Srđan Dragojević threatens legal action in Strasbourg over film funding dispute

Serbian director Srđan Dragojević has announced his intention to take a long-standing legal dispute regarding film funding to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg if necessary. The conflict involves his production company, Delirijum doo, and the Serbian Ministry of Culture and the Film Center of Serbia (FCS).

The dispute stems from a 2021 competition organized by the FCS to fund projects by eminent domestic directors. While a selection commission recommended 30 million dinars for Dragojević’s film ‘Škartovi’, the FCS Board of Directors rejected the proposal.

Following years of legal proceedings, the Ministry of Culture recently concluded that there are no funds available in the 2026 budget for the 2021 competition. In response, lawyers for Dragojević and fellow director Goran Marković have filed new lawsuits against the Ministry, seeking a court order to resolve the outstanding appeals and addressing the status of the previously allocated funds.