{"id":2051,"date":"2025-12-09T23:11:56","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T22:11:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.katjarestovic.com\/?p=2051"},"modified":"2026-01-22T23:22:04","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T22:22:04","slug":"emilija-kokic-pop-sensibility-vocal-purity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.katjarestovic.com\/en\/multimedia\/emilija-kokic-pop-sensibility-vocal-purity\/","title":{"rendered":"EMILIJA KOKI\u0106 \u2014 Pop Sensibility & Vocal Purity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Emilija Koki\u0107 & Katja Restovi\u0107: A long-standing collaboration shaped by friendship and visual softness<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The videos Restovi\u0107 directed for Emilija emphasize emotion, simplicity and a voice that carries the story.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Emilija Koki\u0107 is known for the purity of her voice and the warmth of her interpretations, which demanded visuals that would not compete with the songs, but gently support them. In their collaborations, Restovi\u0107 chose the soft portrait style for which she is particularly known, gentle camera movements and simple staging that often feels almost cinematic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The shoots frequently resembled intimate musical moments, without excessive theatricality, allowing audiences to connect directly with the authenticity of the songs. This collaboration is among the most tender in Restovi\u0107\u2019s music work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in 1989, the Eurovision Song Contest took place on 6 May in Lausanne, Switzerland, where Yugoslavia was represented by the band Riva, fronted by Emilija Koki\u0107. Her rise began in 1988, at a different competition:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey sent me as a young hope to Moj prvi pljesak,<\/em> within the show Demo X, where I represented young talents from Zadar. I won the first time, then the second, then the third\u2026 Word spread that some girl kept winning. Somehow that reached Rajko Dujmi\u0107. We met, my knees were shaking with excitement, but he didn\u2019t notice. I told him I sang in a band, Rajko came to see and hear us, and offered us the song Rock me. I thought: \u2018My God, what is this?\u2019 \u2014 but Rajko knows what he\u2019s doing,\u201d says Emilija.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most recent music video they made together \u2014 and there have been eight of them (Ljepota, Santa Ledena and others) \u2014 is for her song \u201cDruga\u201d, directed by Katja Restovi\u0107 and filmed in Pore\u010d, Pula and Rijeka. The music was written by Marko Tomasovi\u0107, lyrics by Robert Pilepi\u0107, arrangement by Boris \u0110ur\u0111evi\u0107, and the single was released by Dancing Bear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lead male role in the video is played by acclaimed Croatian actor Robert Kurba\u0161a, and the demanding, action-driven video also features actors and extras Vesna Janko Finderle, Azeglio Picco, Dobrivoje Savatovi\u0107 and Davor Ha\u010di\u0107.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn this video, Emilija appears in a completely new way, and alongside the excellent Kurba\u0161a, she plays her role like a true actress. She surprised us all by deciding to spend her birthday \u2018working\u2019, which made the atmosphere on set even warmer,\u201d says Restovi\u0107, whose production company handled the shoot. She adds that the script itself is particularly intriguing:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnyone expecting a classic love drama will be very surprised. We filmed in the elegant interiors of the Parentium Hotel in Pore\u010d, as well as outdoor action scenes. We shot for two days, with an additional day planned for car sequences, which are quite demanding, so we left them to professional stunt drivers,\u201d explains Katja.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Camera and post-production were entrusted to her long-term collaborator Josip Pino Ru\u017ei\u0107, with Marin Brklja\u010da as first camera assistant. The crew also included Azeglio Picco and \u017ditomir Klari\u010di\u0107.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve known Emilija for a very, very long time, and together we\u2019ve made an impressive eight music videos,\u201d says Restovi\u0107. \u201cAmong all those projects, one of my favourites is the video where Emilija is in the bathtub \u2014 A gdje da krenem. I remember that set as if it were yesterday: an empty flat above the theatre in Rijeka, found thanks to friends who worked as real estate agents. Inside \u2014 just one small white bathtub. We kept filling it with warm water so she would be comfortable. Emilija was unbelievably beautiful in that scene, and the whole atmosphere was magical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every shoot with her has been a wonderful experience, but the one I remember most vividly is our latest video \u2014 a small crime story in which Emilija plays an agent, together with Robert Kurba\u0161a and our actors from Pore\u010d and Novigrad. The plot is simple yet effective \u2014 you only need to watch the video and everything becomes clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emilija loves to cook and is fantastic at it. She is extremely pleasant, funny, relaxed, and at the same time incredibly responsible, hardworking and patient. I don\u2019t know whether that\u2019s because she has great trust in me or simply because that\u2019s who she is \u2014 but I know that I always enjoy spending time with her. Whenever I hear her voice, I\u2019m instantly filled with joy and reminded of all the stages of our long creative journey,\u201d says Katja Restovi\u0107.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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