I Am from Titov Veles (2007) - full transcript

We are three sisters.

Sapho Savica and me.

Sapho is the middle one.

She plays pro basketball. She has
the latest fashion disease.

She goes from one man to another with
one goal: To leave this cursed place

and get away for good.

I am Afrodita, the youngest.

I am 27 and I'm still a virgin.

Savica is the oldest.

She is 35 and she is not married yet.

For nine years now she has been
on methadone therapy.



We live in Titov Veles.

Actually, it's just Veles now since Tito died.

There is a lead smelting factory in town
built in the time of the Tito regime.

To be more precise, it was
built in communist times.

The factory is located in the center
of town and it is poisoning us all.

I live in a communty that's sowly dying

and the only thing I wonder is
when my turn will come.

I AM FROM TITOV VELES

The factory is klling us.

The factory is klling us.

People!

People!

I have it all written here!

August 12, 2003. Lead dust is 200% over the limt.



This child had a tumor the size
of a footbal in his stomach!

Look at him. Don't close your eyes.

Come down! Come down here.

Come down.

Afrodita, do you think it's an
accident that you don't speak?

You think that's normal?

Afrodita.

Stupid junkie.

Come with me.

Hey you two! You can't do that. You need to sign her
in.

Savica.

Our parents are not with us. Father
died when mother left us.

My parents are from Lerin,
a town in today's Greece.

After World War Two, they were kicked out of
their home, allong with 75.000 other people.

They were sent by train to camps
in Eastern Europe

then to the New World.

My father was sent to Romania,
my mother to Czechoslovakia.

They were just kids back then.

Who will tell Afrodta? - You, of course.

Are you hungry? I have to sign you in
if you're going to eat in the cantine.

Never mind, I have work.

The ony problem is that it sitnks.

I've worked there all my life. So has
my brother and my brother-in-law

and with God willing, someday
my child will work there.

Look at me. Do you see anythng wrong?

Is there somethng wrong with
me? Of course not.

Just look at me.

All of that is just one big propaganda,
the whole polution story.

It's a World Bank conspiracy just so that
they could buy of the factory cheap.

Crooks! The whole state is full of them.

What are you staring at?

I don't know who's prettier,
you or your sister.

Seven.

Eight.

Can you feel the baby? Any problems,
headaches, whirliness? - No, no.

Does your doctor check your bood pressure
reguarly? - Yes, everything's normal.

I wear it because,

I have to cover my ears.

When the wind stops, I take it off.

The other day I had a better one.

But everyone thought it was a lady's hat.

So I threw it out immediately,

right there in the garbage.

It was a good hat. But this
one is also not so bad.

When did my mother stop loving my father?

What do you think, how much money do
you think Tito and Yugoslavia got

for kicking us all out?

Alright, alright.

I am pregnant.

Move, I need to set the table.

Move so I can set the table.

Move your ass! l have no tme, my shift is starting.

Get up.

What are you, the Virgin Mary?

You have to eat.

Pregnant women need to eat for two.

Thank you.

Don't thank me.

I owe you.

Your sister is a very beautiful woman.

And you're like a doll.

Thank you anyway.

What, no goodbye kiss?

Until Saturday then?

See you then.

Daccord?

Why don't you give up, Sapho?

You'll never get the visa.
- Well see about that.

Did she tell you the big news?

She told you didn't she?

He thinks Savica is a beauty.

Thank you Sapho! - And he wants her for a wife.

He's coming for lunch on Saturday.

He's not Aegean, but he'll do.

He's a bit older, but not bad looking.

Tell her how old he is.

He lves in a big mansion in
the suburbs out of Skopje.

He is sixty, eh?

He is the new owner of the factory.

Tell her how old he is. - He is not 60, he is 45.

You know an awful lot about this man.

Of course I do Slavica,
that's because I care.

Father woud have been proud!
- I saw father today.

Of course, there is that small problem

with your...

With my...?

What?

With my what?

I'm not an addict.

I'm on therapy.

Did you tell him? - Of course not.

I am pregnant.

You will go to the doctor today, with Sapho.

They will do a pregnancy test.

And for Christ's sake, get dressed.

When was lttle, one the first vacations I can
remember,

was when we were at sea.

On the train, a tall beautifull
woman sat next to me and asked

what was my greatest wish.

I answered without hesitation.

To be a Pioneer and for Tito visit my home town.

The following year, Tito realy did vist Veles.

Stop kickng me. Dad, tell him to stop kicking me.

Just like when dad was alive.

I used to bring you and Sapho here every day.

You were too young, you probably don't remember.

You know,

it looks like this man is
really interested in me.

He seems to be somebody really important.

I would get married without love.

I would even marry an old man, I
would marry anyone, as long as...

I hope this is it.

I am still beautiful, aren't I?

Aren't I?

Look at me.

I said look at me.

I am sick of your mood swings.

Whats wrong now? Why can't you be happy for me?

And l wil have a child .

Did you go to the doctor?

Yes or no?

I can always tell when you are
lying, and you are lying now.

You're as beautfu as a tear.

Wake up.

Wake up.

Wake up you loser.

Come here.

Dad taught us to get up at 7AM.

It's 7AM now. Get up.

Get up.

My medication.

Where is my medication?

Give me my medication! Get away from me.

Tell me loser.

Why don't you speak? Why?

What are you doing here? It's
not your turn till Monday.

Come in.

Come in, I live alone.

Go in.

Do you want a drink?

Are you hungry?

Look, we have to be quick, I
have to get back to work.

The toilet is over there. Go get ready.

There are no others like
you and your sisters.

Realx.

He will come closer.

He will hold me tight and I
will disappear in his arms.

Then, he will say "Stay with me forever.".

God damn it, if you're
tense it will only hurt more.

Don't fight it.

Relax.

If you're tense, it will hurt more.

Are you okay?

Yes I am.

Today the couds floated down
and caressed my cheeks.

Give it to me. Faster, faster.

Here, here.

I have to look good for him.

A lttle bit more.

Afrodita .

Give me a litte bit more.

I have to look good when he comes.

Please.

This is the last time, I swear.

I swear.

I look at you and I know all of your secrets,

all your weaknesses.

I look at you and I know.

No wonder I've deveoped

such resentment against mankind.

Fatty.

Wake up fatso.

Wake up Slavica.

You have to get up,
Viktor is coming, get up.

Afrodita. Open the door.

Afrodita, open up.

You look beautful Slavica.

I've told you a hundred times
not to wear my clothes.

Go and greet him.

Go, open the door
and greet him.

Good afternoon. Well, here I am.

You must be the youngest.

I'm Viktor #enchant?#

Be calm.

What's the problem? Don't you speak?

I bring presents.

Careful! Careful! Those are appliances.

There's one more.

It's a stove and a washing machine.

The best you can find on the market.

Sovenian craftsmanship.
Gorenje from Velenje.

Slovenians make great appliances now.
They are in the Eropean Union now.

Here, take your wife out to dinner.

Of course, you've already met Slavica.

Enchant.

And that's Afrodita.

She doesn't speak.

I grew up in a house like this
one, just like this one.

On saints day, when our father
was alive, sometimes there were

30 to 40 peope in this room alone.

You remeber, right? - Father's dead.

Let's sit down.

And l believe this is for you, as promised.

Savica is a great cook.

Why is she staring at me?

Why are you staring at me? Eat.

I hope her problem is not genetic.

I mean, It's not hereditary, is it?

No, of course not.

She's quite normal, she just decided not to speak.

Super.

In French that means "super".

Let's eat.

Very good.

Have a bit.

The sweetest bite is the last one, isn't it?

Watch out for the pond.

How are you? -A-okay.

That damned doorman.

He gave me too many keys.

Go in.

When I first saw you

right there in the canteen,

I knew right away you woud be mine.

I had this gut feeling

in my stomach.

I like strong and heathy women.

I can't help it, It's just the way I am.

What I didn't know was that this
factory would be mine, too.

There are still some formalities.

The privatization papers, etc. But
nothing major, the deal is done.

I used to deal with scrap metal.

That was my business, but

now I'm interested in new things.

I'm planning to invest in art

or maybe sports.

I have two daughters.

Your sister must have told you.

Their mother ded recenty.

I need a young and heathy
wife to give birth to a boy.

I hope you are #d'accord# with that.

"D'accord" means "okay" in French.

You seem kind of tense.

Let me give you a massage.

Do you have a cigarette? I always ask for a
cigarette when l don't know what to say.

Take your pick.

I never learned how to smoke.

All that puffing is too complicated for me.

I haven't been here in a long time.

Do you know why mom
nsisted that we play here?

Because of the dust. So that
we wouldn't inhale it.

The wind carries the dust toward the city.

So that makes this place the
cleanest place in Veles.

That Viktor is great.

I hope he marries her.

I hope he marries her.

I am leaving soon.

Do you know what the trick
is in geeting a visa?

The trick is, when they ask you
what nationality are you,

you answer "I'm from Skopje",
not that you're from Macedona.

That's all.

That's all. That's all that
you have to do.

"I am from Titov Veles!"

Say it! You can do it!

"I am from Titov Veles!"

Look.

It stinks.

How does it feel to slaughter someone?

Hello Aco.

Hello.

I came for a brunch.

That's a family breakfast on Sunday.

It's too early for "brunch". -The early
bird catches two worms.

Come here, I need you.

I can't right now. - Come on.

Wait.

I also have two sisters, two half sisters.

My mother remarried in Switzerland.

I could easily find work in a hospital there.

Of course, the salary is much better there.

I'm going to leave soon.

My father was run over by a train.

Fantastic.

Stop talking and let's go.

I have to go train.

The only thing left from my mother's famly

and their house in Lerin, is mother's armoire.

One day, she recognized it at
the flea market in Skopje.

So she opened the left door to see
if her name was stil carved inside.

She never discovered how
the armoire got there.

Nevertheless, she bought it on the spot.

Now, it belongs to Sapho.

Afrodita, you know there is nothing
wrong wth you, right?

There's no reason for you not to speak.

I know.

So why don't you speak?

Do you remember, once when mother
sent me to the store to buy sugar

and I bought salt instead?

Mother was surprised that I couldn't
tell the dfference between the two.

And I really couldn't tell the difference.

They are both white and they are both heavy.

I bought salt because it was lighter.

You were only five years old,

how can you possibly remember?

The next morning I woke up
and went into her room,

but she was gone.

I waited the whole day.

Father promised she would come back.

Yes.

Father said she would come back.

You promised you would never leave me.

I have to get married.

Did you have sex with him?

Of course.

Do you love him?

I'm going to be his wife.
- Is Sapho leavng too?

Yes she is.

Will she take me with her?

Of course she will.

Nurse.

Lay down.

I bought these potatoes really cheap.

How much?- 1.5 euros for the whole bag.

It's my birthday today. My son is coming
for dinner with his girlfriend.

Good girl. All clean, you're not pregnant.

Do a urine test anyway. - OK, I will.

One day, my mother got a letter from Thessalonica.

Her sister was invting her for a vist.

But if you're Aegean Macedonian,
it's impossible to go back.

You can't get a visa.

Mondays are reserved for Aegean Macedonians
at the Greek Embassy in Skopje.

So every Monday for a whole year, she
went there at five in the morning,

and waited all day.

When she finaly managed to get in

and the consul asked her why
she wanted to go there,

she said she wanted to see her family.

The consul replied "So you must be Greek".
My mother answered "No".

Then, one day the consul was releaved of his position,

and his assistant got the position.

One month later she received
a one-day visa.

She left and never came back.

My father died a year and a half later.

And I stopped speaking.

You have to go today?
- Yes, I have to and that's that.

What do you mean, you have to? You're
not going to leave. You can't go.

You won't leave.

You damned junkie. Because of you we all suffer.

And what are you?

A basketball player? My ass you are.

Do you think l'm stupid? Everyone knows.

Mom left because of you.

Dad died because of you.

Dad died because our mother was a whore.

How dare you call her a whore.

You should be ashamed.

My mother had the most beautifull
scent in the whole wor d.

Oh, so it's your mother now?

Mother's armoire belongs to Afrodita now.

What do you mean? I'll be back, the armoire is mine.

Don't lie to me, please.

I got the visa.

Alright.

I see fire, you'll be burning in hell.

I'm kidding.

I see you on top of a mountain, there is a horse beside you.

The horse represents pride, you'll be happy.

Seriously, I really do see fire.

Here, look if you don't believe me.

Which side of the cup did you drink from?

I'm ready, I'm all packed and reday to go.

Look, the man is very rich and
you are incredibly lucky.

Well, you should know, you
must have ... with him.

I must have done what with him Slavica?

What?

Well... I have to go now.

The stench is unbearable today.

Afrodita, I must go.

I'm leaveing, but I promise, I'm coming back.

I have a letter for you.

Open up.

The postman was looking for you.

What happened here?

It stinks.

Sapho is not coming back.

A lonely few weeks, eh?

She abandoned us both,

me and you.

Just ike that. Poof! And she's gone.

Listen.

I was busy.

I was busy.

Very busy.

No no, not like that.

Get down.

Sit down.

You should clean up this place.

You want me to sell the applances for you?

I'm off.

I will slaughter you if you leave me.

Do you remember that day in the park?

I tripped and started to cry.

You told me that if I closed my eyes and
turned around, I woud find a coin.

Don't cry, look at the willow tree.

It cries out of happiness, never out of pain.

I'm strong father, strong and all alone.

Savica got married and Sapho got a visa.

I have a boyfriend. His name is Aco.

He loves me and respects me.

Hello.

Aco sent me to pick them up.

You asked him to take them, right?

He said that he'd stop by later.

Wait,

wait.

It's not a good time right now.

I didn't have time to sell them.

How did you get in?

Maybe you would like to join us?

Look, you and I, that's not gonna
happen. I don't owe you anything.

What?

What's wrong with you?

You're insane.

What?

Wait.

He is dismanting the factory and
sellng it as scrap metal.

Friday and Saturday nights are the best.

That's when we go out: me, Sapho and Slavica.

We dress up and then we go to the Corzo.

The Corzo is the greatest thing in the world.

It's a street in the center of town.

On weekends, all the young and unattached strol up
and down the street and exchange glances.

Everyone can be seen there.

The lovers, the cheaters...

You can see the one you long for.

And that's how the evening goes by.

Just walking up and down, feeling the
eyes of the others all over you.

Dear dad, I got a visa.

I am going to Greece to meet with Sapho.

I hope you'll understand.

You've come.

It stnks.

They've gone over the limit again.

What are you, a radar?

No, but you'd be surprised how often I'm right.

So you do speak, huh?

Sometmes, mostly in my dreams.

In your dreams? - Yes, in my dreams.

What do you dream of?

I dream about flying.

How?

I usualy use a hula-hoop.

I turn it very fast.

I turn it and turn it, untill I rise above
the ground and fly away.

You thnk you're an angel? - I know I am.

No, you're not.

I've seen angels, and they are nothing like you.

Is that true?

Have you seen the sea? - Yes.

I had a dream once. - Another dream.

I was at the sea, sittng by the water.

A shark came up to me and asked me for help.

She was a friend, someone I loved and respected.

"How can hep?" l asked.

She said,

"Give me your smal toe, I am very hungry

and I must eat before nightfall."

So what did you do?

She was a friend, I coudn't refuse.

So you gave her your toe?

Yes.

Am I the shark?

Are you in love with my sister?

No.

You're the one I love.

Help me.

In here.

Help me.

Help me.

Please.

Please.

Leave me alone!

Don't cry, don't be sad.

I did not come here to die, I came here to weep.

My tears are not tears of pain.

No.

They're a part of something that can never be.

We will go to a place where magic still exists.