Out of the Woods

Out of the Woods is a black comedy about a particular woman in a particular country. Stojanka (62) lives in a small village in Banat, on the edge of the Deliblato Sands. As with all her compatriots, her circumstances are wretched – a daily struggle to scrape out an existence and an even worse struggle to make sense of such a life. At one point in her past, Stojanka – like the country in which she lives – stood at a crossroads and took the wrong turning. Today, determined not to cry over spilled milk, she has survived, but has been unable to find any happiness. Through the minutiae of daily life which follows one on another, always defying expectations, Stojanka uses every opportunity she can to make clear decisions and follow them through in her own eccentric way. Sometimes she succeeds and sometimes she fails. But through all these events Stojanka realizes that identity is not set in stone: it is a living process and it is never too late to repair what can be repaired. And not only for the benefit of those on whom the world depends but for one’s own personal benefit.