Edi

'A nostalgia trip into Jan Vrhovnik’s childhood in Slovenia – and inspiration drawn from his grandfather’s unstoppable appetite for life.'

Young Directors Award GOLD '23
https://www.youngdirectoraward.com/2023-winners/

2x Winner Berlin Commercial  '23

Nowness Shorts - https://www.nowness.com/series/nowness-shorts/edi-jan-vrhovnik

CREDITS

Directed by Jan Vrhovnik
Written by Jan Vrhovnik & Ana Kerin
Cinematography by Jan Vrhovnik
Starring Edi Špiler, Erik Gabriel Novak, Erika Špiler
Executive Producers Matej Marinko, Jan Vrhovnik
Production Company Bright
Producer Matej Marinko
Production Assistants Vita Vlasic, Miha Skrt
Production Designer Dan Pikalo
Stylist Mia Ventin
Stylist Assistant Barbara Režek
1st AC Luc Vrhovnik
Editor Bela Adami
Assistant Editor Luc Vrhovnik
Colourist Matic Prusnik
Graphic Designer Sabina Špiler
Sound Design & Mix Father Studio

Format Alexa Mini LF & 16mm

SYNOPSIS

Filmmaker Jan Vrhovnik takes us to the Slovenia of his childhood, where Grandpa Edi is his hero and strawberry shakes and grandma’s cherry strudel are all that separates morning from afternoon. Combining strong elements of Yugoslav nostalgia with a documentary style feel, using his own non-actor grandparents as protagonists in the film, Vrhovnik humorously explores the notion of influencers, in its humblest iteration.

Edi runs to a beat of Yugoslavian synth, sweat dripping from his brow against a dramatic, sun-scorched summer backdrop. Elsewhere he’s serving aces and swimming out into the ocean, his aged and leathering skin a symbol of a life lived and still going strong. All this is viewed through the eyes of an eight-year-old Jan, not yet the filmmaker he would grow up to be but an observer of the seemingly simple moments that make life so profound.

Bold in colour and set to a soundtrack of Yugoslavian hits and cicadas, the film is a sugar sweet nostalgia trip into the idle bliss of being young. Laced with the longing of growing up and steeped in the compassion only grandparents seem to possess, it pays homage to the people that raise us, and the many ways they make us who we are today.