As part of the global campaign for prestigious international film awards, the producers of the short film The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent hired us to take over the campaign's digital component. Over five months, we led the film's international promotion and communication on its official social media channels and website, during an awards season that included the Oscars, the European Film Awards and the César Awards.
CLIENT: Antitalent, Production Company (Zagreb, Croatia) • Oct 2024 – Mar 2025
Nebojša Slijepčević’s short fiction film The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent is based on a true event from the war in Yugoslavia, when Tomo Buzov, a retired officer of the Yugoslav People’s Army, stood up to paramilitary forces during the abduction of civilians from a passenger train in Štrpci in 1993.
The film had its world premiere in May 2024 at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Short Film Palme d’Or. This major honour, as well as a series of others at renowned festivals around the world, paved the film’s path to the most prestigious international film awards.
In late October, the film’s producers brought us on board to set up and manage the digital side of its global awards campaign on social media and the website. The awards season and campaign lasted until early March and covered three award cycles – the Oscar from the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the European Film Award from the European Film Academy, and the César from the French Academy of Cinema Arts and Techniques.
We launched the film’s official social media accounts, Facebook and Instagram, where we led the film’s promotion and communication with international and professional film audiences. Our approach was shaped by an awareness of the different cultural frameworks of those audiences and of the specific nature of film communities within multiple awards processes. At the core of our communication was the film itself – its artistic value, its historical and social context, and above all its human dimension.
Our work on social media covered all organic and paid content, as well as the management of advertising campaigns during the selection processes for the three awards, along with ongoing community management.
In parallel, we built and managed the film’s official website for international film audiences. Throughout the awards season, it provided key and up-to-date information and news, and enabled easy access to the film and to press materials. Additionally, we created digital and print ads for global film publications (such as Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and others) as part of the broader media campaign.
Katarina Prpić, Producer, Antitalent:
― Tina and Sonja joined us midway through the Oscar, EFA, and César awards campaign for the short film The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent. In record time, they got up to speed and, while considering the unique demands of short film campaigning, they led and executed the online campaign across social media and the website.
They independently handled the writing, production, and distribution of campaign materials.
They have a strong sense of cinematic language and create information and commentary with great respect.
Working with them was an absolute pleasure, and their contribution to the campaign was substantial. I believe major film projects lie ahead of them, and we can’t wait to work together again.
The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent concluded the awards season winning both the European Film Award and the César Award and earning an Academy Award nomination, the first for a Croatian film since Croatia’s independence.
In December 2024, it won the European Film Award, European Short Film – Prix Vimeo, and that same month the American Academy shortlisted it as one of 15 candidates for the Oscar in the Live Action Short Film category. On January 23, it earned an Oscar nomination as one of the final five nominees, and in February 2025 it went on to win the César Award for Best Fiction Short from the French Academy.
