The discovery of forgotten wartime footage brings a television journalist back to Lipik, more than 30 years after she covered the destruction and reconstruction of the Children’s Home as a reporter for the Croatian Television. Images from the past come alive once again: the devastated Home, children who had lost the place they called home, British soldiers clearing the rubble, and Dr Marica Topić and Colonel Mark Cook, the two people who promised the children that they would one day return.

To bring the story closer to generations with no personal experience of the war, the filmmakers follow the creation of a theatre production about the destruction and reconstruction of the Children’s Home. The production gradually becomes a meeting place between past and present. Former residents, educators and the Home’s former director attend rehearsals. They watch actors portray their lives, comment on individual scenes, correct details and revisit memories they had suppressed for years. Their reactions reshape both the production and the course of the filmmaker’s investigation.

“I am a journalist who reported during and after the wars in Croatia and the former Yugoslavia, producing a number of television reports, including coverage of the reconstruction of the Children’s Home in Lipik. For years, I lived with stories — some I told, while others I carried within me. I visited many places and met many people, but what I valued most was capturing quiet, deeply human moments of survival. Some stories faded with time, while others never left me. More than 30 years after the war, while carrying out the entirely ordinary task of clearing out my garage, I found that box of Beta tapes. One of them was labeled Lipik Children’s Home. At that moment, I did not find only archival footage. I rediscovered a story I believed I had told long ago”, director Tena Perišin told FNE.

Tena Perišin originated the project and serves as its principal author and co-director. Dr Janet Harris is a former BBC documentary producer and director and a Senior Lecturer at Cardiff University, where she has led the MA in Digital Documentaries. 

The project is produced by Matej Đuzel through Adria Visio (Croatia) in partnership with the Croatian public television (HRT). It is supported so far by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC), but the creators will apply for other grants in 2027.

The total budget is approximately 60,000 EUR.

Principal photography launched in Lipik and Daruvar in April 2026 and, following a brief hiatus, it is set to continue in both locations with final completion projected for 2027. 

Production Information:

Producer:

Adria Visio (Croatia)
Tena Perišin: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Credits:
Directors: Tena Perišin, Janet Harris
Assistant director: Matina Tenžera
Screenwriter: Tena Perišin
Editor: Višnja Skorin