Austrian Carinthia, 1942. Mila and her brother Hanzi join the armed partisan resistance against the Nazis. Hanzi has previously been drafted into the Nazi army, but after being granted a brief leave home due to an injury, he refuses to rejoin the occupying forces. Twenty-year-old Mila soon takes command of the partisans, making decisions that could mean life or death. When the surviving members of the family return home after the war, Mila once again finds herself facing a choice between resistance and conformity.
“With Mila/Marija, I want to make the first feature-length film dedicated to the history of the Slovenian national community and the Carinthian partisans’ resistance against Nazism. It is also a personally significant project, as the story of the Carinthian Slovenians and the anti-fascist resistance is part of my family history. I want to direct films with a clear standpoint that raise important questions while remaining emotionally powerful, formally consistent and courageous.” (Andrina Mračnikar)
Andrina Mračnikar
Born in 1981 in Hallein, Austria, she studied art history in Vienna and film directing at the Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television in Ljubljana and the Film Academy in Vienna, where she completed her studies in directing under Michael Haneke and in screenwriting and dramaturgy under Walter Wippersberg in 2010. A significant part of her work is dedicated to the history and future of the Slovenian national community in Austrian Carinthia.