SARAJEVO PIVO [Main Title]

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  • Title: SARAJEVO PIVO [Main Title]
  • Film Number: UNT 827
  • Other titles: SARAJEVO BEER [Alternative Title] UNITED NATIONS TELEVISION (UNTV) ZAGREB COLLECTION, YUGOSLAVIA [Allocated Series Title]
  • Summary: The Bosnian Government and Bosnian Serb-held parts of Sarajevo share their love of beer in common. The brewery is in the Serb-held part. UNTV talks to the brewers and to the consumers about the beer and about Sarajevo.
  • Description: Scrolling text reads: ‘Under the Dayton Peace Agreement Ilidža, a Serb-controlled area of Sarajevo is to be re-united with the rest of Sarajevo under Bosnian government control. A bar in Sarajevo. Beer is poured into a glass. The sound of laughter. Two men sit at a table and tell jokes. The scene at a bar in Ilidža is much the same. Interview with Reuf Pašić, Assistant Director of the Sarajevo Brewery, who explains that before the war the Brewery employed 1,000 men but now it only employs a tenth of that number. Interview with Mehmet Muhić, Head Brewer, who says that Sarajevo beer is special because of the quality of the water used in its production. At the bar in Ilidža, a man explains that Sarajevo Beer used to be very popular throughout Yugoslavia before the war but now it is largely unavailable where he lives because of the drop in demand. He says that the hatred between people has changed how they view the city's beer. At the bar in Sarajevo, a man insists that the beer has no nationality and that any nationality are welcome to drink it as he would drink beer produced in Serbia. Reuf Pašić explains that UNPROFOR have used water from the water taps of the Sarajevo Brewery since they arrived. Shot of UNPROFOR trucks. Reuf Pašić says that the water is exceptionally pure as is shown by the lack of water-borne epidemics in Sarajevo since the siege began. Mehmet Muhić explains that by working in the brewery he is following his father’s tradition. Shots of the brewery. Scrolling text reads: Is it good for you? A woman at the bar of Ilidža says that people solve their problems with it but alcohol also produces new problems. The two men in the Sarajevo bar say that the authorities decision to ban alcohol in 1992/3 was one of the worst decisions because a drink allows people to relax and accept their misfortunes. In Ilidža, the two men explain that alcohol was banned because people were armed. He says that everyone supported this decision made by the local authorities because it prevented violent accidents. The bar owner in Sarajevo says that he picks up Sarajevo Pivo directly from the Brewery. Shots of men loads crates of beer into a car. Panning shot showing the disused production line. Reuf Pašić explains that before the war, the Brewery used to produce 1 million bottles of beer a day. Scrolling text reads: Times Past. A couple reminisce about the past and the troubles that the Brewery has had to deal with during the war, when it has been as isolated as they have been. In Ilidža, one man says that the past is seen as a good time but that it was “permeated with lies” and it is the future that holds promise as the region engages in capitalism and business. Scrolling text reads: Times Future. In Ilidža, the same man continues to speak. He says that he believes that they will make their own Sarajevo beer. The young woman says that she would like to go back to Sarajevo and have a drink with old friends but she does not know if they would like to see her. In Sarajevo, the woman says that most of her friends were Serbs and though they may have been shooting at her or her friends here, she does not want to think about it at all. At both Ilidža and Sarajevo, the drinkers say “cheers”.
  • Alternative Title: SARAJEVO BEER [Alternative Title] UNITED NATIONS TELEVISION (UNTV) ZAGREB COLLECTION, YUGOSLAVIA [Allocated Series Title]
  • Colour: English (Tape Code A)
  • Digitised:
  • Object_Number: UNT 827
  • Sound: Bosnian (Tape Code B)
  • Access Conditions:
  • Featured Period: 1990-2000
  • Production Date: 1995-12 1995-12-27
  • Production Country: UN
  • Production Details: Hare Duke, Tom (Production individual) Rossig, Ruediger (Production individual)
  • Personalities, Units and Organisations:
  • Keywords: Bosnia-Herzegovina & Sarajevo (geography)
  • Physical Characteristics: Colour format: English (Tape Code A) Sound format: Bosnian (Tape Code B) Soundtrack language: Croatian (Tape Code C) Title language: Serbian (Tape D)
  • Technical Details: Format: Beta-SP Number of items/reels/tapes: 1
  • HD Media:
  • Link to IWM Collections page:

    UNT 827

  • Related IWM Collections Objects:

    UNT 828 (UNTV PROGRAMME NO 148 [Main Title]) UNT 827 X (SARAJEVO PIVO (BEER) (UNEDITED RUSHES) [Allocated Title])
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