MIRJANA KARANOVIĆ, ACTRESS IN THE TREE AND A SWING

Mirjana Karanović, actress in the film The Tree and a Swing- I love playing women with secrets

"I know Mira from Kusturica's films and I've always admired her work. When I came to Belgrade for the casting, I couldn't believe my luck when she applied. I was very fortunate that she liked the screenplay and became a part of my project," said Maria Douza, director of  The Tree and a Swing.

This isn't the first role you play in an international film?

-        This role somehow fits the roles I like to play - women with a fate and emotional luggage that they carry and still manage to survive. I love that because such roles have a secret, leading to emotional discovery. It's interesting for me as an actress, I love playing such characters.

In the first shot when you appear it's clear you have a secret and you show it in a way so subtle we are intrigued to know what it is.

- My experience obviously grows with age and I increasingly rely on simplicity. I don't feel that much the need to convince anyone. I'm always simplifying my act, although there are directors telling me to keep it even simpler!

Is the topic of the film close to you and your character's experience? What is the meaning of the concept of "home" to you, did you ever think of leaving Serbia?

- Home is a different thing for different people; it's just something you feel, your own space. I did think of leaving, since I am curious person and I have never been completely satisfied. However, my life doesn't have any common points with Nina's life in the film. She went to Greece to settle the score with her father. Instead, she became close to him and her family there. This film shows her finding her home, something that was missing, and filling the void in her.