Serbian cinema began its journey at the turn of the 20th century, marked by the 1896 Lumière brothers’ exhibition in Belgrade and the release of the first Balkan feature film, The Life and Deeds of the Immortal Vožd Karađorđe, in 1911. Following World War II, the industry was heavily nationalised under Josip Broz Tito’s socialist Yugoslavia, leading to a complex dual legacy. On one hand, the state heavily funded grandiose, ideologically driven “Partisan films” that mythologised communist resistance against the Axis powers. On the other hand, the 1960s and early 1970s saw the rise of the rebellious “Yugoslav Black Wave” (Crni talas). Directors like Dušan Makavejev and Živojin Pavlović rejected socialist realism, instead utilising dark humour, critical social commentary, and avant-garde techniques to examine the grim underbelly of Yugoslav society. This era laid a foundation of cinematic subversion, positioning Serbian filmmakers as highly perceptive, politically charged artists on the global stage.

The disintegration of Yugoslavia in the 1990s radically shifted the landscape, forcing filmmakers to confront the horrors of civil war, economic collapse, and international isolation. This brutal reality birthed a distinct brand of cinematic fatalism, surrealism, and pitch-black comedy, epitomised by Emir Kusturica’s Cannes-winning Underground (1995) and Srđan Dragojević’s Pretty Village, Pretty Flame (1996).