directed by Žiga Virc, Docu-fiction, 88 min, eng subtitles
written by Žiga Virc, Boštjan Virc
The cold war, the space race, and NASA’s moon landing are iconic events that defined an era.
In Houston, We Have a Problem! Director Žiga Virc explores the myth of a secret multi-billion-dollar deal involving America’s purchase of Yugoslavia’s space programme in the early 1960s. This masterfully crafted feature-length docu-fiction is an intriguing blend of reality and fiction. In between the blurred lines of reality and fiction, Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek asks the billion-dollar question: ‘What is truth?’ After WW2, Yugoslav intelligence reveals the existence of long-lost space technology plans to their strongman Josip Brož Tito. Trapped between the east and the west, President Tito decides to exploit this opportunity by secretly developing an ambitious space programme. In March 1961, the programme is sold to the U.S. Two months later, President John F. Kennedy announces that the first American will be sent to the Moon. As facts, rumours and fiction intertwine, the final decades of Yugoslav history are laid out in a way that dares the audience to take a critical view of what they see and hear on the big screen. Myth or reality? It's up to you to decide.
Awards:
Slovenian FF Portorož 2016 (Best Film)