Departments

Management and Production Department

About the Department

The Department for Management and Production in Theatre, Radio and Culture was founded back in 1961 when it was called Department for Organization of Stage and Artistic Activities. Today, it covers wider areas of management of arts, culture, media, and creative industries. The study program, positioned in the field of social sciences and humanities, has all levels of study – undergraduate, Master and Ph.D. (since 2007), making this department unique in the region and among few in the world. The department educates the most prominent and ambitious professionals in the culture of Serbia and wider region, devoted to preserving and development of artistic and media freedom and creativity, cultural heritage, inventiveness, critical thinking, professional and international cooperation, creative economics, and improvement of society as a whole. Since its foundation, approximately 1,000 students have obtained formal education in producing and management in theater, radio and culture. They hold leading positions in the culture and media as leaders, managers and authors of projects, shows, plays, as well as scientists, researchers and decision-makers, making them significant factors in the public life of Serbia and the world.

 

 

Study program

Undergraduate studies of Management and Production in Theater, Radio and Culture, provide students with knowledge on theater, cultural and media systems, and enable them to master the skills in the field of management and production in these areas. Through the classes, work on projects, workshops, professional practice, practical and research work, panels, study visits to significant and the most successful institutions in the culture and media in Serbia and study trips in the country and abroad, the students are trained for active participation in organizing and leading artistic productions, institutions of culture, media and other artistic organizations, and the positions of leaders in the future cultural development of the country. The students acquire a wide range of knowledges and skills: from conceptual, creative and critical thinking, project management in culture and media institutions, understanding of various key terms in modern cultural politics, from the development of audience, PR, marketing, copywriting, financial operations, copyrights, to the theory of culture and esthetics, psychology, drama history, music, and film. During the undergraduate studies, the most significant practical work is realization of the Festival of International Students’ Theater, managing FLUKS radio, designing and leading individual projects in the culture, and internship (the Ministry of Culture, the National Theatre, public city theaters and other cultural institutions, Radio Belgrade, festivals FEST, BELEF, BITEF, and organizations of civil society and private sector).

Master studies in Management in the Culture and Media enable students to acquire theoretical and research knowledge and master managerial skills on a higher, strategic level needed for successful leading of projects and institutions of culture and media - theaters, festivals, cultural centers, radio and television stations, marketing agencies. The program introduces students to the hottest topics in the culture and media and encourages the development of individual capabilities of students (analytical and critical thinking, modelling ability, conceptualization, etc.), especially those necessary for the development of current media and cultural system.

Ph.D. studies provide top students with a platform for interdisciplinary scientific and theoretical examinations of culture and media and development of scientific field of management in the culture and media.

 

 

Teachers and Associates

The Department for Management and Production in Theatre, Radio, and Culture employs Full Professors: Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D., Nikola Maričić, Ph.D., Vesna Đukić, Ph.D., Dragana Čolić Biljanovski, Ph.D., Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D.; Associate Professors: Ana Martinoli, Ph.D. and Maja Ristić, Ph.D.; Assitant Professors Nina Mihaljinac, Ph.D.; Teaching Assistants Milica Ilčić, M.A. and Jovana Karaulić, Senior Scientific Associate Ljiljana Rogač Mijatović, Ph.D. and Research Intern Tatjana Nikolić, Department Secretary.

The teachers and associates of the Department also teach other study programs of the Faculty of Dramatic Arts and the University of Arts, and the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade, Academy of Arts in Banja Luka, Faculty of Dramatic Arts in Cetinje - Montenegro, Interuniversity Centre in Dubrovnik, universities in Riga, Vilnius, Lyon, Dijon, Grenoble, New York, program of European Degree in Cultural Management in Brussels.

The department teachers contribute greatly to the work of the Faculty and the University of Arts by performing the following functions: Rector (Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D., two terms), Vice-Rector (Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D.), FDA Vice-Dean (Nikola Maričić, Ph.D., and Ana Martinoli, Ph.D.), FDA institute Director (Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D. and Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D.), Chairperson of the FDA Council (Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D., Nikola Maričić, Ph.D. two terms), Editor of the FDA Collected Papers (Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D. and Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D.), Chairperson of the Scientific Council (Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D.).

When it comes to professional work, some of the most significant engagements should be mentioned: Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D., is an international expert for cultural politics and management of UNESCO and the Head of UNESCO Department for Cultural Politics and Management in culture within the University of Arts in Belgrade, member of the National Commission for UNESCO; Dragana Čolić Biljanovski, Ph.D., a long time selector of the theatre festival Nušić Days in Smederevo and a member of the Matica Srpska; Vesna Đukić, Ph.D., is a member of the Commission for Accreditation and Quality Assurance of University Institutions NAT, while she was also a member of the National Educational Council and Director of the Centre for Studies in Cultural Development; Ana Martinoli, Ph.D., was employed as a producer and Program Director of Radio B92 and a consultant in projects in the area of media literacy under the patronage of IREX, EU Delegation in Serbia, the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia; Maja Ristić, Ph.D., was a regular associate for the Culture addition in daily newspaper Politika; Nina Mihaljinac, Ph.D. is engaged with the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia as a project manager of the Creative Europe Serbia Desk and represents the Faculty and the Department within European network for cultural politics and management ENCATC; Milica Ilčić, M.A. is engaged as a consultant in the Right Agency where she develops and applies PR strategies of local and international companies and is a longtime chairperson of the UG ZEN art; Jovana Karaulić, M.A. was a producer of numerous projects in the field of culture and art, some of them being: opening ceremony of Universiade in Belgrade, EXPO in Shangai, films ‘Zlogonje’ and ‘Returning home - Marina Abramović’; Ljiljana Rogač Mijatović, Ph.D., is a member of the Scientific Council of the Science Fund.

Teachers and associates were awarded for their professional and scientific work: Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D., is a winner of the Silver Plaque of the University of Arts and the Great Plaque of the University of Arts; Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D. is awarded by the medal Academic Palm Tree - Commander, the highest rank, awarded by the Republic of France, and the Golden Plaque of the University of Arts in 2004; in 2004, Nikola Maričić, Ph.D., Milena Dragićević Šešić, Ph.D. and Mirjana Nikolić, Ph.D. were awarded by the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Republic of Serbia for participation in the science and research project; Jovana Karaulić received the City of Belgrade Award in 2009; Tatjana Nikolić received a special acknowledgement from Jelena Šantić Foundation for affirmation of young professionals in culture, arts and creative industries in 2018.

 

 

Scientific and Research Work

Department teachers actively create and participate in the scientific work in Serbia and internationally. This is confirmed by participations in international projects, such as: COST IS 1007 Investigating Cultural Sustainability; COST IS1203 In Search of Transcultural Memory in Europe; COST IS 1307 New Materialism: Networking European Scholarship on 'How Matter Comes to Matter'; COST IS 1308 Populist Political Communication in Europe; and CA16213 - New Exploratory Phase in Research on East European Cultures of Dissent; CA18126 - Writing Urban Places. New Narratives of the European City.

The Department has organized dozens of international scientific conferences with a large number of prominent international experts in the field of culture, arts and media, such as: ‘Culture and Sustainable Development during Crisis’ (2014), ‘Cultural Diplomacy: Arts, Festivals and Geopolitics’ (2017), ‘Media, Democracy, Populism’ (2017), ‘Theater between the Politics and Politicality’ (2018).

In 2018, the teachers and Ph.D. students, together with the Centre for Studies in Cultural Development created and implemented the research ‘Models of Local Cultural Politics as a Basis for Increase in Cultural Participation’, the results of which are used in the cultural politics classes in undergraduate and M.A. studies and for preparing of Ph.D. theses during Ph.D. studies. 

Books and scientific papers written by the teachers and associates were published by the most reputable international publishers, such as Sage, Palgrave Macmillan, Routledge, Wiley-Blackwell, European Cultural Foundation.

 

 

Students’ Activities

The Department for Management and Production in Theater, Radio, and Culture is particularly proud of the Festival of International Student Theater, initiated and independently organized by its students for 14 years now, with the aim to exchange knowledge, experience and to present new tendencies of young professionals in the field of theater and performing arts in the world. Up to now, FIST has hosted plays from Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Brazil, Russia, Austria, Poland, Bulgaria, etc. Each year, the festival gathers approximately 200 participants and over 3,000 visitors. FIST LAB, educational artistic center, doing artistic research by observing current tendencies in the modern theater practice, presents an innovative program unit. Students from this Department also started a project FISTIĆ INKUBATOR - a platform for the exchange of ideas, experiences and knowledge in the field of theater for children and the young, by connecting professionals and students not only in the country and the wider region, but also from entire Europe.

The students also independently implement the student’s online audio project FLUX. Within this unique Internet radio station, they demonstrate their talents, knowledge and skills as producers, journalists, editors, and radio program authors. For almost a decade now, FLUKS radio has hosted the most relevant local and regional authors, theorists and practitioners in the area of media, artistic and cultural production. By promoting new, progressive program content and forms, and focusing on authentic combination of informative, educational and entertaining functions of the program, FLUKS radio responds to the needs of millennial audience by promoting media potentials in the digital environment.

Within the practical lessons of the course Management in the Culture, the students of the first year get to independently design and implement, supported by their teachers, various initiatives and intervention projects: research, campaigns, cultural actions, concerts, exhibits and different artistic events, mostly in cooperation with students of other FDA Departments, other artistic faculties and numerous artistic and cultural groups in the city and the country.

The students were active in many theaters as interns (Belgrade Drama Theatre, Yugoslav Drama Theatre, Atelier 212, Duško Radović Theatre, and many others), cultural organizations, manifestations and projects (the Ministry of Culture, Desk Creative Europe of Serbia, FEST, BELEF, BITEF, BEMUS, Beldoks FSF, Cultural Centre of Belgrade, Kolarac, CC Grad, Nova iskra, etc.) and within particular stage events (opening of the National Museum in Belgrade, 200th anniversary of the First Serbian Uprising in Sava Centrer, St Sava Academy in SCC in 2005, organizing Universiade opening and closing ceremony in Belgrade in 2009). They also participate in the production of radio programs and presentations of students’ radio shows in prestigious radio festivals (Radio Days, Ohrid and Brezovica, FEDOR - Festival of Documentary Radiophony), while in recent years they participate in the competition of Radio Belgrade for Neda Depolo Award, awarded for student radiophony achievements. Department students were awarded in 2017 and 2018.

The Department regularly organize group and individual study trips in the country and abroad. Only in the last several years, the students participated in the meeting of BalkanExpress network - sub-network within IETM (Informal European Theatre Meeting) from Brussels (Belgium); at ENCATC conferences, European network of centers for education of managers in culture (Poland, Czech Republic); the annual international theater festival ‘4+4’ in Prague (Czech Republic); international summer schools organized by the University of Arts: Belgrade, Pančevo, Mokra Gora, Pirot, Negotin, Sremski Karlovci, Senjski Rudnici.

Within the panels and thematic seminars organized by the Department on a regular basis as additional educational content, the students were presented numerous prominent theater and radio theorists and practitioners, managers in the cultural institutions, theaters and media in the country and world wide, who discussed with students hot topics from their area of expertise.

In 2006, the Department for Management and Production in Theatre, Radio, and Culture started an ‘Arhont’ award, given every year to a student or a student team of producers for successful conceptualization and implementation of innovative projects in the field of management and production in theater, radio, and culture. The team which produced FIST (Festival of International Student Theatre) was the first to receive this award: Nenad Meršnik, Jovana Popović, and Marko Radenković.

Some of the graduates are: Gordana Janković, Director of Media program OSI (London) and current Head of OSCE in Belgrade; Jasna Dimitrijević, Director of Ilija M. Kolarac Endowment; Vladan Cerović, Director of Timočka Krajina Theatre in Zaječar; Aleksandra Ilić, COO of the Yugoslav Drama Theatre; Maša Mihailović, former Director of the Belgrade Drama Theatre and currently COO of Atelier 212; Jasmina Zotović, Executive Director of the National Theatre in Belgrade; mr Janko Ljumović, Minister of Culture of Montenegro; Marko Radenković, founder of the creative hub ‘Nova iskra’; Virdžinija Đeković, Member of the Management Board of the Independent Culture Scene of Serbia Association, and many others.

Year after year, the Department has strived to innovate the classes, forms and methods of teaching, to extend the cooperation with universities in the country and abroad which educate students in the same or similar fields. The department monitors and develops not only social and educational, but also artistic and media practice and trends; however, what remains its, and the Faculty’s, main strength is decades’ long experience and devotion to educating exceptional young resources in the field of dramatic arts, media, and culture.