1973, Jönköping. Lives in Stockholm.

This film is a collaboration made with a group of children from a cultural centre outside Zagreb, Croatia. The direct subject is the children's rehearsal of a song originally written by the black American singer Sidney Barnes in 1968. The song called Magical World, speaks of personal transformation with both pride and melancholy, conflicting emotions that coexist here, as so often in life. This reference to transformation gives a clue to a possible metaphoric reading of the work, filmed as it is in a relatively young country that is trying to conform to European Union demands while establishing its own fragile national identity. Without labouring the point, the film suggests how a young generation tries to deal with these pressures and still find a way to express their own identity and personality through their attempts to grasp the song for themselves and give it meaning. Yet the language is not their own and the struggle with the imposition of international English becomes an added obstacle. As a narrative, the slow process of learning and practising is beautifully captured in the film.

Charles Esche

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