Part 2 of my conversation with filmmaker and photographer Harun Mehmedinović, we move beyond survival and into responsibility. This episode focuses on memory, truth and what is asked of us once we know what has happened.

Harun and I speak about the ongoing impact of genocide denial, the erasure of historical sites in Bosnia, and why language matters when telling the truth about violence. We explore how denial becomes an extension of the crime itself and why remembering is not passive, but an active moral responsibility.

We also talk about Harun’s upcoming documentary The Acts of Reburial, why this project must be made now, and what it means to return to places that others are trying to erase. Harun shares what he sees happening inside Bosnia today, what he observes in the diaspora, and why silence and softened language are so dangerous.

This conversation also opens into questions of forgiveness, activism, creativity and the role of the artist as a witness. We discuss how people living far from Bosnia can still be meaningfully involved, how memory lives in the body and the culture, and what future generations deserve to inherit from us.

This episode is about truth, accountability and the cost of looking away.

What memory demands once survival is no longer the question

Genocide denial and the erasure of historical sites

Why language matters when naming violence

The responsibility of witnessing and documenting truth

Harun’s upcoming film The Acts of Reburial

How denial retraumatizes survivors and communities

The role of the artist as an activist

Forgiveness, justice and personal boundaries

What is happening inside Bosnia today

What Harun sees within the diaspora

How people outside the region can take meaningful action

What future generations deserve to inherit

Harun Mehmedinović is a Bosnian filmmaker, photographer and survivor of the Siege of Sarajevo. His work has appeared in National Geographic, TIME and BBC, and he has collaborated with artists including The Rolling Stones, Roger Waters, Paul Simon and John Mayer. He is the creator of the SKYGLOW project and the director of the upcoming documentary The Acts of Reburial. Harun is also the co-producer and cinematographer of Leonardo DiCaprio’s Ice on Fire.

Website and portfolio

https://www.bloodhoney.com

SKYGLOW project

https://www.bloodhoney.com/skyglow-project

The Acts of Reburial

https://theactsofreburial.com

IMDb

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1175698

Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harun_Mehmedinović

I’m Ivana Alfonso, host of the Balkan Sis Podcast, where I hold space for conversations about identity, culture, memory, creativity and the lived experiences of the Balkan diaspora. Through this podcast, I explore what it means to honour where we come from while living fully and truthfully in the present.

Podcast

Balkan Sis Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and all major platforms

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/balkansispodcast

My Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/ivanastrbacalfonso