The projection of the historical documentary film “33 Angels” about the tragic fate of Serbian children who were prisoners of Nazi concentration camps in Norway was held today in the Royal Palace in Belgrade, hosted by TRH Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine.
After the film “Death Camp in Karašjok”, which tells about the suffering of Serbs during the Second World War in the Nazi camps in Norway, the Serbian-Norwegian co-production also made the film “33 Angels” dedicated to preserving the memory and the sad fate of more than two hundred Serbian children who were imprisoned in the Nazi camps in Norway during the Second World War, after having previously passed through the death camps of Jasenovac, Sisak, Stara Gradiška and Staro Sajmište. This emotional film is a poignant testimony of their suffering and the injustice inflicted on them, at the same time giving a voice to the witnesses and descendants who are trying to preserve the memory and the truth about this tragic episode in the history of mankind.
“Remembering the most tragic times in the human past and keeping the memory of the terrible destiny of our countrymen who were imprisoned by the Nazis from oblivion is an obligation that we all have. What makes this almost impossible to imagine, is the fact that these casualties were children. As hard as it is for us to even think about it, to try to understand the times when men became beasts, and to listen to these stories, this is a testimony that needed to be told. Not only needed – it had to be told.
Wise people have said many times that we should remember history, so it does not get repeated. That is why this film is so important, not only for our people and our country but for the future of humanity.”, stated HRH Crown Prince Alexander.
Together with Their Royal Highnesses the film screening was attended by His Grace the Vicar of His Holiness Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia, Bishop Peter of Toplica, Ms. Ivana Cvetkovic, Political and Cultural Affairs Officer of the Swiss Embassy, Mr. Darko Spasic, member of the Crown Council, and other guests.
“33 Angels” is a powerful story about the suffering of children and their legacy, which reminds us of the importance of preserving memories and respecting life. In the film, viewers will have the opportunity to hear the testimonies of inmates who survived the horrors of the death camps in the Independent State of Croatia, as well as the descendants of children who died in Nazi camps during the Second World War in Norway” Branko Dimović Dimeski, the author and producer of the film, pointed out.
The people together with Mr. Dimovic Dimeski responsible for this important story are: Director: Goran Vukčević, director of photography: Dejan Tršić, Co-screenwriters: Milka Kajganić and Branko Dimović Dimeski, Music: Stella Thoresen, Andrej Stojanović, Nikola Mitić, Professional collaborators: PhD Johanes Solberg, Jelena Stojković, Djordje Bojanić – historian, Branislav Gajić and Aleksandar Dinčić – historian.
Over 4,000 prisoners during the Second World War were deported from the Independent State of Croatia, Serbia, and other parts of the occupied Kingdom of Yugoslavia to Norway (95% of which were Serbs, most of them officers and soldiers of the Royal Yugoslav Army) where they were entrapped in Nazi death camps and forced to do slave labour. Of the total number of prisoners in Norway, 2,398 never returned home. The youngest among them was only 11 years old.
