BINI

BINI - The Kosovo war through the eyes of a child
Directed by Erblin Nushi - Short (20 min.)

A story of survival and hope, BINI is based on the filmmaker's experience when he was 6 years old. With his family he survived the horrors of the Kosovo War (1998-1999) after fleeing to a refugee camp in Albania. His film is the true story of how they became refugees after being forced out from their home at gunpoint and brought in trucks to the border of Albania. The film opens on what seems to be a regular day for Bini, played in the short by Lurni Krasniqi, and the only thing that he is worried about is to protect his prized candy from his sister. Suddenly his world turns upside down as he and his family are packed into a crowded truck. Bini learns that the candy may not be the only thing of value he loses that day. The short also features the two Kosovar actors, Eshref Durmishi and Armond Morina, who starred in the Academy Awards nominated short film SHOCK in 2016.

Nushi's command of great acting techniques is reflected in his characters who look natural and convincing. Filmed entirely in Kosovo, the location shooting gives the film a fresh breath of hope to an otherwise depressing and heart wrenching story. Its universal theme of survival will resonate with everyone who has witnessed or lived in similar devastating situations of emotional turmoil.

Filmmaker Erblin Nushi is born in Peja, Kosovo in 1992. He has been taking acting lessons since he was ten years old. He moved with his family to the United States in 2010. BINI is Erblin Nushi's senior undergraduate thesis film at George Mason University. He transferred to Mason after two years at Northern Virginia Community College, where he focused his studies on acting. During the two years at Mason University he directed 10 short films.

BINI has been officially selected at many short film festivals such as Prishtina International Film Festival, Stockholm Independent Film Festival, DC Shorts in Washington DC, and Holly Shorts in Los Angeles. Also, BINI has advanced to the semifinal round of the 45th annual Student Academy Awards.

Since gaining independence in 2008, Kosovo has submitted 4 films to the Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category. Three Windows and a Hanging in 2014, Babai in 2015, Home Sweet Home in 2016, and Unwanted in 2017. We believe that BINI has a very powerful potential to become a feature length film someday and join these films in the near future.


BINI Official Trailer from Tilia Entertainment on Vimeo.

Golden Globe® Foreign Language Film Series 2015

GOLDEN GLOBE FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM SERIES 2015

January 5 - 10, 2015 at the Aero and Egyptian Theatres

Presented by the American Cinematheque and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Discover the best of 2014's foreign-language cinema with screenings of the five films nominated for Best Foreign-Language Film Golden Globe at the Aero Theatre. Then meet the filmmakers at a free panel discussion at the Egyptian Theatre! The nominees are: FORCE MAJEURE, Sweden; GETT: THE TRIAL OF VIVIANE AMSALEM, Israel; IDA, Poland/Denmark; LEVIATHAN, Russia; TANGERINES, Estonia. Please join us for a FREE panel discussion with directors of the Golden Globe Best Foreign-Language Film Nominees, at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood. This seminar will also stream online. Click here to watch. All films in original language with English subtitles.

AERO THEATRE 1328 Montana Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90403

Monday, January 5 - 7:30 PM - Aero Theatre

"Huge monsters of the deep move under the surface of this powerful, craftily allusive and elusive film, the director's best and most courageous so far." Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter.

LEVIATHAN 2014. Sony Classics, Russia, 140 min. Dir. Andrey Zvyagintsev. Crafted with novelistic detail and rich with allegory, this dark and ambitious film explores big ideas through intimate drama like the best work of Tarkovsky (though at a more accessible pace and leavened with humor). In a small coastal town in northern Russia, a corrupt mayor (Roman Madyanov) tries to confiscate the home of a man (Alexey Serebryakov) who suffers the trials of Job when he resists. In Russian with English subtitles. more info >>

Tuesday, January 6 - 7:30 PM - Aero Theatre

"A film of exceptional artistry whose emotions are as potent and persuasive as its images are indelibly beautiful." Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

IDA 2014, Poland/Denmark, Music Box Films, 82 min. Dir. Pawel Pawlikowski. Set in 1962 and shot in B&W, this haunting drama is carried by two exceptional performances in very different roles. While visiting family before taking the vows to become a nun, shy Anna (newcomer Agata Trzebuchowska) is shocked to learn that her birth name is Ida Lebenstein, and that her parents were killed during WWII. With her hard-nosed aunt (Agata Kulesza), she sets out to find their graves – a journey that takes them through Poland's painful past to the doorsteps of their futures. In Polish with English subtitles. Discussion following with director Pawel Pawlikowski. more info >>

Wednesday, January 7 - 7:30 PM - Aero Theatre

"With nearly five-decade screen veteran Ulfsak setting the wry, soulful tenor, TANGERINES balances humor and seriousness in deft fashion." Dennis Harvey, Variety

TANGERINES (MANDARIINID) 2013, Estonia, 89 min. Dir. Zaza Urushadze. This poignant drama about shared humanity challenging artificial borders is set in Abkhazia during the 1990s, when the region was fighting to separate from Georgia. Old Ivo (Lembit Ulfsak) and his neighbor Markus (Elmo Nüganen), who is determined to harvest his tangerine orchard, are about the only ones left in their village until two wounded soldiers - from opposite sides of the bloody conflict - wind up under Ivo's roof. In Russian and Estonian with English subtitles. Discussion following with director Zaza Urushadze. more info >>

Thursday, January 8 - 7:30 PM - Aero Theatre

GETT: THE TRIAL OF VIVIANE AMSALEM 2014, Music Box Films, 115 min, Israel, Dir. Ronit Elkabetz, Shlomi Elkabetz. "Gett" is Hebrew for a divorce decree - something that's very tough to get in Israel, where rabbinical courts hold jurisdiction and mutual consent is required. This riveting drama follows the five-year struggle of Viviane Amsalem (Ronit Elkabetz) to break from her loveless marriage to husband Elisha (Simon Abkarian); its powerful examination of the roles of men and women in a religious society where they are not always equal recalls Asghar Farhadi's A SEPARATION. In Hebrew, French and Arabic with English subtitles. Discussion following with co-director-actress Ronit Elkabetz and co-director Shlomi Elkabetz. more info >>

Friday, January 9 - 7:30 PM - Aero Theatre

FORCE MAJEURE (TURIST) 2014, Sweden, Magnolia Pictures, 118 min. Dir. Ruben Ostlund. If you're vacationing with your wife and kids in the Alps when disaster suddenly threatens, what do you do? If you're Tomas (Johannes Bah Kuhnke), you panic – a reaction that produces an avalanche of consequences in this perceptive, funny and ultimately moving look at family dynamics in a crisis. Gorgeously shot by Fredrik Wenzel, this highly original film picked up the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival. In Swedish, English and French with English subtitles. Introduction by director Ruben Ostlund. more info >>

EGYPTIAN THEATRE 6712 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, CA 90028

Saturday, January 10 - 1:00 PM - Egyptian Theatre

This event will be broadcast LIVE on the web. Click here.	Free Event! Live Web Stream! GOLDEN GLOBE FOREIGN-LANGUAGE NOMINEES SEMINAR Please join us for a FREE panel discussion with the filmmakers of the Golden Globe nominees for Best Foreign-Language Film in person! The following directors are confirmed to appear: Andrey Zvyagintsev, Ronit Elkabetz and Shlomi Elkabetz, Zaza Urushadze, Pawel Pawlikowski, and Ruben Ostlund. Moderated by Mike Goodridge (writer on film with 20 years in print, recently edited the Filmcraft series of books and wrote the Filmcraft Directing book).* A reception for the entire audience will follow the symposium. This is a free event, but we encourage you to RSVP to secure your seat. Doors will open at 11am. Click here to RSVP for the symposium.

Golden Globe Foreign-Language Nominees Series Click here for detailed listings, guest updates and more information.

Visit the Golden Globes page on