The second edition of Slano Film Days, a unique event format that connects emerging regional filmmakers with major global film figures, will take place from June 17 to 21. Following the Sarajevo Film Festival, Mirsad Purivatra is presenting a new concept in Slano, focused on the creative process of film as art, rather than its commercial value. The strong turnout of internationally renowned filmmakers already signals that Slano is becoming a key meeting place for filmmakers and film lovers.

While last year’s edition focused on directors, this year’s Slano Film Days has expanded to include actors as lecturers. Among those sharing their experience with regional talent will be the legendary Steve Buscemi, whose contribution to cinema is immeasurable, and the outstanding Daniel Brühl, known for captivating audiences and critics alike with his acting virtuosity.

Steve Buscemi, the king of indie film, is an award-winning actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. With his distinctive look and unmatched screen presence, Buscemi built his career in independent films and became an icon of the New York scene, always staying true to his art. His credits include Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, and The Big Lebowski. On TV, he starred in Boardwalk Empire, Miracle Workers, and The Sopranos, and appeared in 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. As a director, his work includes Lonesome Jim and Interview, as well as episodes of The Sopranos, 30 Rock, Nurse Jackie, and Portlandia. His latest directorial project, The Listener starring Tessa Thompson, premiered at the 2022 Venice Film Festival and later at Tribeca. He recently joined the cast of Netflix’s hit show Wednesday and is now working with Searchlight Pictures on the film Wild Horse Nine, directed by Martin McDonagh.

Daniel Brühl, the award-winning German-Spanish actor, producer, and director, rose to international fame in Wolfgang Becker’s film Good Bye, Lenin!, followed by roles in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds and Ron Howard’s Rush, which earned him a Golden Globe nomination in 2014. His production company, Amusement Park, produced All Quiet on the Western Front, which won four Oscars, seven BAFTAs, and nine Lola Awards. Brühl also produced and directed Next Door, and produced and starred in Julie Delpy’s My Zoe. He is currently acting alongside Kirsten Dunst in Ruben Östlund’s upcoming film The Entertainment System Is Down.

The festival in Slano will feature the latest film starring Steve Buscemi – Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer – which won the Audience Award at Tribeca. The film’s director Tolga Karaçelik will also attend. Daniel Brühl’s breakout film Good Bye, Lenin! will be screened in honour of the late director Wolfgang Becker.

The final list of Slano Film Days 2025 participants includes 14 selected film artists who will take part in workshops in acting, directing, or cinematography. Acting workshops will be attended by Iva Babić (Croatia), Yllka Gashi (Kosovo), Marko Grabež (Serbia), Maja Izetbegović (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Klara Kuk (Slovenia), and Mišo Obradović (Montenegro). Directing workshops will include Gregor Božić (Slovenia), Jelena Gavrilović (Serbia), Samir Karahoda (Kosovo), Ivan Marinović (Montenegro), and Nebojša Slijepčević (Croatia). Cinematography participants are Jana Anđić (Serbia), Milena Bečanović (Montenegro), and Magdalena Ptiček (Croatia).

During the five-day festival, all participants will gain valuable personal and professional insights, while open conversations about the creative film process with renowned international guests will strengthen the regional film community as a whole. The full list of guest lecturers and other notable film professionals will be published in mid-May 2025.

Participation by regional film professionals and students has been made possible through partnerships with Slano Film Days by: the Croatian Audiovisual Centre, the Film Center Serbia, the Montenegro Film Center, and the Slovenian Film Centre. 

INA Group reported a net profit of €35.4 million in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 197% increase compared to the same period last year. Net sales revenue rose 14% to €916.3 million, while clean CCS EBITDA excluding special items reached €88 million, up 38%. Capital investments totaled €33 million, slightly lower due to reduced spending in Refining and Marketing.

The Rijeka Oil Refinery Upgrade Project is now 94% complete, with full mechanical completion expected by the end of 2025. Net debt stood at €596 million, with a debt-to-equity ratio of 27%.

CEO Zsuzsanna Ortutay highlighted stable performance in oil and gas exploration, driven by higher gas prices and focused investments in Croatia to offset natural production decline. A new commercial gas discovery was reported at the Obradovci-5 well in the Drava-03 block. Geothermal drilling has also begun, marking a key step in INA’s shift toward renewable energy.

Despite external margin pressures, INA ensured secure winter fuel supply through continuous refinery operations. With the summer tourist season approaching, the company is preparing to meet significantly increased fuel demand across its retail network.

Ortutay concluded that INA remains strong both operationally and financially, and ready to face future challenges despite global economic and energy market uncertainties.

Pegasus Airlines will increase flights between Istanbul’s Sabiha Gökçen Airport and Zagreb starting this June. From June 2, the airline will add a fourth weekly service, with flights now operating on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays, reports EX-YU Aviation.

The Turkish low-cost carrier, which launched its Zagreb route in January 2024, has already seen promising results, carrying 38,535 passengers between Istanbul and the Croatian capital in its first year of operations. The additional frequency reflects growing demand for affordable and flexible travel options between Turkey and Croatia.

Founded in 1990, Pegasus Airlines is one of Turkey’s leading low-cost carriers, known for its extensive network across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The airline operates out of its main hub at Sabiha Gökçen Airport on the Asian side of Istanbul and offers connections to over 120 destinations in more than 50 countries.

By expanding its Zagreb service, Pegasus continues to strengthen its European network, providing travelers with greater convenience and competitive fares.

Deputy Mayor of Dubrovnik, Jelka Tepšić, and her associates today welcomed a delegation from Dubrovnik’s sister city, Monterey, on the occasion of the ninth Du Motion – Runners’ Days Dubrovnik sports and tourism event, held on April 26 and 27.

Laurie Huelga from the City of Monterey introduced the members of the delegation, which included the winners of this year’s Big Sur International Marathon — a marathon held in Monterey for nearly 40 years — as well as its organizers. She conveyed greetings from Monterey’s Mayor Tyler Williamson and thanked the hosts for their hospitality, expressing her delight that they actively participate in the Du Motion half marathon every year.

The meeting also covered the latest collaborative project between the two cities — the Dubrovnik Jazz Outbreak Festival, which will take place in November at the Lazareti complex. Last year, a memorandum of cooperation between the jazz festivals of Monterey and Dubrovnik was signed in Monterey, opening the door to musician exchanges and the creation of new initiatives in the fields of art and culture.

Dubrovnik and Monterey formalized their partnership in 2007 by signing a charter, but their friendship has been thriving for 20 years through various projects, including the Dubrovnik Half Marathon and the Dubrovnik Jazz Outbreak Festival, as well as through organizing student and school exchange programs.

In the first quarter of this year, employers were most in search of sales assistants, waiters, warehouse workers, and cooks, according to data from the MojPosao portal.

More than half of the job ads published in the first quarter on the portal were for positions in Zagreb, and the most sought-after workers in Croatia were sales assistants, waiters, warehouse workers, and cooks, according to an analysis by Alma Career Croatia, the company managing MojPosao.

The analysis shows that at the beginning of 2025, nearly 18,000 job ads were posted on MojPosao. Compared to last year, this is a decrease of about a thousand ads.

More than half a million applications from interested candidates were submitted for these job ads.

A significant increase in the number of job ads was noted in certain sectors, particularly in education and science (+57%), healthcare and social work (+34%), and security and protection (+10%).

The rise in job ads in the field of security and protection is largely a result of increased demand for security personnel in schools.

On the other hand, there has been a noticeable decline in demand for workers in design and the arts (-34%), production and craft services (-17%), and agriculture, forestry, and fishing (-16%).

A drop in the number of published job ads was also recorded in marketing, PR and media (-14%), tourism and hospitality (-12%), and installation, maintenance, and repair (-11%).

In sales, demand for workers fell by six percent.

Most ads relate to Zagreb

Just over half of all published job ads (52%), as in previous years, related to employment in Zagreb and the Zagreb County. Following that were the coastal counties, with Split-Dalmatia County accounting for 15%, Primorje-Gorski Kotar County for 13%, and Istria County for 10% of job ads.

Additionally, 2.1% of the ads related to job opportunities abroad.

At the beginning of 2025, ads for permanent employment still made up the majority of job ads on MojPosao — just like last year, they accounted for 79%.

Meanwhile, 42% of ads offered fixed-term positions, while 7% were focused on seasonal workers.

Only 2% of ads offered student jobs.

In most ads, employers listed a secondary education diploma as a key requirement for a successful application, with 54% of the ads specifying that secondary education was necessary for the position.

On Tuesday, a communication board was installed in the children's park in Mlini for children and adults with communication, language, and/or speech difficulties, the first of its kind in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County.

The Head of the Borough, Silvio Nardelli, hosted speech therapists Nikolina Klešković and Kristina Milolaža, who, as members of the Croatian Speech-Language Therapy Society, initiated and realized this project with financial support from the Municipality. He thanked them for their commendable initiative, which has made the Municipality better and more accessible to children and people with difficulties.

The communication board is intended for children and adults who cannot communicate through speech and/or have difficulties understanding language (such as individuals with autism spectrum disorders, intellectual disabilities, speech-motor disorders, genetic syndromes, etc.).

The board in Mlini is bilingual, in Croatian and English, which allows communication with foreign visitors as well.

Andrej Plenković, the Croatian Prime Minister, will soon be traveling to the USA as one of the recipients of the Atlantic Council’s Distinguished Leadership Award, often referred to as the Washington Oscars. He will be accompanied by representatives of major Croatian companies.

"According to my information, this has nothing to do with tariffs. The Prime Minister is coming to receive a prestigious award and will quickly return home. We'll see what happens with the people who are coming with him," said Ivica Puljić, Al Jazeera’s correspondent from Washington, in the Dnevnik news program on Nova TV.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Ivan Anušić said on Sunday that NATO member states would continue monitoring Croatian airspace until the end of this year, or at the latest the beginning of next year, by which time Croatia’s ‘Rafale’ aircraft will be fully equipped and the pilots fully trained.

After the presentation of the election program of HDZ’s candidate for Mayor of Osijek, Ivan Radić, Anušić was asked by reporters when Croatia’s newly acquired ‘Rafale’ aircraft would begin guarding Croatian skies. He responded that "all 12 'Rafale' aircraft have arrived and the entire squadron is ready."

He added that Croatian skies are still currently being protected, but that "air-policing" duties would continue to be carried out by allied NATO countries until the end of this year, or early next year at the latest, when Croatia’s 'Rafale' jets would be fully operational and pilots properly trained for their missions — most importantly, the protection of Croatian airspace.