When Father Was Away on Business (Babam İş Gezisinde)

When Father Was Away on Business is a 1985 Yugoslav drama directed by Emir Kusturica from a screenplay he wrote with playwright Abdulah Sidran. Set during the tense Informbiro years that followed Tito's 1948 break with Stalin, the story unfolds through the eyes of young Malik, whose father Meša (Miki Manojlović) is arrested over a remark taken as criticism of the authorities and sent to a labour camp. The family pretends he is simply away working, while Malik witnesses quarrels, loyalties and betrayals whose political roots he will never fully grasp. Starring Moreno De Bartoli, Mirjana Karanović, Mustafa Nadarević and Mira Furlan, the film won the Palme d'Or and the FIPRESCI prize at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It was Kusturica's second feature and brought him international recognition.