The world premiere of the documentary film “Identity”, directed by Slađana Lučić, took place on Monday, 17 August 2026, as part of the 32nd Sarajevo Film Festival and its Dealing with the Past programme. In front of a packed audience, the film brought to the screen a story about one of the most difficult legacies of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina – but, above all, about people who decided that the circumstances of their birth would not determine their future.
Ahead of the premiere screening, the film crew and protagonists walked the Sarajevo Film Festival red carpet, bringing a topic that had remained on the margins of society for decades into the spotlight of one of the region’s most significant cultural events.
“Identity” follows Ajna Jusić, Lejla Damon and Alen Muhić, three young people born as a result of wartime sexual violence, who stepped out of anonymity and transformed their personal stories into a fight against stigma, discrimination and the legal invisibility of children born of war.
Their stories are not told solely through trauma and pain. The film also speaks about love, belonging, humour, mutual support and the people who raised them, protected them and helped them become the individuals they are today – people who are now changing society.
As the film’s director Slađana Lučić emphasised following the screening, this is not only a story about the trauma and discrimination faced by children born of war, but also about love – the love given by those who raised them and helped them become who they are today.
That is precisely where one of the film’s greatest strengths lies. “Identity” does not reduce Ajna, Lejla and Alen to the circumstances of their birth. The audience meets people with their own personalities, relationships, dreams, struggles, humour and an extraordinary ability to turn an experience imposed upon them into a force for change.
Since 2016, the film’s protagonists have spoken publicly about their experiences and identities. Their decision to speak out has gone far beyond personal testimony. For years, they have advocated for institutional recognition, legal protection and dignity for children born as a result of wartime sexual violence, pushing the boundaries of what society is prepared to acknowledge and discuss.
Slađana Lučić describes their journey as “small revolutions that change society.”
And indeed, these small revolutions are at the very heart of “Identity”: the moment when silence becomes a voice, when a personal story becomes a public issue, and when people who spent years being viewed through the lens of stigma become those who change laws, institutions and the way society understands the consequences of war.
As the film also reminds us, the problem faced by children born of war did not begin during the war – it began in peace, through discrimination, silence, prejudice and systems that failed to recognise them for decades.
That is why “Identity” is not a film only about the past.
It is a film about the society we are building today.
About how much space we leave for life stories that do not fit conventional narratives. About our willingness to acknowledge injustice. About people who refuse to remain invisible. And about what can happen when someone decides not to turn their pain into silence, but into a driving force for change.
The premiere screening offered audiences much more than a documentary about one specific legacy of war. It presented a story of dignity, belonging, courage and every person’s right to define their own identity.
For those who were unable to attend the premiere, the second screening of “Identity” will take place on 21 August at 7:00 p.m. at Cineplexx Sarajevo.
Come and witness the story of people who did not wait for society to be ready for change.
They began creating it themselves.
Photo: Almira Mehić
