KULTURA / CULTURE 26 | Intervju » Interview Svetozar Cvetković has spent more than four decades enjoying himself while taking off in acting andproducing challenges, andhe equally enjoys every take off by plane.ThisNovember, he was once again flying with Air Serbia to his beloved New York, where he is embarking on a new acting adventure on the Broadway stage. “Belgrade’s Atelje 212 Theatre, New York’s La MaMa Theatre and Priština’s Kendra Theatre have been working together on the English-language play “Balkan Brothel”, directed by Berta Neziraj and written by Jeton Neziraj. This international, independent co-production includes sevenAmericanactors, IvanMihajlovic and myself from Atelje, and one actress from Priština. The premiere took place in early November at Atelje, then, in April 2022, we will performe with this play in New York.” You generally love New York and have your favourite places there… “New York is the city that most reminds me of Belgrade, though that’s paradoxical, because it is kind of dishevelled, just like Belgrade, and has special charm. I most like the Village and Cafe Reggio, where you feel great with an expensive breakfast and excellent cheesecake. I was there withmy younger daughter two weeks before the declaring of the pandemic.” Returning to current projects, tell us about your role in the film Bullets Over Marseille... “This film is very dear to me, as is the role of the legal defender, with which director and screenwriter Gordan Matić paid me a great honour. It was a great challenge for me to defend the indefensible, because King Aleksandar Karađorđević’s assassination changed the course of history for us.The defence lawyer succeeded in having the death sentence for the participants in the assassination transmuted into life imprisonment. None of the three convicts completed their sentences. ” You manage to stand out in different roles in TV series. These include the series Professor Mišković's Notebook, Radio Mileva, The Family, Branded on Court etc. Do you still feel good when working on several projects simultaneously? I NT E RV I EW: SVE TOZ AR CVE T KOV I Ć, ACTOR I like to fly. In every sense I have the impression that Air Serbia advanced a lot as a company. I'm overjoyed flying to Broadway on your planes “I like working withwell distributed roles and good people, which means when I feel good among them. And perhaps they even give me more than I’m initially willing to give for a project. I’ve been heavily engaged over recent years and I’m glad that most of the series have been well received among both the audience and critics. In our country we really shoot the most series compared to the region.” You also act in the series Time of Evil, a title that’s quite symbolic of the time in which we live... “That Dobrica Ćosić novel has long since been important. We constantly live during times that are never able to bring us anything good and better; there is constant talk about better bygone times. It doesn't have to be like that, but that’s what this project addresses. In that story, it was a great challenge for me to act in the German language. My colleague Anica Dobra, who speaks excellent German, taught me, and it seems to me that she did so very successfully.” Which roles or characters represented turning points in your career? “I can't determine a turning point. And I don't precisely know what a career is. Acting is my job, for some people it makes a mark, for others it doesn’t, and for me it makes a mark on my life. I started acting professionally in the theatre immediately after finishing college, thanks to Mira Trailović and Ljubiša Ristić, and also in film, thanks to Aleksandar Petković, who gave me my first significant role in the film Hajduk. I had the good fortune to work with Yugoslavia’s most important masters of directing. It was with them that I made cult Yugoslav films. A turning point for me was mymeetingwith directorMiša Radivojević, whomI felt as both having my number and as my man.” While we’re on the topic of turning points, it is interesting that the song ‘My friends’ has literally become the anthem of our diaspora population. How do you recall that song and film? “The film InTheMiddle Of Nowhere was shot during the catastrophic 1993. I remember a conversation with Bajaga, when directorMiša Radivojević explained to him what kind of music he wanted and that it was important to compose a hit. Alongside the song “My friends”, the rest of themusic still lives on almost three and a half decades later.Whenever I enter some tavern, I rejoice in that song as a sign of one period. Both Bajaga and the director and actors are still recognised by many people thanks specifically to that film.” Do you sometimes prepare for roles aboard flights and do you generally like to fly? “Many of my friends fear flights, well I really love them. I like that they pass quickly between point A and point B, and that those places differ significantly, while I also like the fact that the pilots and flight attendants always have something personable about them… Yes, I really like to fly, in every sense of the word.” Pesma Moji drugovi ostaje za sva vremena The songMy friends lives forever
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