Vladimir Paskaljevic

Vladimir Paskaljevic is Toronto-based Serbian-Canadian director best known for Devil's Town (2008), Absence Is Present (2015), Dolphins Are Mammals (1997) and Sestre (2011). He works as an editor and teaches film-related courses at several Canadian universities. His first student film 'Dolphins Are Mammals' earned him recognition at Montreal World Film Festival. The movie about the boy who struggles for the truth against authorities was a metaphor about the student protests 1996-97 in Serbia. After that film the director met difficulties to fund his projects in Serbia for the next ten years. However, his debut feature, almost completely funded privately by actor Milan Tomic, a satirical comedy "Devil's Town' (2008), comprising of real-life stories that Vladimir has heard, sealed his reputation of critic of men-dominated and stratified Serbian society. Critically acclaimed the film won awards and premiered at several international festivals such as Karlovy Vary, Palm Springs, Montreal World Film Festival, Trieste IFF, and many others. His next project was TV movie Sestre (2011), (supported by European Union) about human trafficking. The film won domestic awards, but was not edited according to his directing instructions. After this project Vladimir moves to Canada where he completes his MFA studies, graduating with Dean's Prize and winning Toronto Film Critic Award for best Canadian student film 'Absence Is Present' (2015). Vladimir teaches film at several universities and works on two feature documentaries.