Writer-director Juraj Lerotić did not set out to make “Safe Place” (“Sigurno mjesto”) with the intention of playing the character he based on himself.
Croatia’s submission for Best International Film at the Academy Awards sails 24 hours into the life of Damir (Goran Marković) and his family after he attempts to take his own life.
The drama is inspired by true events in Lerotić’s life, something he found himself struggling with when it came time to cast the role of Damir’s brother Bruno.
“You know, I tried to cast the role and I’m sure there were some really great actors, but I think I had a blind spot,” Lerotić told moderator Steve Pond at a virtual screening of “Safe Place” as part of the Screening Series of the TheWrap’s 2022-2023 awards season. “I think my experience of that, and my experience of this character [was] too close to me So I couldn’t accept [the] interpretation of another person, of another actor”.
During casting sessions for Damir, Lerotić introduced himself as Bruno. Eventually, he realized that delivering his lines “like a robot” wasn’t helping his scene partners’ performances. After he began to “take care of my own interpretation,” infusing the dialogue with real emotion, his collaborators began to take notice.
“Somehow the decision to play him came,” Lerotić explained. “It was not easy, and not the easiest decision. But I think it was the right decision.”
Marković, who grew up with Lerotić’s brother, was initially hesitant to act alongside his director, given that Lerotić had never acted before.
“Acting is, especially this kind of role, it’s not a piece of cake. But I knew that he could do it, because [in] rehearsals, I saw him… and he was always playing big brother with me,” Marković said. “He changes the intonation of the lines like a real actor. He is one for now,” he corrected himself with a laugh.
Any doubts he might have had were quickly dispelled.
“Acting with someone who has been through those situations for real, and you know them, it’s a different thing to look someone in the eye,” added Marković. “The whole movie…is on the verge of acting and real life.”
See the full interview here.