From fairy tales and legends of ancient warriors to a history of rescuing the Christian world, we will bring to life the influences that shape an ethnicity.

Truth is lost between history and belief

The alphabet. The religion. The tragedies. the glory.

The Slavic world is often an enigma to the west, and yet is today the epicenter of world events. More often pitted against each other than outsiders, it is only when this struggle threatens to expand beyond ethnic borders that the world takes notice.

The world takes notice, but often doesn’t understand.

It is time for the truth.

TO BE A SLAV

Settled in harsh lands with long and frozen winters, the renowned literature of the Slavic world began with the epic fireside tales told during the long and dark months of cold. It is these tales, some supernatural and some morality plays, that give Slavic culture its shape and understanding of the world and they have a remarkable ribbon of similarity running through them. It was during these long winters before the fire that Slavic children learned of the capriciousness of a life governed by natural and supernatural forces beyond their control, where lessons of social appropriateness were passed on, and where the ideal version of a Slavic man and woman took shape. Often seen as harsh and bleak, these tales prepared a people for the rugged life of a culture at a crossroads – surrounded by hostile nations and in an environment that could be overtly cruel.

It is these Slavic tales that form the base of what is Slavic culture. To understand the Slavs, one must understand their stories.

CAST

MARIA MUSTAPIC WIELOWIEYSKA

An expert historian, Maria has written two books about the history of Vienna; Secrets of the Inner City and Sex, Drugs, and Rock n’ Roll in Habsburg Vienna. Maria also works as a licensed historical tour guide who can explain even the most obscure facts about Austria and the Habsburg dynasty.

ARISTEA ORLANDO KLARIC

Even though she hasn’t begun full time school, Aristea can already speak three languages fluently and spends her time singing her favorite tunes from the past and today in English, Croatian, and Italian. She loves playing with animals, and has a particular wish for a beautiful white Siberian kitten.

MILICA RADOJIČIĆ MIKULIĆ

Very involved in collecting history about Montenegro and Croatia, Milica is active in the Montenegrin Croatian Society. She is committed to making sure that the rich history of Montenegro is available to everyone.

DZENANA SAMOUK

An award winning Bosnian artist, Dzenana’s paintings have touched many people. Her most famous work, the viscerally powerful Mother of Srebrenica, was until recently in a private collection, but will soon be available for public viewing in one of Sarajevo’s museums.

ANDRZEJ WIELOWIEYSKI

Ardent Polish patriot and statesman, Andrzej Wielowieyski lied about his age to serve in the Polish Home Army during World War II and was an early leading member of Solidarity. He was involved in the negotiations for the Round Table Agreement in 1989, then served as a member of the Sejm, the Deputy Speaker of the Polish Senate, and as a Member of the European Parliament. His biography and accomplishments far outstrip the available website space for cast biographies.

DR FLORIN CURTA

A professor of medieval history and archaeology at the University of Florida, Dr. Curta has an extensive list of published works on the history of the Slavs and the Balkans. Born in Romania during the Ceaușescu government, Dr. Curta is no stranger to controversial takes on history and is known for not shying away from re-examining the mainstream historical hypotheses.

KRISTAPS ANDREJSONS

Veteran journalist and host of the podcast The Eastern Border, the Latvian Kristaps’s expertise in Soviet and Russian history and sociology brought him to the forefront of journalists covering the war in Ukraine. He has made several trips to the front and has been a vital part of war documentation. He has published articles on the background of the conflict in publications across the political spectrum and has become a tremendous resource for aspiring journalists.

OLGA KOLODITSKAYA

Olga and her mother managed to escape the crumbling Soviet Union, and although she already possessed degrees in Literature from St. Petersburg State Institute of Culture, she then attended New York Law School. She has worked in both immigration law and as a member of investigating teams under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Olga speaks Russian, Ukrainian, Belorussian, and English fluently and has a working understanding of Spanish, French, and Italian as well. A resident of New York on 9/11, Olga has spent the years since as a dedicated supporter of US Military troops, working in volunteer projects that benefitted deployed military members, military families, and wounded servicemembers.

DR MARKO A HOARE

Associate professor and head of research for the political science department of the Sarajevo School of Science and Technology, Dr. Hoare is the author of several books encompassing the history of the former Yugoslavia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in particular. Dr. Hoare worked as an interpreter for a humanitarian aid convoy into Tuzla in the summer of 1995, and later worked in the International Criminal Court Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, contributing to the drafting of the indictment against Slobodan Milosevic. He is well known in public forums for his inability to suffer fools and independent political thought.

RUSLAN TRAD

A Bulgarian journalist, Ruslan has covered the wars in Syria and Ukraine and specializes in current events in the Islamic and Slavic world, hybrid warfare, and mercenary groups. He has published several books that touch upon each of these subjects. He is also a Resident Fellow for Security Research at the Atlantic Council. Ruslan is a founder of Do Re Militari, which extensively covers conflict analysis and has received several awards for his reporting, including Activist of the Year by the Helsinki Committee in 2014. In truly Slavic fashion, Ruslan quite enjoys cats.

KENAN MUSIĆ

Kenan Music has experience in all aspects of the movie production industry, but he really excels as a director. He prefers to remain a bit mysterious.

RUTHIE ALEKSEYEV

A native Californian, for some reason Ruthie married a Slav and has spent the last thirty years trying to figure out Slavic culture. It has resulted in an extensive backlog of historical research that she is now using in documentaries to bridge the gap between current events and Western understanding of the Slavic world. Formerly a journalist, motivational speaker, and the author of two rather outre fiction novels, Ruthie and her family have lived in Zambia, South Africa, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Her very tenuous grasp of the BCSM language is often supplemented by her twitter feed and the graffiti she sees while attempting to navigate Sarajevo, Split, and Novi Sad. After one terrible incident, Ruthie now understands not to ask anyone in Bosnia for “Burek sa sirom.”

ANITA BARJAKTAREVIĆ

A native Sarajka, Anita’s family originated from Montenegro. She has lived in Bosnia, Montenegro, Serbia, Canada, and Italy. Originally a whiz in the travel industry, Anita has dived headlong into movie production. She handles the permits and legalities of our documentaries, as well as most of the required yelling. Anita recently discovered a love of cats and Biryani.

FINETA TATLIĆ

Originally from Tuzla, Fineta is the heart of From Sarajevo to Red Africa productions. Exemplifying Bosnian hospitality, she is dedicated to making everyone feel welcome, from delivering her homemade ajvar to whipping up home remedies. Originally the head of housekeeping for the company premises, Fineta has expanded her reach to many other roles, including as an actress and voice-over artist as well as location scouting.