Albanian audiences everywhere are receiving a much needed comedy after decades of mournful or pensive films. Directed by Fisnik Muji, Rrota (Wheel) tells the story of Uka, who, when he is not repairing washing machines, sexually satisfies women all over the city. After Uka meets the love of his life, Sara, he decides to abandon his old habits. With the goal of getting her attention, Uka enrolls in the same university as she.

Rrota challenges and invigorates the standard style of Albanian cinematography. It features an everyday human experience in a humorous fashion. The Albanian Film Week in New York featured Rrota on its last day, at the Producers’ Club Theaters. It was received with laughter and positive feedback. It stood out for its creativity, theme, and distinguished humor. The production, which is very different from the mainstream American or Albanian ones, is very appealing to the Albanian and the foreign audience.  Rrota shows a new stream of creativity in the Kosovar Cinematography, moving away from the traditional style of writing, producing and even casting.

By Jenna Liang

Albanian Film Week (AFW) Marketing Director Theodhora Rexhepi was a vision in green at the opening gala of AFW 2013. Passionate about promoting Albanian art and culture, Theo speaks to Kosovo Diaspora about the evolving film industry, her favorite films, and AFW 2014.

© Albian Film Week

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

Born in Fier, Albania, I moved to Greece when I was 15 years old. I became more involved with activities concerning Albanian when I moved to New York. Soon after, a family tragedy narrowed my focus on children. Not only do many Albanian families have trouble providing for their sick children, but also medical care is scarce and very difficult to access. Thus my goal is to eventually create a foundation to support these families.

How did you get involved with AFW? What are your motivations for being part of this amazing event?

Co-organizer Ariot Myrtaj’s (Ari) inspiring passion for cinematography drew me to join the AFW team. I want Albanian culture to be presented through the vivid colors of art. We have a rich artistic world– a treasure– and the United States should be introduced to it. I am very proud of my culture, as I am sure every Albanian is.

Do you consider AFW 2013 a success?

The mission of AFW 2013 is to share Albanian culture and connect people through art. I believe that the festival fully accomplished its goals. Expectations were blown away at opening night. The movies allowed people to further appreciate Albanian cinematography. At the award night, we had many important guests and a full house. I have also received numerous emails from Albanians in Boston, Chicago and Michigan congratulating us and requesting we bring something similar in their cities. Indeed, AFW’s success is due to the work of our wonderful team.

AFW 2013 offered a diverse selection of films. What was your favorite film? Why?

The directors have done an amazing job. Each film portrayed a different aspect of Albanian life. I really liked the short movies The Last Confession and the Superintendent. I also liked Agon because I lived in Greece for 5 years and could relate to the story. Angus Deus was about a modern tragedy that deeply touched me. The film showed some very painful times and some members of the audience were very emotional. Lastly, Right to Love portrayed a reality that exists not only in Albanian Culture but also everywhere in the world.

© Albian Film Week

In your opinion, how has the Albanian film industry has evolved?

The Albanian film industry has become more successful and contemporary. Directors have become bolder in their art and in screening real life stories. Director of Agon Robert Budina expresses that directors need more funds and encouragement to produce more movies. Currently, while neighboring countries such as Italy might produce a hundred films annually, the Albanian film industry only produces four. This will take time to develop, but I quote Abraham Lincoln regarding the growth of Albanian Cinematography: “’I am a slow walker, but I never walk back.’” We must charge forward and not walk back.

What will AFW 2014 look like?

 We aim to do better every year. Ari and I are already planning for AFW 2014.  We will have a bigger theater since it was a full house with over 300 attendees at our opening night. We also plan to tell more people about the festival. Lastly, we are eager to see a warm reception from the Albanian Community. While they were cautious about embracing us this year, we strive to have their full support in 2014.

By Kosovare Mezini

It has been a great year for 17-year-old Swedish born Valmir Berisha, a young football star whose fame has expanded so much more in the past couple of weeks. His last name may be common amongst Albanians, but this Kosovo-Albanian kid, who has roots in a small village in the Deçan commune, stands out. Just like his idol, a certain Mr. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, this youngster has been a very important piece of the Swedish puzzle.

© Fifa.com

Berisha was first called up by the Albanian U19 team last year but had to turn them down due to an injury. When he got better Sweden called him up for the annual camp that they were Swedish National Youth Team coaches try to find new talents and since he impressed coaches so much they decided to bring him in to their U17-team.

The journey started earlier this spring when his equalizing goal in the Elite Round gave Sweden’s U17 team a ticket to the U17 World Cup that was held in the United Arab Emirates this fall. This was actually the first time a Swedish team participated in U17 World Cup, and they had Berisha to thank. Before the World Cup, the Swedish U17 team played in the Euro Cup but it did not go as well as hoped for. Berisha received a serious head injury during one of the games but continued to show us the warrior he is by returning to the team very quickly.  However, the Swedes weren’t that lucky; they made it to the semifinals but lost against Russia after a penalty shoot-out (though Berisha did score one of the penalty goals).

But this was not the end for Sweden – they had a World Cup to prepare for!

Last month Sweden’s U17 took a long  flight to the United Arab Emirates with their young Kosovo-Albanian duo Berisha and Gentrit Citaku, a midfielder from the Swedish team IFK Norrköping. Sweden ended up in the same group as Iraq, Mexico and three time WC champions, Nigeria. Sweden began the tournament with a 4-1 win against Iraq without any goals from the Kosovo-Albanians, but we didn’t have to wait long to see one of them score.  In the second game against Nigeria, the game ended 3-3, with Berisha scoring two goals only eight minutes apart, though the two teams split the points. In the final group stage game Sweden lost to Mexico but was able to go through to the 8th final as the best group of three, which meant Japan would be the next contender.

In the 8th final against Japan, Berisha scored the first goal after 11 minutes and Sweden won 2-1. The next phase was the quarterfinals, and this time Sweden was playing against Honduras. Though Honduras scored the first goal in the 68th minute, Sweden was able to equalize only a few minutes later thanks to Citaku’s assist. Sweden was fighting for survival and at the end Berisha once again came to the rescue, scoring the final goal for another 2-1 win for Sweden – and what a goal it was! A Zlatan Ibrahimovic-like goal with his heel, talk of the goal soon spread all over the world and was even nominated as “Goal of the Year” in the Swedish Football Award.

© Fifa.com

Afterwards, Sweden prepared for the semifinal in which they faced Nigeria once again, the team that Berisha had scored twice against, but this time Sweden was unable to score. Nigeria’s 3-0 win in front of legend Diego Maradona, who watched the game from the bleachers, took them to the finals. Sweden on the other hand had a third place final to play against Argentina in which young Berisha showed what he was capable of by scoring a hattrick! Sweden won 4-1 and Berisha was later awarded with the Golden Boot Award as the top goal scorer with his 7 goals, a prize he received from FIFA president Joseph Blatter himself.

Even though Berisha’s goal against Honduras did not win the Swedish Football Award, he got to give away the award to the winner, who happened to be his idol, Zlatan Ibrahimovic himself.

© aspero.nu

Whereas earlier in his career Berisha has been on trial with the Scottish team Celtic, now teams in both Sweden and all around Europe are lining up to get his signature. We’re all excited to see where this current Halmstad BK player will end up next.

After all, you’ll want to remember this guy: they call him ”the new Zlatan.”

By Ermira Babamusta

Boxer Elvir Muriqi, also known as “The Kosovo Kid” was born in Peja, Kosovo on April 1979. Then, he moved to New York in 1996 to be a professional boxer. His undeniable talent made him a hit from the beginning of his career, earning respect as the best-known boxer in America and in Europe. Elvir Muriqi has won several titles including the prestigious Intercontinental Championship at the New York Golden Gloves in 1998, NABC World Title in 2004 in Kosovo and American Title in 2009 in North Carolina for NABC (North American Boxing Championship). Muriqi has won the title as Best Top Ten in the World and aims to win the World Championship title.

Born on April 1979, in Peja, Kosovo,to Albanian parents Ramiz and Rabije Muriqi. Elvir Muriqi excelled in sports as a kid including karate, soccer, boxing, kickboxing, tennis and gymnastics. Elvir began boxing at age 9 for two years, then he started kickboxing at age 11 for five years. At age 17 he returned to his passion, boxing. Muriqi has dominated the ring for the past ten years and he proved his worth at an international level as one of the best boxers in the world. He has an outstanding record in boxing with 40 wins, 5 losses (revenged 2 losses) and 24 knockouts. Elvir has been preparing himself for the world title championship and is determined to reach his dream.

“I have always had a passion for sports. Everything I did, I had to be the best at it. Even in school I was the man since 6^th grade. I grew up being a leader and everyone would listen to me, including my brothers and cousins.” “Growing up I used to get in trouble a lot and would fight in the streets. I wanted to be known as the tough kid around. My dad was one of the toughest dads, I looked up to him. My dad send me to the gym. I did group sports like soccer. I was good at fighting that’s why I stuck with it. When I started boxing, I saw the golden gloves and the world champion. I have so much passion for boxing and I said I will do whatever it takes to be the best,” said Elvir Muriqi.

© nyelitemagazine.com

For the past ten years of his successful career, Elvir Muriqi has maintained the spot as the Best Top Ten Boxers in the world. So on January 31, 2014 Elvir Muriqi of New York will fight on the world stage against Hungarian boxer Zsolt Erdei in a ten round fight as the main event of the Super Brawl for the light heavyweight category. The big fight will be featured on ESPN, Friday Night Fights and is taking place at the Richard Codey Arena in New Jersey.

The Kosovo born soprano Besa Llugiqi is breaking through bigger international stages, widening and deepening her sounds.

© mozartfest.eu

In a new Bulgarian opera festival from October 28-30, 2013, young singer Besa Llugiqi was awarded the Elena Nikolai prize. Interpreting the Bulgarian song “Djevoice,” Besa’s voice entered the hearts of both the audience and jury, leading to her edging out many other participants from around the world.

The jury consisted of Buna Baglioni of Italy, soprano Darina Takova, and tenor Kaludi Kaludov. They cherished Besa’s voice with its perfect vocal technique and decided her professionalism distinguished her from the other competitors. In a recent interview for KultPlus, Besa acknowledged the award as one of the most important in her career. ‘The young voice interprets of the opera festival was organized in the name of mezzosoprano Elena Nicolai, a world known name in the opera world. The festival was held in Panagjyrishte, the hometown Nicolai.

The original article was posted at the Illyriapress.com Click here to read the original article.

Egzon Bunjaku and Fatjona Berisha, two students of Universum College, along with their mentor Mërgim Cahani, have been the first representatives of our country at Google Online Marketing Challenge, a competition which invites students from all over the world to use Google AdWords and Google+ to promote a cause.

Following up the courses on Digital Marketing offered by Google and their university classes of Marketing and Management, Kosovar students at GOMP have successfully created their marketing strategy for the uprising company Scards LLC, located in Prishtina. Scards was chosen by the team specifically because of their field of expertise which is the design and creation of business cards and similar business promoting facilities through the use of internet.

Although the competition was a bit strained, as Kosovo was only recently recognized by Google in its list of countries. The first round of competition for our country’s team was the regional race, in order to continue in the global challenge. The GOMP also included several gifts for the representative teams, such as a trip in Silicon Valley – Google’s Home – in California, USA.

This project is only one of the few where Universum College engages its staff, and especially enthusiastic students such as Egzon and Fatjona, who keep on raising the Kosovar voice out there in the world. Anyone can participate to show a helping hand to this fantastic duo and their mentor, promoting Scards on Google plus, by following the link below.

The original article was posted at Digjitale.com Click here to read the original article

The annual Young Albanian Filmmakers Festival (YAFF) debuted in New York City at the Producers Club Theatres on Friday, November 29, 2013. Founder of YAFF, director Bujar Alimani aims to bring to New York the latest creativity of Albanian student filmmakers, enrolled in Film at Academies and Art Schools in Albania and Kosovo, featuring works of aspiring young filmmakers. 

The festival is a three day screening of 19 short films. This year out of 50 films, 19 were selected to screen at the 2013 YAFF Festival in New York, with 4 prizes to be awarded on the final night: best films, best director, best script and the public award. The jury is comprised of film director Arta Kallaba, Ermira Babamusta (founder of Peace Action Foundation) and publicist Violeta Mirakaj.

The selection panel is made of acclaimed Albanian actors namely: Dhimitër Ismailaj, Luan Bexheti, Roland Uruci, Anisa Dema, Lola Luma ,Gentjan Basha, Alfred Tollja, Entela Barci and Bujar Alimani.

Lola Luma hosted the Opening Night Gala where she introduced 6 short films by the following directors: Gentjan Kurti, Anxhela Kumanaku, Franc Priska, Xhoslin Rama, Bekim Guri and Alba Stefa. After the screening, Director Bujar Alimani talked about the US Premiere of the Albanian short films. The festival continues screening this saturday and sunday at Producers Club Theatres located on 358 W 44th St, New York.

To view the program visit: https://www.facebook.com/YAFfestival.

The group exhibit called “To open your eyes: Art and Textiles from the Bauhaus to Today” is now open at the contemporary art museum “Kunsthalle” in Bielefeld, Germany. This time the “newborn country” Kosovo is being represented through the work of Erzen Shkololli.

© albinfo.ch

In this exhibit that will remain open until February 16, 2014, National Gallery of Kosovo director, Erzen Shkololli, will be among the international artists with work on display.

As stated in the notice of the Kunsthalle museum in Bielefeld, Shkololli is displaying his works entitled “Peje, Kosovo, 1998” made during the war in Kosovo. He created his work with different materials that he found in his home, resulting in socks sewn into the shape of a mosaic. The exhibition was organized in honor of 800^th anniversary of the foundation of the textile industry.

The exhibition focuses on designs of wefts (or woven) rugs and summarizes different works of textile from the 1960s -70s, including works by Blinky Palermo, Alighiero Boetti, and Sigmar Polke, and continuing on to the works of contemporary artists like Olaf Nicolai, Aiko Tezuka and Erzen Shkololli.

The original article was posted at Albinfo.ch Click here to read the original article.

By Kosovare Mezini

In his second game after returning from his injury, the Kosovo-born Besart Berisha struck once again for the second round in a row. Brisbane Roar beat Perth Glory 1-0 on Saturday thanks to Berisha’s only goal, keeping Brisbane at the top of the table. Berisha has now scored 3 goals in 4 games but that number could easily have been higher considering he missed a couple of weeks due to his injury.

© sportal.com.au

Last season he scored 14 goals and was the fourth top goal scorer in Australia, a spot that he shared with Italian legend Alessandro Del Piero. However, Berisha did win the Golden Boot for scoring the most goals during the 2011-2012 season, having scored a total of 21 goals in what was only his first season.

Perth Glory, the team that Brisbane played against today, has never been a  big fan of Berisha. He played the main role during the Grand Final for the 2011-2012 season after scoring both goals in the 2-1 win against them. Today, they were once again hit by the Kosovo-Albanian striker.

© zimbio.com

Like him or hate him, we can all agree that this guy knows how to score.

Do you you ever wonder how the Kosovo national football team would look like if the international governing bodies of football, FIFA and UEFA, would let it compete internationally? A Belgium online medium put together a list of 11 potential players that could make the starting line up. They are either citizens of Kosovo, or their parents were born here.

Unfortunately, FIFA nor UEFA have done little justice for the dreams of Kosovars to have a team respresnting them in the international football arena. Most of these players today feature for national teams of Albania, Switzerland, even Finland, Norway and Sweden.

© zeri.info

Recently, Belgian media has created a ‘dream team’ of Kosovo football players which in the future could wear the yellow-and-blue shirts. 

‘Lameuse.be’, has included the youngest Man United talent, Adnan Januzaj, who is also a future possible player for the Belgian national football team.

On this dream team list, Samir Ujkani is the goalkeeper while on the defensive sides are Lorik Canaj and Mergim Mayraj. Right wing and left wing of the future possible team are Taulant Xhaka and Perparim Hetemaj.

The formation 4-5-1 has included mid-fielders such as Granit Xhaka, Valon Behrami, Xherdan Shaqiri, Adnan Januzaj and Valdet Rama. As for the offensive side, its only Admi rMehmedi, currently a player for Freiburg. Mehmedi is originally from Macedonia therefore he wouldn’t be able to play for Kosovo in the future, when our country will be recognized by UEFA or FIFA.

The original article was posted at Zeri.info  webpage. Click here to read the original article

Apart from being a unique football player, Lionel Messi known for his distinguished style of clothing. The Argentinian superstar is a fashion icon, who never misses a chance to show off his image away from the field. To gain more attention, the Barcelona offensive player has contracted an Albanian fashion designer.

© Kosovapress

According to Supersport, the special costume which Messi wore after the “Golden Ball” ceremony was designed by an Albanian designer, named Muhamet Hasani. Furthermore, the costume wore by Messi for the “Golden Shoe” ceremony was carefully hand-crafted by the same man, Hasani, who is a part of a giant Italian fashion studio, “ErmeneglidZehna”.

Messi shows that glamour and style are inspired by Mother Nature of our Albanian land.

The original article was posted at Kosovapress webpage. Click here to read the original article

By Kosovare Mezini

Earlier this year a Swedish TV Channel started a new show called “Proffsdrömmen,” translated as “the Pro Dream.” The concept is similar to American Idol, but has the contestants play football instead of sing.  Just like Idol, a jury traveling across Sweden views hundreds of talents as they show off their skills. During the auditions, I saw several Albanians try their luck; one of these talents was Ermal Hajdari, who underwent his audition in Kristiandstad.

© Facebook Nike Football Sweden

Swedish born Hajdari, who happens to have his roots in Kosovo, was among the final 22 players that spent two weeks in the city of Borås, where the champion would win a pro contract with the city’s team IF Elfsborg. Hajdari did great during the final trial; in one game he was even given the team captain role when former Elfsborg player Emir Bajrami joined the team.

Midfielder Hajdari actually made it all the way to the finals, but ended up losing with only one point less than the winner. However, this was only the starting point for Hajdari. The second division team Örgryte called Hajdari in for an audition, right as his contract with Kristiandstad’s FF was about to end.

Though the tryout went well, Hajdari also auditioned for the Nike Academy afterward.  For those of you that haven’t heard of the Nike Academy, it’s basically a team based in England that doesn’t play in a league but travels around Europe playing several friendly games. The players must be under a certain age and not be playing in a team.

At the beginning, Nike gathered hundreds of talents from all over Paris. Hypervenom Knockout was the first round’s name. Everyone was really impressed by Hajdari, and he was named Player of the Tournament. He moved along to the Netherlands and continued to do well. The 21-year-old kept the staff impressed even when they traveled to the final auditions in England.  The Nike Academy decided to only sign six players, and Hajdari was one of them.

“My job as a striker is to score, so I will do everything I can to put the ball into the net in every game. ” – Ermal Hajdari to Nike Football Sweden.

When he made his first appearance last month, Hajdari only got to play the last half hour. Now he’s been a part of the Nike Academy for a couple of weeks and has shown his gratitude by scoring numerous goals. In the past three games alone, Hajdari has scored five of the goals. If he keeps up this pace, it’s only a matter of time before a big league team decides to bring him in.

During the friendly match between Brazil and Chile in Toronto, three Kosovo born soccer fans showed a banner writing ‘Please, Accept Kosovo in FIFA.’ 

© Accept Kosovo in FIFA and UEFA Group

It’s not just the Kosovo Football Federation (FFK), and other local institutions that are currently lobbying for the internationalization of Kosovo’s football team. This ‘duty’ has also been taken by our fellow countrymen living and working in various counties of the world. They are showing the banner “Please, Accept Kosovo in FIFA” on the football stadiums and different sporting events that take place around the world. Similar lobbying tactics are seen in Turkey, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Poland and along with other countries. The fans in Toronto explained that once, “they found out that the match between Brazil and Chile would be held in Toronto, they would write a message to address FIFA.” Moreover, they continued explaining that, “within our possibilities, we tried of lobbing for the recognition of Kosovo by FIFA. Especially ahead of the forthcoming meeting between the Kosovar and Serb’s football executives,” he stated. The request from the executives of Kosovar football, to play friendly matches with the national team, has continuously been dragged by FIFA, for many years. This also occurred because of the pressure Serbia has been putting on the highest football institution in the world. However, it’s expected to be found a solution between the executives of the Kosovo Football Federation and the Serb ones, for the future of our country’s football, in the end of this month. Whereas FIFA will have the final say in the beginning of December, when the meeting of the Executive Committee will take place.

The original article was posted at Gazeta Express webpage. Click here to read the original article

One of largest cultural magnets in the world has welcomed yet another Film Festival, this time with Albanian talent at the forefront. With nineteen movies running for six prizes, the three-days long festival of young cinematic artists has given a rare chance for Albanian talent to represent itself, giving the diverse jury of the festival a hard time.

“It is quite challenging and a great sacrifice to pull out a festival in the biggest world center. We are a small nation but posses great artists, which makes up for dignifying representation”- said New York General Consulate Bekim Sejdiu, of the Albanian Young Filmmakers Festival. The Movie “Weekend”, directed by Ergys Lubonja,  has been awarded “The Best Short Film” at the festival, which lasted for three days in New York, U.S. The festival concluded on December 1^st. “The Best Script” on the other hand was awarded to “Death of Grandfather Trifoniot” with screenplay’s authorship of Xhoslin Rama who was the movie’s director while the “Best Director” went for “Acropolos” directed by Blerdi Malushi.

In this festival of young artists, there were a few special prizes. One such of “Best Lead Actor” went to Bislim Muçaj for his role in the movie “Silence” by Bekim Guri; “Best Lead Actress on the other hand was awarded to Lyra Xhoci for her performance on the movie “Hope” by ValonJakupaj, and “Best Documentary” was reserved for “Recyclable Life” by Blerina Gjoce.

Bekim Sejdiu, the general consulate in New York, U.S.

The festival was welcomed by the Kosovo consulate in New York, Bekim Sejdiu. “This is the second film festival taking place in New York during November. It’s my pleasure to be here on behalf of Kosovo and congratulate organizers on their magnificent work. It is quite challenging and a great sacrifice to pull out a festival in the biggest world center. We are a small nation but possesses great artist, that makes up for dignifying representation,” Sejdiu stated.

The best selected movies out nineteen running ones, have been evaluated by a jury of: Kosovar director Arta Kallaba (Jury’s President), Ermia Babamusta (founder of Peace Action Foundation) and the publicist Violeta Mirakaj.

The original article was posted at KultPlus. Click here to read the original article

By: Ermira Babamusta

Synopsis: Two Albanian brothers, Saimir and Vini, migrate to Greece and try, each in his own way, to integrate into their host country by following two different lifestyles, with no way of turning back. Saimir is trying to build a new life with his Greek fiancé, Elektra and also look after his younger brother Vini.  Vini, who feels under his brother’s control, does not forgive Saimir for his life choices, thus becomes a victim of the underground world in hopes for quick easy money. The story takes a turn when Vini falls in love with the wife of the mafia boss. An impossible love with tragic regrets and unspeakable measures. How much pain can the human spirit endure before it breaks and ceases to trust, love and hope again?

Recent Screenings: The Samuel Goldwyn Theatre, Berly Hills, CA, SVA Theatres, New York. Upcoming Screenings: Romania, France

Albania’s Academy Award 2014 selection “Agon” by Robert Budina is an ideal top winner for four categories: Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. Budina’s Agon sold out movie theaters across United States and around the world for the debut screening in over 15+ prestigious festivals including Hollywood, Chicago, Arizona, France, Poland, Kosovo, Albania, Egypt, Shanghai, Athens, Rome, St. Petersburg, Vienna, New York, etc.

Given all the high praise the movie has the received and all the prizes Agon has already won – “Best Screenplay” by See a Paris (South East European Film Festival); “Best Actor” by Guljem Kotori and “Best Film” of Bloody Hero International Film Festival in Arizona – this incredible film deserves to win an Oscar.

Agon deserves all the awards it can get its hands on including best picture for its outstanding high quality and cinematography. An incredible production collaboration between the superb team of producers: Sabrina Kodra (Albania), Lilette Botassi (Greece), Dan Burlac (Romania) and Guillaume De Seille (France) that delivered an exceptional quality film surely make Agon a potential Oscar favorite for best picture.

What makes Agon worthy of best director and best screenplay is its exemplary writer and director Robert Budina. Already a legend in theater and short films the award-winning Robert Budina is an incredible and visionary director, who dares to create masterful pieces that are unforgettable.

“I am honored and I appreciate to be chosen for such a prestigious event, the Oscars. Agon has been screened world wide. Critics in LA praised it and loved the movie. It is a big responsibility to represent my nation in this prestigious and historic event, and I am happy to be among the best filmmakers to be chosen by the Academy Award. It is a testament to the hard work put to it. Agon is a very daring project, and I thank the entire cast and crew for making my vision come true with this film,” said award winning director of Agon, Robert Budina.

The most interesting part about this movie is that not only do you fall in love with the outstanding acting of all the main characters ; but you also find yourself falling for the villain. The bad guy, played beautifully by great actor Xhevdet Jashari became your favorite character. All actors were amazing and stood out for the emotions they brought on the bring screen, such as: Marvin Tafaj, Guljem Kotori, Isabella Kogevina, Eglantina Cenomeri, Xhevdet Jashari, Laert Vasili, and Antonis Kafetzopulos.

Agon is a powerful story about unwritten cultural ways of living that lead to conflict. The film is about integration efforts woven into the larger risks of cultural clash. This thought-provoking drama by the brilliant Robert Budina is not a story about immigration, crime or mafia, rather people’s efforts to build a life around two completely different cultures – the preexisting norms one brings versus adapting to the new customs of another community. While Saimir tries hard to fit in by earning an honest living and adapting to the new culture, his younger brother Vini feels alienated in the foreign land. He resists changing habits and behavior because he thinks he lost the trust of the dearest person closest to him and is not respected at the work place. Therefore he feels the need to man up and prove himself.

Agon is hailed as groundbreaking film-making, pioneering techniques that epitomize the perfect artistry in the film industry. Combined with superb acting of a very talented cast, a powerful script and brilliant directing, Agon showcases Albanian talent at its best.

Actors: Main roles

Saimiri – Marvin Tafaj (Albania)
Vini – Guljem Kotori (Albania)
Elektra – Isabela Cogevina (Greece)
Keno – Xhevdet Jashari (FYROM)
Nikos – Andonis Kafexopulos (Greece)
Beni – Laertis Vasili (Albanain, residence Greece)
Majlinda – Eglantina Cenomeri Albanian
Uncle – Nikolla Llambro (Albanain, residence Greece)
Uncle’s wife – Hajrie Rondo Albanian

Crew:

Author, screenplay and director: Robert Budina (Albania)
Producer: Sabina Kodra Albania
Co- producer: Lilette Botassi (Greece) & Dan Burlac (Romania) & Guillaume De Seille (France)
Director of photography: Marius Panduru (Romania)
Sound recordist/ sound editing: Vangelis Zelkas (Greece)
Set designer: Bianca Nikolareizi (Greece)
Cheff Make up: Vicky Tataki (Greece)
Costums: Emir Gramo (Albania)
Editor: Eugen Kelemen (Romania)
Composer: Aldo Shllaku (Albania)

By Anton Dauti

Sindi Arifi was elected « Miss Romande 2014 » on November 30, 2013 in the Palexpo’ of Geneva. Only 19 years old, the Albanian beauty now represents the French-speaking part of Switzerland as she aims for further success. 

© lexpress.ch

Sindi grew up in Switzerland in the Albanian Diaspora ambiance, with more than 200,000 Albanians living there for an estimated population of 8 million. Sindi Arifi is originally from Montenegro; another country with an Albanian minority population who live in the cities of Ulqin, Tuziand Tivar.

According to the statement that Sindi made to Canal 9, the model was extremely hesitant in participating in the beauty pageant. But, it was her parents who pushed this beautiful Albanian model to pursue her career in modeling.  During her interview with Canal 9, Sindi states that her victory surprised her but not her family who never doubted that, one day, she would become Miss Switzerland.

Sindi does welfare-work but is also passionate in the artistic world. Additionally, her title as Miss Romande is a professional opportunity for her as she is ambitious in working on a  fashion blog.

By Kosovare Mezini

Europe and the rest of the world witnessed two historical debuts two weeks ago from two of our young talented Kosovar Albanian football players.

© anorak.co.uk

First up was Adnan Januzaj who made his first appearance in the Champions League when Manchester United decided to put the 18 year old in their starting eleven on the 10th of December. Januzaj played during the entire game representing United who also won the game against Shakhtar Donetsk by 1-0. Since United has shown a stellar performance during the entire group stage, the peak of success for the team was achieved when United made it through to the next round. This is important as the team will now play against the Greek team Olympiakos in the 8th final early next spring, thus showing more of Januzaj during the game series.

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Two days later, another Albanian young talented football player made his debut in the European football stage.  The 19 year old striker Albian Muzaqi, is Racing Genk’s newest signing. Muzaqi who was bought from PSV Eindhoven, made his Europa League debut. During the game, he started on the bench against FC Thun and was substituted in approximately one hour within the game. Although Muzaqi was not very much present in the game, Genk still succeeded with a victory of 1-0. Just like Manchester United, Genk has made it through to the next round as a group winner. This will hopefully give us the chance to see more of Muzaqi too during the next future games. Finally, one must not forget that Champions and Europa League are two different tournaments.

Those were two historical debuts in one week for the two Kosovar Albanian talented football players Adnan Januzaj and Albian Muzaqi.

By Ermira Babamusta

Right to Love, directed by Paul Kurti, written by Amina Zhaman won “Best Feature Film” at Albanian Film Week. The cast of Right to Love was presented with the award by Ambassador Bekim Sejdiu on November 14, 2013 at the Producers Club Theatres. Present at the ceremony were lead actors of Right to Love, Shpend Xani and Amina Zhaman, among with incredibly talented cast including Pavlina Mani (who also won Lifetime Achievement Award), Ariot Myrtaj, Luan Bexheti, Praq Rado, Nereida Isufi, Bukurije Navon, etc.  Albanian Film week is organized by Mrika Krasniqi and Ariot Myrtaj.

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“I’d like to congratulate the organizers of the Albanian Film Week, especially Mrika Krasniqi and Ariot Myrtaj, for successfully braining the festival to New York City for yet another year. It is an important event that encourages and showcases the work of Albanian artists from all around the world. We are thrilled that “Right to Love” received the Audience Award for Best Feature Film. We thank the New York audiences for supporting the film,” said director Paul Kurti.

“I’d like to congratulate all the cast and crew of the film, starting with the lead actors Amina Zhaman and Shpend Xani. Also, thank you to the producer Marina Bolotokova of Oriental Pearl LLC for making the film possible. I am glad that, among other things, this film gave the opportunity to many Albanian American actors to work together and showcase their talents. Hopefully this is only the stepping stone for this kind of collaboration and that we will see much more successful work from this community in the future,” he added.

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Right to Love has been an international sensation with world wide, sold out screenings, winning several awards. The cast of Right to Love is absolutely amazing. Outstanding talent Shpend Xani who landed the lead role at Right to Love, played a very convincing and powerful portrayal of Tony. Shpend Xani is undoubtedly a brilliant actor, who can carry a movie no matter what genre, be it romantic, drama, dark or comedy. The audiences in New York fell in love with his great performance in Right to Love.

“I would like to thank the audience for awarding us with the audience award for “The best feature film”. I would like to thank and congratulate the film producers Marina and Amina for doing a wonderful job and the talented director Paul Kurti who did an amazing work. I want to congratulate the hardworking and talented cast and crew. Finally I would like to thank the organizers of the Albanian Film Week for hosting such a great event and The Producers Club. Thank you all!” said the talented actor Shpend Xani.

In the Right to Love Story, written beautifully by Amina Zhaman, who also plays the lead female protagonist, Tony (Shpend Xani) is caught up between pleasing his family and making some bold moves for his life and future. Tony’s love interest (played by Amina Zhaman) wants to pursue her acting dreams while trying to keep a happy relationship with Tony. Luan Bexheti, Omar Chaparro, Karina Ivanova and Theodore Bouloukos co-star in this film directed by Paul Kurti.

The artistic vision of brilliant director Paul Kurti characterized the greatness, passion and imagination the director put in this work. Right to Love, winner of “Best Feature Film” brings the best talent to everyone.

Ilir Berisha recently published a book named “Summer Is My Favorite Season: A Memoir of Childhood and War in Kosovo.” The book captures Berisha’s experiences growing up in Kosovo and the impact the war had on him and his community. Today, Berisha lives in United States and said for The Times News that “he believed the American dream remains alive based on his experiences and that with some hard work; anybody can do anything and be anything they want.”

© Sam Roberts / Times-News

Ilir Berisha vividly recalls the time when he could hear NATO bomb strikes against the Serbian army in his homeland of Kosovo in April 1999. Berisha was living in the country’s capital of Pristina in the late 1990s when the Kosovo War raged. Conflict erupted between the ethnic groups in the region. Berisha said the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) was formed to combat Yugoslav forces led by Slobodan Milosevic and the Serb militia. The KLA was a paramilitary organization comprised of ethnic Albanians.

Berisha’s family was very limited to where they could travel at the time. He said when NATO forces led by Great Britain and the United States decided to intervene and strike the opposition with bombings, it was a relief for his family because they believed the war would soon come to an end. Berisha’s family included his father, Hysen Berisha, mother Xheva Berisha, sister Fjolla Berisha, and brother Shpetim Berisha. On a second attempt, the family was able to cross the border into Macedonia to flee the fighting. The bus they traveled on had a capacity of about 50. Berisha said there were about 100 people on the bus when they departed to Macedonia.

During the trip, Berisha said a Serbian militia checkpoint stopped the bus and checked all of the men’s papers to see if they were affiliated with the KLA. None of the men on board the bus were part of the KLA and were let through, Berisha said. Discrimination by the Serbs against his Albanian community was constant, according to Berisha. Berisha recalled when he was a boy living in the city, the Serbs would limit what they could do — even how they played outside. Since 1999, Berisha has called North Carolina his home. He left with his family for the United States after spending about two months in a refugee camp in Macedonia. His first stop was in High Point before finding his way to Burlington.

Today, Berisha, 28, lives with his family in Elon. He graduated from Western Alamance High School in 2003 and later graduated from Elon University in 2007 with a degree in creative writing. Berisha started a business in 2008, Cash For Cars, which is at 1004 S. Main St. in Graham.While at Elon University, Berisha began writing a book titled “Summer Is My Favorite Season: A Memoir of Childhood and War in Kosovo,” which was self-published earlier this year. The book captures Berisha’s experiences growing up in Kosovo and the impact the war had on his community. “I felt like I had to write this story,” Berisha said. “It meant so much to me.”
Berisha said the book’s title comes from a childhood memory, when his family would go to their summer home outside of Pristina in the countryside. The village where the summer home was located was in a predominantly Albanian area and the Serbs didn’t bother the people there like they did in the major cities. Berisha said as a child he was free to play with the other children at the village — that’s why summer is still his favorite season.
Since coming to North Carolina, Berisha said he has returned to Kosovo to visit with some of his family that remains in the region. Berisha said Kosovo remains one of the poorest countries in Europe and that there is still political tension there.

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Berisha still thanks those who helped his family get established years ago in Burlington including members of Christ Church, now called Hillside Presbyterian Church. Among those who first met the Berishas in 1999 were Bob and Ruthie Garner. The Garners lived in Burlington at the time and have since moved to Raleigh.
Berisha said the Garners remained active in his family’s lives including taking him to soccer practice and helping him with matters at school when he was younger. Bob Garner said when the Berishas came to Burlington they didn’t have many material possessions but worked hard to save their money from jobs they secured and were able to become productive residents of Alamance County. “They are all very successful,” Bob Garner said. “It’s in incredible story. I admire the family so much.” Bob Garner said he first read the manuscript for Berisha’s book eight years ago. He said that Berisha never gave up his dream of writing the book and getting it published.
Berisha said the book can be purchased online at several sites including Amazon.com. He hasn’t ruled out writing another book in the future.

The book includes several pictures taken during Berisha’s childhood and his time in Kosovo.He now calls North Carolina his home and doesn’t plan to return to Kosovo. Berisha said his future plans including growing his business in Graham. Berisha said he believed the American dream remains alive based on his experiences and that with some hard work, anybody can do anything and be anything they want.

The original article was posted at Thetimesnews.com Click here to read the original article