07/01/2026
With deep sadness, we bid farewell to one of the most important film auteurs of our time.
Béla Tarr was a rare and uncompromising artistic force – a filmmaker whose work helped shape contemporary cinema and profoundly influenced generations of young artists across the world. His films continue to stand as uncompromising and startling reflections on time, humanity, and moral responsibility, offering a cinematic language that remains as demanding as it is timeless.
Our bond with Béla remains deeply entrenched in the very identity of the Sarajevo Film Academy. As the creative founder of film.factory, he was instrumental in shaping an innovative doctoral-level program built around practice, experimentation, and artistic freedom. Conceived as an open and progressive educational model, film.factory placed strong emphasis on high practical output, intensive workshops, and the development of each student’s individual artistic direction. As a mentor, he inspired and encouraged young filmmakers from around the world to trust their own voice, to resist shortcuts, and to approach cinema with seriousness and ethical commitment.
A great artist has left us.
But his presence endures – in his films, in the work of generations of film.factory authors who continue to push forward with their own uncompromising vision and stories to be told - and in all of us, who had the privilege of knowing him as a colleague and a friend.
Photos: film.factory archive
Béla Tarr with film.factory students on film set
Gael Garcia Berane, workshop, Spring semester 2015
Béla Tarr in classroom
Tilda Swinton, workshop, Spring semester 2013
Gus Van Sant, workshop, Spring semester 2015
Juliette Binoche, workshop, Spring semester 2015
Béla Tarr in classroom
