Macedonian Director Wins Two Lawsuits to Free Frozen Film Funds

Milcho Manchevski’s eighth feature, Sister Brother Manhole Cover, premiered in Tokyo on October 30. The film is the result of a multi-country co-production that was frozen for four years following a dispute with the Macedonian film agency. Manchevski, 67, split his time between Macedonia and New York during the legal proceedings.

Manchevski reported corruption at the film agency in 2020 and again in 2022. Those reports reached the prime minister’s office. The agency subsequently blacklisted the director and froze his projects, including Kaymak, which was completed but blocked from distribution. The government press launched a smear campaign against him, and the agency filed criminal charges. The Anti-Corruption Commission and the State Audit Office later confirmed the corruption Manchevski reported.

Manchevski sued the film agency in two separate cases. He won both. The funds for Sister Brother Manhole Cover were released following the victories. The investigation into the corruption reported by Manchevski is still ongoing. He noted that 39 other projects received partial or full funding from the agency but were never made.

Manchevski described the film as a satire and a character study about fraternal love and the wealth gap. He said he wanted to avoid a lecturing tone while addressing what he sees as the central issue for society in coming years. The film explores motherhood and the divide between the haves and have-nots. It features a blind mother character, which Manchevski linked to archetypes like the Sibyl and the witch from Hansel and Gretel.

The director said he made his first documentary, Good People, while the legal battles were ongoing. He self-funded the film to avoid politicization. The documentary focuses on survivors of a nightclub fire in Kočani, Macedonia. It premiered in Sarajevo, had a theatrical run in Macedonia, and is scheduled to play in Torino next month. Manchevski said he shot the film one month after the fire. He described the experience as exhausting but exuberant because it provided a creative outlet during the legal process.

Manchevski expressed skepticism about the documentary genre, citing what he called a pomposity in claiming to deliver absolute truth. He said some filmmakers hide poor craft behind important subjects. He noted that the truth is often more complex than a single film can show. Despite his suspicions, he called some of the world’s best films documentaries.

The director is now developing a new project called Homecoming. He described it as a story with a happy ending about a man who returns home to die and learns to forgive himself. He said this is the first idea he has had for a long time that kept returning to him. The previous film, Dust, took seven years to complete.

Manchevski’s career includes directing a first-season episode of HBO’s The Wire. His feature debut, Before the Rain, received a Golden Lion at Venice and an Oscar nomination. He also directed a music video for Arrested Development’s Tennessee in 1991. He grew up in Yugoslavia, where he witnessed the banning of filmmakers during the Black Wave of the 1970s. That experience made him sensitive to censorship in any form, whether from Hollywood, record labels, or governments.