The short documentary called Mosaic (Mozaik) is a story of an elderly woman (who happens to be the director's grandmother), her daily routine and her relationship with her progeny. The movie is completely made by Stefan Krasic, a young and ambitious director from Serbia, who wanted to make a tribute to his family - especially to his grandma (and all the grandmothers in the world).
Although a documentary, the film can be classified also as a family drama due to the fact that there is neither commentary nor interviews - everything is based on granny Gordana's daily routine and her casual chit-chats with her friends, sons and grandchildren. However, the beauty of the film happens to be exactly at those pieces of conversation that capture the essence of life that old widowed women lead - however filled with joy of youth that fills in her apartment every day, there is an ever-present tiny yet significant glimpse of melancholy that is inscribed in every wrinkle of her eight-decade- old face. Stefan did not hesitate to express that through the close-ups of her looking through the window into the distance or just doing ordinary house chores.
One more thing that adds to the whole atmosphere is music composed by Stefan Sretic, also a young and talented musician and composer.
There is, on the other hand, one thing that can distract you from the magic of the film back to the harsh reality and that is the artificiality with which Stefan, as an actor, starts and progresses conversations in the movie. For the sake of keeping the grandma talk, Stefan and sometimes the rest of the family ask her questions and add insignificant one-liners. However, they managed in their intentions and I believe that they can be forgiven since none of them are actors.
To sum up, the movie made me call both of my grandmothers and thank them for being a part of my life (they are both alive and well at the moment of writing this). This was the purpose of the movie - to make us reconsider the view of our grandparents and family in general and the role that they either still play or once played in our lives. The family is just a mosaic with each family member adding to it and creating a unique masterpiece.
