of the phone, returning in fragmented pieces. Video tapes, cassette tapes, chocolate-covered bananas, and cigarettes—objects infused with brief yet vivid anecdotes—fill the landscape of memory. Music proves to be a powerful trigger for reviving fragments of memory—whether it's opera broadcasts on television, pop songs hummed with friends, or melodies once played on the piano.

Each time the phone rings, is it possible to smile, remembering that amidst soaring inflation, rising crime, and grim reports from the front lines, there were still moments of joy and tenderness? Before the overwhelming tide of longing pulls her once again into the depths of the sea, just as she sets the receiver down. (KIM Sun-myung)