Urban Summer is an experimental video that supports a blend of poetry and music, with the verses capturing the essence of summer in the city. Initially inspired by Belgrade, the poem's atmosphere can resonate with various other cities and suburbs. The vivid imagery highlights sensuality, smells, and, ultimately, the feeling of being trapped in a polluted, restricted urban environment. The narrator’s internal and external experiences—burning desire, sweat, urban rust, and the oppressive city atmosphere—are intertwined with themes of human instincts, societal tensions, and the harsh reality of a confined world. The video contrasts shots of a nightclub and underwater scenes filmed in a pool, with these juxtapositions intensifying the project's overall effect and reinforcing the poem's meaning.
Video credits:
mix: Boško Mijušković
drums: Vladan Rajović
guitar: Damjan Babić
bass guitar: Boško Mijušković
vocals and lyrics: Mila Manojlović
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directing: Marko Sopić
camera: Marko Gligorijević
editing: Marijan Rubeša
costume, make up, hair style: Jelena Stojanović
special thanks to Peca (Idiott bar, Belgrade), Aleksandra Širkić (Sav taj glumac/
All that Actor agency), Džoga Šuman barbarogenius decivilizer
The project is part of the subthemes Re-imagining identity through poetry, The Ecology of Language - Poetry and Environmental Action, Poetry and the Digital Commons - New platforms, new audiences.
Author
Mila Manojlović
Mila Manojlović is a dramatic artist from Belgrade. She graduated in acting from the Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Belgrade and earned her master's degree in theatre directing from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London. She is also a lecturer and acting coach. Her focus is on alternative and experimental expression.
She is the author and performer of the poetic radio dramas Aesculapius – Anatomic Ex Machina and Postcards from Earth – Cosmonauts Weep, as well as the monodrama Pain. Her award-winning poetry manuscript, Truljenja Trag (The Trace of Decay), is set to be published by Nova Poetika.
Mila lives and creates in Belgrade and on the island of Korčula.
