{"id":9041,"date":"2021-04-21T11:30:41","date_gmt":"2021-04-21T11:30:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/?p=9041"},"modified":"2026-02-03T04:05:54","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T04:05:54","slug":"everyone-has-something-they-just-keep-to-themselves-and-its-important-to-crack-that-in-the-character-dora-sustic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/?p=9041","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Everyone has something they just keep to themselves, and it&#8217;s important to crack that in the character&#8230;!&#8221; -Dora \u0160usti\u0107"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Exclusive interview with  Dora \u0160usti\u0107 &#8211; Film Director &amp; Writer from Croatia<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Dora \u0160usti\u0107 is a writer and film director, born in 1991 in Croatia, where she currently lives. She graduated BA in Political Sciences from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and MA in Screenwriting from the Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. During her film studies she wrote and directed four short feature films, which were screened and awarded internationally. Her first film, <em>Ladies<\/em> (2015), was shot over two nights in a public toilet of a Prague metro station and is based on improvisation with non-actors. Her second film, <em>Majda&#8217;s Poses<\/em> (2017), was successfully crowdfunded and screened at the New York International Film Festival, and her most recent films, <em>Blooming<\/em> (2018) and <em>Persephone<\/em> (2018), both coming-of-age stories dealing with female puberty, have screened at numerous short film festivals and festivals for teens and children. <em>Persephone<\/em> won the New York Cinematographers&#8217; Award and the Best Student Film Award at Moscow Shorts. Dora currently works as a freelance screenwriter and script editor on film and TV projects and teaches film studies at Prague Film Institute. Her drama series <em>Afterparty<\/em>, currently in development and produced by Croatian production company Antitalent, was awarded Best Project by HBO Europe as part of the Midpoint TV Launch development program and later pitched on Berlinale Co-Production Series Market. In addition to films, Dora also writes prose and is working on completing her first novel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9043\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-80x60.jpg 80w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-265x198.jpg 265w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-696x522.jpg 696w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-1068x801.jpg 1068w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-560x420.jpg 560w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Michaela-Kyselova-BTS-Persephone-July-2018-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Photo credit Michaela Kyselova, BTS Persephone July 2018<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: What projects are you currently working on?<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I currently have several projects in development waiting for funding.\nTogether with the Croatian production company Antitalent, I am developing a\nshort feature film <em>Bananafishes<\/em>, which tells a story about the\nrelationship between a grandfather suffering from Alzheimer&#8217;s disease and his\nyoung grandson. We are also working together on a drama TV series <em>Afterparty<\/em>,\nwhich follows four girls, best friends, as they explore sex, parties, work and\nactivism while living in a patriarchal, conservative environment of\ncontemporary Zagreb. The series is currently my passion project, as it is\nmostly inspired by my own girlfriends. I also collaborate as a writer with\nseveral Croatian and Slovenian directors on feature film projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: What makes a film great for you? Are there certain qualities that make a film better for you?<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;m moved by great performances and carefully crafted stories. Sure it\nhelps if a film is visually stunning, but I&#8217;m really all about faces and dialogue.\nI love character-driven films where the dialogue sounds like real people are\ntalking; gritty, dirty, emotionally over the top, with neurotic and passionate\ncharacters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: As a screenwriter, what is the most important aspect of building a character for you? <\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I think it is necessary for a character to have a secret. A hidden wound\nthat moves him or her. Everyone has something they just keep to themselves, and\nit&#8217;s important to crack that in the character because that&#8217;s what makes them do\nor not do something. I think good stories are built around those secret inner\nlives. And around contrast. People are a walking paradox, full of\ncontradictions. The more confusing (and confused) they are, the more real they\nfeel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: Top 3 favorite projects you&#8217;ve been involved in?<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I can&#8217;t really pick three because I fall in love with most of the\nprojects I work on. I can easily become obsessed with a project. But my\nfavorite one might be my first film, <em>Ladies<\/em>, which was shot in 2015. It\nwas made on almost no budget, the shooting was very wild (and a little\ndangerous), and it was about a real person, a fascinating, wise woman who works\nas a cleaner in a public restroom. I&#8217;m very grateful to the friends who worked\nwith me on the film; it&#8217;s technically very messy, but it has a big heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: Do you express yourself creatively in other ways?<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I love working with actors, that&#8217;s my favorite part of making movies.\nBut other than writing, I don&#8217;t really do anything else. I keep a journal,\nread, and do yoga. I\u2019ve completed a doula training and am very interested in helping\nwomen give birth, but haven\u2019t started the practice yet. Soon though! I would also\nlove to learn how to dance flamenco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: What advice would you give to someone pursuing a career in filmmaking?<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Learn how to deal with stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: What can we expect from you in 2021?<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I hope to finish my novel this year and get money from the National Film\nFund to continue developing some film projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>NY Glam: Where can everyone keep up with you to learn more? \u2026social media\u2026website<\/strong><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>My short films are all online and accessible on Vimeo (<a href=\"https:\/\/vimeo.com\/dorasustic\">https:\/\/vimeo.com\/dorasustic<\/a>). Also, Instagram and Facebook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-9044\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-80x60.jpg 80w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-265x198.jpg 265w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-696x522.jpg 696w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-1068x801.jpg 1068w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-560x420.jpg 560w, https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/photo-credit-Filip-Kunovski-_-BTS-Blooming-April-2018-1920x1440.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Photo credit: Filip Kunovski _ BTS Blooming, April 2018<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exclusive interview with Dora \u0160usti\u0107 &#8211; Film Director &amp; Writer from Croatia Dora \u0160usti\u0107 is a writer and film director, born in 1991 in Croatia, where she currently lives. She graduated BA in Political Sciences from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and MA in Screenwriting from the Film and TV School of the Academy of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9042,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,68],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-film","category-literature"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9041"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9041\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19192,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9041\/revisions\/19192"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/9042"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nyglamour.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}