Abstract
ABSTRACTThe article focuses on Dušan Makavejev's short amateur films from the 1950s Jatagan mala/Yatagan Mala (1953), Pečat/The Seal (1955), Antonijevo razbijeno ogledalo/Anthony's Broken Mirror (1957) and Spomenicima ne treba verovati/Don't Believe in Monuments (1958) in relation to his theoretical/critical texts from the 1950s and 1960s. Situating these works within the Yugoslav cine-club scene as well as within a broader socio-political and artistic context, the article provides an overview of the principal intellectual debates of the time, in particular Miroslav Krleža's programmatic texts, against the backdrop of the socialist dogma which viewed the arts as subservient to the political agenda. Makavejev's short films are examined for their thematic, stylistic and generic features, but also for their social engagement, ethical purpose and reception. The article asserts that Makavejev's central preoccupation in his early films is the notion of freedom, but also underscores that the tenets of his later opus are recognizable in this early phase and include reliance on documentary/anthropological components, exploration of psychological dimensions and an exquisite use of editing (montage). Amateur film is discussed as a vehicle for subversion of the official discourse and a space for poetic experimentation.
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