Jasmila Žbanić’s “I Know Your Soul” dominates the Sarajevo TV Awards

Bosnian drama I know your soul was the biggest winner at this year’s Heart of Sarajevo Awards for TV series, the Sarajevo Film Festival’s TV series awards ceremony, as it nearly swept the drama categories. The six-part series, written by Oscar-nominated Bosnian filmmaker Jasmila Žbanić (Where are you going, Aida?), won seven awards, including Best Drama, Best Screenplay – Drama, Best Director – Drama and many categories for acting in a drama.

For the series, which had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival last year, Žbanić received the award for best screenplay for a drama series, while Nermin Hamzagić was named best director of a drama.

The show’s lead actress Jasna Duričić won the award for Best Actress – Drama, while Jelena Kordić Kuret received the award for Best Supporting Actress – Drama and Mirvad Kurić received the award for Best Supporting Actor – Drama. Lazar Dragojević also received the award for Rising Star – Drama.

I know your soul is a six-part series in which Duričić plays Nervena, a prosecutor in the middle of a divorce process and a single mother of a teenage son. When she investigates the suicide of a teenager, it sets off an avalanche of events in her personal and professional life. HBO Max acquired the series last year for Central and Eastern Europe and Žbanić also served as producer and showrunner. Last year, the Bosnian writer also directed an episode of HBO’s hit series. The Last of Us.

Serbian actor Žarko Laušević, who died in November 2023, posthumously received an award for Best Actor – Drama for his role in the drama about World War I Time of death.

In the categories Comedy, Bosnian series Smash it and Serbian series Radio Mileva each won three awards with Smash it They received the awards “Best Comedy”, “Best Actor – Comedy” for Alen Muratović and “Best Screenplay – Comedy” for the authors Elma Tataragić, Dušan Vranić and Enes Zlatar. Radio MilevaOlga Odanović won Best Actress – Comedy, while Elmir Jukić won Best Director – Comedy and Kris Gavrić from the show won Best Rising Star – Comedy.

For this year’s awards ceremony, drama series and comedies from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Kosovo and Slovenia that premiered between April 1, 2023 and April 30, 2024 were considered. A professional jury of film and television professionals cast an electronic vote and selected the nominated series and winners of the Heart of Sarajevo Awards.

Here is the full list of winners:

Best Drama Series