Dreams are true

By Lotte Luna Peters

It feels weird to leave virtual Kosovo, after having intensely lived in it for four weeks straight. One thing is for sure: I will come back. Hopefully, then, physically there, seeing its rich landscape of high mountains, historic cities and hungry rivers. But most importantly, I want to meet the people that I spoke to for the film Britt, Freke and I made as our project, “The Colors of Kosovo”. The film is about the concepts of right and wrong, identity, prejudice, reconciliation and forgiveness, a narrative through many different perspectives. It is told by ordinary, young voices. We had the privilege of listening to their stories and experiences.

At the start of the film, you are met with a small history lesson about Kosovo. We wanted to make this as short as possible, because its history is vast. The reason for including this is the fact that not many people know of the country, its conflict and its situation overall, and neither did we before starting Peace Lab. After the interviews we had, we found out how important the people involved found it that more outsiders know of Kosovo. We thanked them for the interviews, but in return they immediately thanked us – for creating this film and the history part of it. It’s a first step to recognition, independence and a peace that could be longer lasting.

The history part of the film is followed by interviews with Gresa, Diellza, Urani, Simona, Parid, Sofija and Dunja. These interviews are something that I will never forget, and they all held something special. The interviews edited together became a sort of conversation between these people, most of whom have never actually met. Some of them agreed with each other, some of them disagreed – and this formed the core of our film. We want the viewer to think: “Oh, they could be right… but they could be right too… but actually, what they’re saying could be right as well”. We want them to get in a personal struggle in finding “the right answer”, only to realize that there is no such thing in this case. There is not just black and white, but there are so many colors in between, and that is what’s beautiful about being human and about the world. 

In her interview, Sofija told us that the people in the Balkans are very proud of the small differences they have with others. They’re proud of the fact that they say this word differently from the Croats or they’re proud that they make this particular dish differently from the Serbs. She says that they have to let go of that pride, and not make those little differences divide them, but bring them closer together. It should be seen as something complementary. I found that so insightful and inspiring, and it kind of became the overall message we want to convey with our film: all those colors between black and white can form a rainbow together, and they just don’t make sense on their own.

Through these interviews, it also became so clear that hatred is something that is learned. Most of the people we spoke to had learned that the other ethnicity was really bad, trying to take their land while killing them, both in their education and their social environment, like their parents and friends. Simona said that during the history lessons at school, they focused a lot on the bad part of the Serbians, and Urani agrees. Dunja, on the other hand, didn’t learn much about politics from school, until she came to high school. She was met with many anti-Albanian sentiments, stumbling upon numerous “Kosovo is Serbia” graffitied slogans in her city. An Albanian friend she had, didn’t even dare say she went to Pristina over the summer. Gresa and Diellza hadn’t met a Serbian until they went to the IBC-M at the age of eighteen, where the ethnicities study together. They told us they have little hope that this generation will be the one to make the change in Kosovo, as they’re still raised with war stories.

But they’re hopeful for the future generation – their children. They won’t be raised with war stories, but they will grow up with stories of more reconciliation and open-mindedness. Gresa said that that open-mindedness is her dream for the future of Kosovo. Simona and Parid, however, wish for a Greater Albania. Sofija dreams of living in harmony and letting go of the pride of the small differences. Diellza particularly hopes for more interaction between the ethnicities, and Urani can’t wait to see Kosovo becoming totally independent and recognized. And lastly, Dunja has a dream for the people from Serbia, to view Kosovo in a new way. We hope, that after watching this film, the viewer will know that all these dreams may seem conflicting, but they are all valid, real, and true.