The Old and the New (1997) Neven Korda, Zemira Alajbegović (ZANK)

The Old and the New reconstructs the lively bustle of the “Ljubljana subculture scene“ in the eighties, and it was made by two insiders. With a minute and swift editing of the picture and sound, the makers have succeeded in compiling a number of documents and video shots - made between 1982 and 1988 under the label FV Video - into an hour-long narrative. The video combines the emotions and personal views with the socially-critical subculture and the wider historical context of the Yugoslav socialist system. It was inspired by Eisenstein - the title is from one of his films - and the Russian avant-garde movement. The Old and the New features theatre performances and concerts by punk bands (Otroci Socializma, O!Kult, and others), shot in the underground club, and multi-media performances by the electro-rock group Borghesia; clips from porno films alternate with images of aged socialist leaders and political rituals; we witness the start of the first gay and women’s club as well as the discussions of philosophers, such as Slavoj Žižek, on the relationship between punk and the ruling class. The subculture inspired and heralded the changes in the socialist regime during the 80s; The Old and the New revisits this “heroic“ time. It preserves the marginal and peripheral part of its official history and documents the history of those who were left out.