“Don’t Dig in the Graveyard”: The Cultural Representations of the Homeland War in Croatia

Abstract

This article fills the gap on the research of memory of the Croatian War of Independence (1991–1995) in film and theatre and demonstrates that so far the arts have been the main channel of the emancipatory narrative, challenging the mainstream collective memory of a victim and victorious nation and serving as a space of fostering debate on the country’s recent past. The article focuses on the cultural representation of the war in Croatia in the last decade, since Croatian accession to the EU, while paying special attention to the reactions of the wider audience to such works, especially the key mnemonic actors, such as the war veterans and the nationalist politicians. The results show that even though theatre and film offer counter-narratives on the Homeland War and spur and spark the debate, it is yet to be seen if they can lead to a wider discussion in the society.