The Golden Arena awards were established in 1955 as the Yugoslav national film awards presented annually at the Pula Film Festival in Pula, Croatia, with the Big Golden Arena for Best Film its main prize. From 1955 to 1990 the awards were the Yugoslav cinema equivalent of the Academy Awards.
The award is named after the Pula Arena, the 1st-century Roman amphitheatre in the coastal city of Pula, where film screenings preceding the awards ceremony traditionally take place.
In 1991 the festival was cancelled due to the breakup of Yugoslavia, but then resumed in 1992 as the Croatian film awards festival, from then on excluding films and filmmakers from present-day Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and North Macedonia. It has been held in this format every year since, although no prizes were awarded at the 1994 edition.
The festival's competition program usually includes screenings of all locally produced feature films made in the preceding 12 months, made possible due to the local film industry's relatively low but highly state subsidized output. This means that everyone involved in making them automatically qualifies for the Golden Arena awards. Therefore there are no Academy Award-style lists of nominees announced prior to the actual awarding ceremony.
The awards are handed out by a jury of five or six members which is named before each festival edition by the festival's managing board. These usually include prominent filmmakers and film critics.
Although the festival was established in 1954, the award for best film was first awarded in 1957 - prior to the 1957 edition, the festival had separate critics' choice and audience awards for best film screened at the festival. Until 1990, the award was always given to the film's production company or companies, except in 1981 when the award was merged with the Golden Arena for Best Director and both the director and production companies of the winning film (The Fall of Italy by Lordan Zafranović) were credited with the award.
During the Yugoslav period, film production was decentralised with each of the six republics having their own major film production companies. Jadran Film based in Zagreb and Avala Film based in Belgrade were the two most successful, winning 11 and 8 awards respectively.
In the 1990s the award was intermittently merged with the Best Director award, until 1999 when the old format was briefly re-introduced. Between 2003 and 2007 film directors were credited with the Best Film award, while still being eligible for the separate Best Director award (although on four out of five occasions in this period the same director won both awards for the same film). Since 2008 the award is given to the film's producer.
List of winners
1955–1980 The following table lists all films which were winners of the top three prizes in the period from 1957 to 1980. On four occasions two films shared the same prize - in 1961 and 1965 two films shared the Big Golden Arena, in 1966 two films shared the runner-up award and in 1967 two films shared the third-place award. In addition to this, the 1965 second place prize was not awarded. Shared awards are indicated with an asterisk (*).
Award changes In 1954 there was no festival jury and separate Critics' Choice and Audience awards were given. The Critics' Choice Award for Best Film went to František Čap's film Vesna, and the Audience Award for Best Film went to Fedor Hanžeković's film Stojan Mutikaša. In the following years both the critics' and audiences' awards were kept in parallel with the festival jury-given Golden Arenas, so the 1954 awards are usually not considered precursors of the present-day Big Golden Arena. In 1955 a festival jury was introduced for the first time and it was also the first time that the award was officially called Big Golden Arena. Although it was given to the best film's director, it is de facto the first Big Golden Arena for Best Film, and it was won by František Čap for the film Trenutki odločitve. In 1956 the Best Film award was not given in any form. From 1957 to 1960 the festival jury ranked three best films of the festival, without giving them an official award. From 1961 to 1968 the Big Golden Arena was awarded to best film, along with the second place prize called Big Silver Arena and a third place prize called Silver Arena. From 1969 to 1980 the third place prize was renamed Big Bronze Arena.
YearAwardEnglish title(s)Original title(s)Director(s) 1955 Moments of Decision Trenutki odločitve František Čap1956 Big Golden Arena was not awarded.1957 Priests Ćira and Spira Pop Ćira i pop Spira Soja Jovanović Master of His Own Body Svoga tela gospodar Fedor Hanžeković Saturday Night Subotom uveče Vladimir Pogačić1958 H-8 H-8 Nikola Tanhofer The Road a Year Long Cesta duga godinu dana Giuseppe De Santis The Sky Through the Trees Kroz granje nebo Stole Janković1959 Train Without a Timetable Vlak bez voznog reda Veljko Bulajić Three Quarters of a Sun Tri četrtine sonca Jože Babič Five Minutes of Paradise Pet minuta raja Igor Pretnar1960 The Ninth Circle Deveti krug France Štiglic Atomic War Bride Rat Veljko Bulajić Three Girls Named Anna Tri Ane Branko Bauer1961 Ballad About a Trumpet and a Cloud * Balada o trobenti in oblaku France Štiglic The First Fires * Uzavreli grad Veljko Bulajić The Party Veselica Jože Babič Pesma Radoš Novaković1962 Kozara Kozara Veljko Bulajić Saša Radenko Ostojić Prekobrojna Branko Bauer1963 Face to Face Licem u lice Branko Bauer Radopolje Stole Janković Wild Growth Samorastniki Igor Pretnar1964 Official Position Službeni položaj Fadil Hadžić Marš na Drinu Žika Mitrović Don't Cry, Peter Ne joči, Peter France Štiglic1965 Prometheus of the Island * Prometej s otoka Viševice Vatroslav Mimica Three *Tri Aleksandar Petrović Second place prize was not awarded. Doći i ostati Branko Bauer1966 Monday or Tuesday Ponedjeljak ili utorak Vatroslav Mimica The Climber*ŠtićenikVladan Slijepčević Rondo *Rondo Zvonimir Berković The Dream San Puriša Đorđević1967 I Even Met Happy Gypsies Skupljači perja Aleksandar Petrović The Morning Jutro Puriša Đorđević The Birch Tree *Breza Ante Babaja On Paper Planes *Na avionima od papira Matjaž Klopčič1968 When I Am Pale and Dead Kad budem mrtav i beo Živojin Pavlović Noon Podne Puriša Đorđević I Have Two Mothers and Two Fathers Imam dvije mame i dva tate Krešimir Golik1969 Downstream from the Sun Nizvodno od sunca Fedor Škubonja An Event Događaj Vatroslav Mimica It Rains in My Village Biće skoro propast sveta Aleksandar Petrović1970 Handcuffs Lisice Krsto Papić The Cyclists Biciklisti Puriša Đorđević This Crazy World of Ours Bube u glavi Miloš Radivojević1971 Red Wheat Rdeče klasje / Crveno klasje Živojin Pavlović The Pine Tree in the Mountain U gori raste zelen bor Antun Vrdoljak The Bet Opklada Zdravko Randić1972 The Master and Margaret Maestro i Margarita Aleksandar Petrović Lone Wolf Vuk samotnjak Obrad Gluščević How to Die Kako umrijeti Miomir Stamenković1973 The Battle of Sutjeska Sutjeska Stipe Delić The Bombardiers Bombaši Predrag Golubović To Live on Love Živjeti od ljubavi Krešimir Golik1974 The Republic of Užice Užička republika Žika Mitrović The Dervish and Death Derviš i smrt Zdravko Velimirović Crveni udar Predrag Golubović1975 The House Kuća Bogdan Žižić Wintering in Jakobsfeld Zimovanje u Jakobsfeldu Branko Bauer Story of Good People Povest o dobrih ljudeh France Štiglic1976 Idealist Idealist Igor Pretnar The Longest Journey Najdolgiot pat Branko Gapo Anno Domini 1573 Seljačka buna 1573 Vatroslav Mimica1977 Don't Lean Out the Window Ne naginji se van Bogdan Žižić Operation Stadium Akcija stadion Dušan Vukotić Beloved Love Ljubavni život Budimira Trajkovića Dejan Karaklajić1978 Occupation in 26 Pictures Okupacija u 26 slika Lordan Zafranović Bravo Maestro Bravo maestro Rajko Grlić The Dog Who Loved Trains Pas koji je voleo vozove Goran Paskaljević1979 Trophy Trofej Karolj Viček Burning Usijanje Boro Drašković The Days on Earth Are Flowing Zemaljski dani teku Goran Paskaljević1980 Petria's Wreath Petrijin venac Srđan Karanović The Secret of Nikola Tesla Tajna Nikole Tesle Krsto Papić Who's That Singing Over There Ko to tamo peva Slobodan Šijan
1981–1991 In 1981 the second and third place prizes were dropped. The following table lists all winners from 1981 to 1990. The Big Golden Arena was not awarded in 1982.
YearInternational titleOriginal titleDirector 1981 The Fall of ItalyPad Italije 1982 Main prize not awarded.1983 Body ScentZadah tela 1984 Balkan SpyBalkanski špijun & Dušan Kovačević1985 When Father Was Away on Business Otac na službenom putu1986 Happy New Year '49 Srećna nova '49.1987 ReflectionsVeć viđeno1988 My Uncle's LegacyŽivot sa stricem 1989 The Meeting PointSabirni centar 1990 Silent GunpowderGluvi barut1991 Festival cancelled.
1992–present Amid the breakup of Yugoslavia and the escalation of violence in 1991 during the early stages of the Croatian War of Independence, the festival was abruptly cancelled immediately after the scheduled opening in late July of that year. This was the last edition titled "Festival of Yugoslav Film."
In 1992 the event was renamed and relaunched as the "Pula Film Festival." Award categories were left unchanged, but the selection criteria narrowed to Croatian-produced films only, excluding films made by studios from the other five republics of Yugoslavia.
This meant that only a handful of films were eligible for awards, and the overall lack of domestic film activity during the ensuing 1991–95 war even led to the cancellation of the 1994 award ceremony, as only one Croatian feature film had been produced in the preceding 12 months.
YearInternational titleOriginal titleDirector 1992 Story from CroatiaPriča iz Hrvatske 1993 Countess DoraKontesa Dora1994 National awards program cancelled.1995 Washed Out Isprani 1996 How the War Started on My IslandKako je počeo rat na mom otoku1997 Mondo BoboMondo Bobo 1998 When the Dead Start SingingKad mrtvi zapjevaju 1999 MadonnaBogorodica 2000 Marshal Tito's SpiritMaršal 2001 Slow SurrenderPolagana predaja2002 Fine Dead GirlsFine mrtve djevojke2003 HereTu 2004 Long Dark Night Duga mračna noć2005 What Iva Recorded Što je Iva snimila 21. listopada 2003.2006 All for Free Sve džaba2007 The Living and the Dead Živi i mrtvi 2008 No One's Son Ničiji sin2009 Metastases Metastaze2010 Just Between UsNeka ostane među nama2011 Kotlovina Kotlovina 2012 A Letter to My Father Pismo ćaći2013 A Stranger Obrana i zaštita2014 Number 55 Broj 55 2015 The High Sun Zvizdan 2016 On the Other Side S one strane 2017 A Brief Excursion Kratki izlet 2018 Mali Mali 2019 The Diary of Diana B Dnevnik Diane Budisavljević 2020 Tereza37 Tereza37 2021 A Blue Flower Plavi cvijet 2022 The Staffroom Zbornica 2023 Bigger than Trauma Veće od traume 2024 Celebration Proslava 2025 Peacemaker Mirotvorac 2026 Honey Bunny Koke
Footnotes
A. Although the festival opened on schedule on 26 July 1991 and a press screening of Zrinko Ogresta's film Fragments: Chronicle of a Vanishing was held, the festival board presided by Antun Vrdoljak decided to cancel the entire event in protest against the armed conflict in Slovenia and the escalating hostilities in Croatia. Nine Yugoslav-produced films were supposed to be screened in the national competition program.
B. : In 1994 the national competition program and the awards ceremony were cancelled as only one Croatian feature film had been made over the preceding 12 months (The Price of Life, directed by Bogdan Žižić). The festival was held in spite of this, and the usual screenings were replaced by a retrospective of films produced by the celebrated Zagreb School of Animated Film and a selection of documentaries, while the main program was replaced by premieres of six American mainstream releases.
References General
Specific
External links Pula Film Festival of Yugoslavian Films (1954–1990) at the Internet Movie Database