Mate Rimac Employs First Deaf Person to Graduate from FER
Statistics show that about 12,000 deaf people live in the Republic of Croatia, but unfortunately it is rare for them to complete their higher education.
As Ivan Tominac/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 14th of April, 2019, Josip Ivanković was born in Čapljina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, but just one year after his birth, he was declared deaf, and this fact was one of his reasons for his relocation to Croatia. His move to Croatia certainly paid off as being the right move, and Josip, despite the diagnosis, managed to develop his speech and the technique of listening. That was, as Josip himself states, a painstaking and long process.
"The situation is that I have to treat speaking Croatian as if I was speaking a foreign language," Josip Ivanković explained.
For four years now, his speech and listening abilities have been being developed at the SUVAG Polyclinic, where Josip learned to speak with vibration, tone amplification, visualisation and by learning anatomy.
"When I learned to pronounce the letter ''r'', I had to touch the vocal chords of the logopad to feel a certain vibration and titration, then I'd lean my hand on my neck to feel the same vibration, so I learned to pronounce the letter ''r'' I learned to pronounce ''ž'' in a similar way, I just put my hand on my head. Generally speaking, the hardest letters to pronounce for the deaf are l,č,ć,đ,dž,lj and nj, and the reason for that is that such letters can't be visually identified. They're explained through the anatomy of the oral cavity, just like a doctor explains the heart's organs, or where the blood enters and where it exits,'' explained Josip.
After the kindergarten era ended, in which he learned the basics of socialisation, it was decided that he should attend a regular school.
This period of schooling, without any curriculum adjustment, he adds, was defined by perseverance, and communicational misunderstandings are, in his words, quite normal and natural.
"The professors made me equal with my peers, and this proved to be a good thing because I learned so much about the world of those who can hear, and I learned how to gather information," said Josip. As stated, statistics show that about 12,000 deaf people live in Croatia, but it is rare for them to complete higher education. Josip was not one of them, and he completed a college which has some very demanding academic requirements for its students.
He enrolled at FER (University of Zagreb, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing), and the likelihood of him completing his studies was slim, yet Josip had different plans for himself.
"At the beginning of the semester, it was very difficult for me to adapt,'' recalled Josip. Before Josip's arrival, professors from Zagreb's FER didn't have any experience in working with people with impaired hearing. At the beginning, he failed several exams, but he didn't let that dampen his spirit, and later he turned to further consultations.
This combination led him to become the very first deaf person to graduated from that college.
"The professors were very approachable, and our relationship was very flexible and adaptable. I will never forget how Professor Brnetić, instead of me asking him, personally invited me to consultations during the holidays and showed me much he cared that I didn't miss anything from the lecture. On the other hand, one professor asked me during consultations why I didn't go to the lectures and asked me how I was learning. I told him that I don't go to the lectures because I can't hear them. I took out a 100-page notebook with my assignments, and the professor was surprised that I did all that without having gone to any lectures. He asked me to lend him that notebook and later I learned that he'd showed my notebook to all of the professors. Believe it or not, a year after when I came to his office, that copy of the notebook was still on his desk,'' Josip stated, recalling his faculty days.
In the end, none of the obstacles he faced along the way turned him away from his goal, and he passed 62 engagements that mostly relied solely on him and his level of dedication. This FER student didn't have to wait around long before a job opportunity came knocking, and it wasn't your regular offer. He started his working life at no less than Rimac Automobili as an Embedded Hardware Engineer. Rimac had no problems with his deafness and offered him a position after his interview.
''At the beginning of the job, I was given a pretty demanding project that I had to complete within a month, which was the length of my trial period, and when the project ended I realised that I was able to complete it and was given the green light to remain with the firm,'' Josip said. The work never stops at Rimac Automobili, and at the moment, Josip is working on a project for the development of electric car chargers.
"Communication skills are the most difficult for me, because I have to invest extra energy into lip reading and that's mentally challenging and difficult. Imagine a situation in which a colleague is referring to professional terms, and I need to decode them with and put them into context in order for me to have any understanding. Imagine switching off your ears, and focusing your eyes on their lips alone.
You aren't likely to understand because they're not using standard words, they're using technical phrases that are difficult to decode and recognise. At the beginning, it was very difficult for me to follow verbal communication and understand the complexity of the project. Of course, since working here I've changed a lot and become much more calm, more focused and concentrated on the small things. The worst thing is when a colleague does not know how to communicate with me properly, and this is where I'm concerned about information which is valuable to the project, and that's an extra effort. Each colleague has his own specific way of speaking and they aren't all the same in communication. With time, I somehow adjusted to them, and they also had to adapt to me, I accepted that this was all normal and there would always be a situation where they couldn't understand, but I'll always ask them to repeat themselves not just twice, but 1000 times!'' concluded Josip.
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Click here for the original article by Ivan Tominac for Poslovni Dnevnik
Children's Hospital Project Finally Begins in Blato, Zagreb
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 13th of April, 2019, the national children's hospital project is now finally entering a much more serious phase, and the Croatian Ministry of Health and the City of Zagreb, which are partners on this strategic project, will finally present it to the public in full, according to a report from Vecernji list, citing an international public bid to draw up a feasibility study for the huge project in Blato, Zagreb.
The feasibility study is necessary for this project because it will properly specify the requirements of the architecture, the urban planning, the ecological impact, the traffic situation, and all of the other parameters which need to be carefully considered and constructed, and one of the feasibility study elements would be the preparation of medical documentation.
Fifteen of the major international bidders are expected to report their segment-based studies, each within its own respective scope, and therefore a comprehensive study will ultimately define just what will go where, and where exactly to begin with construction. The start of work on feasibility studies from the project's partners, the Croatian Ministry of Health and the City of Zagreb, will be presented on this coming Monday, as was confirmed to Večernji list by Vili Beroš from the Ministry of Health.
"We received 42 million kuna from the Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014 - 2020 project, which is now a European project, and its initial presentation is common within such projects," explained Beroš.
The announcement of this tender was preceded by an electronic public consultation with all interested parties.
The core of Croatia's brand new national children's hospital would be the current Zagreb Children's Hospital, Klaićeva.
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Salma Hayek and Hollywood Co-stars Reveling in Rovinj (PHOTOS)
April 13, 2019 - As you may already know, “The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard,” which is the sequel to the 2017 action comedy “The Hitman's Bodyguard,” began filming in Rovinj at the beginning of the month. The film, which is directed by Patrick Hughes, features Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds, Salma Hayek, and Samuel L. Jackson to name a few. Set to debut in 2020, it is one of the largest film projects Croatia has seen, reported Jutarni List at the beginning of April.
“The filming in Croatia, which is planned for 49 days, will last until the end of May. In addition to Rovinj, locations in Zagreb, Rijeka and the surrounding area of Karlovac will be used for the film,” said the producer of the film, Igor A. Nola, from MP Film Productions.
Our locations, Nola adds, play Italy, the Mediterranean, as well as Croatia. More than 220 Croatian film professionals are part of the production, and more than 760 extras will be engaged.
As the Croatian Audiovisual Center (HAVC) points out, the project was reported as an incentives program to encourage investment in the production of audiovisual works, which was carried out by HAVC in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture.
The famous cast hasn’t been shy about sharing the beauty of Croatia on their Instagram pages. Notably, Hayek has managed to share a photo every day from the Rovinj film set to her 9.7 million followers.
Hayek called Rovinj a “magical location”, and was even seen grocery shopping on Friday. Namely, one of the scenes was filmed at a market located at the entrance to Rovinj’s old town center.
Some of the local products even caught the actor’s attention. You can see the photos on T.portal.
Hayek also shared a new friend she made in Croatia, which you can see below.
Samuel L. Jackson also couldn’t help but share the beauty of Rovinj with his 5 million Instagram followers.
“This new location looks promising! Croatia is lovely at first glance,” Jackson wrote.
The crew is excepted to visit Croatia’s capital on May 1.
"The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard" should hit cinemas in the first half of 2020.
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Croatia's Bellabeat Received Second Largest Startup Investment
This Croatian startup's beginnings come from Zagreb and it first became well known back in 2014 as the first startup attract a large investment from outside of the Republic of Croatia.
As Bernard Ivezic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 12th of April, 2019, the Croatian startup Bellabeat received an investment from AOL Ventures in the amount of 14.2 million dollars, the equivalent of 12.5 million euros. It's not the biggest investment to be received by a Croatian startup last year, as that remains marked by Porsche's entrance into the co-ownership of Rimac Automobila for 18.7 millions euros, but it remains the second largest. Bellabeat has so far kept this massive investment secret.
AOL is one of the three largest Internet service providers in the United States of America. The company is part of the large Verizon group, which owns a number of popular media outlets including The Huffington Post, Engadget, TechCrunch, and MapQuest. In the group is also the former Yahoo and the AOL Desktop software solution.
Croatia's Bellabeat underwent restructuring half a year before the investment took place, at the end of 2017 and in early 2018. The company then let a number of its employees go. Sandro Mur, co-founder and director of Bellabeat, subsequently announced that he currently has a total of fifty employees and plans to increase this number to seventy. At that time, the Croatian company's focus was on establishing an office across the Atlantic over in New York. The company has developed a range of high-tech products for women, from jewellery to smart water bottles, and plans to deal with artificial intelligence in the health preservation sector.
Five years ago, the founders of Bellabeat, Sandro Mur and Urška Sršen, set the bar very high for Croatian startups. They received a record 4.5 million dollar investment from a number of well-known investors. Among them were actress Jessica Alba, the creator and leading developer of Google Earth, Paul Buchheit, the founder of TechCrunch, Michael Arrington, one of the hundred richest people, Nicolas Berggruen, and one of the most famous investors in the Silicon Valley and one of the very first to have invested in Google and PayPal, Ron Conway.
Make sure to follow our dedicated Made in Croatia and business pages for much more on startups and companies from Croatia, as well as the overall business and investment climate in Croatia.
Click here for the original article by Bernard Ivezic for Poslovni Dnevnik
Dubrovnik-Neretva County Promo Film Wins Award in New York
Dubrovnik is no stranger to winning awards and you're probably used to reading about it, but this area in the extreme south of Dalmatia continues to fascinate the world for an abundance of reasons. From its stunning natural beauty and crystal clear sea, to its rich history and equally impressive culture, the Pearl of the Adriatic and its immediate surrounding area just keep on making the world's jaws drop.
This time however, it isn't just the famous Dalmatian UNESCO protected old city and its mighty walls which are taking home yet another award for a promotional film made about its unique beauty, but the wider area of Dubrovnik-Neretva County. This truly picturesque part of southern Croatia boasts an almost equal amount of natural beauty and history, and from Ston to Konavle next to the Montenegrin border, you'll likely have your breath taken away multiple times.
As Morski writes on the 11th of April, 2019, the brand new promotional film from the Dubrovnik-Neretva County Tourist Board, ''Dubrovnik Riviera'' continues to win awards and receive recognition from all sides. To be more precise, at the 2019 New York Festivals® International Film and TV awards festival, which was held in Las Vegas, Nevada, the promo film showcasing Dubrovnik-Neretva County's sheer beauty came third place and won the bronze plaquette.
To briefly recall, at the recent ''The Golden City Gate'' ceremony in Berlin, Germany, at the biggest international ITB World Tourism Fair, the promotional film came second place in the category of regional films, the film has been made by Balduci Film from Zagreb, was directed by Herve Tirmarche and produced by Spomenka Saraga. The film depicts the beauty of Dubrovnik-Neretva County from the Neretva valley, to the islands of Korčula and Mljet, and then Croatia's southernmost municipality of Konavle, which borders Montenegro.
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Ancient Chinese Scholar-Officials: Painting and Life Exhibition Opened
ZAGREB, April 10, 2019 - The prime ministers of Croatia and China, Andrej Plenković and Li Keqiang, on opened an exhibition entitled "Ancient Chinese Scholar-Officials: Painting and Life" at the Klovićevi Dvori Gallery in Zagreb on Wednesday.
The exhibition presenting various aspects of scholars in ancient Chinese society and their lives and art was organised jointly by the Klovićevi Dvori gallery and the National Museum of China.
Prime Minister Plenković underscored that the Croatian-Chinese year of culture and tourism needs to fortify the friendship between the Croatian and Chinese peoples and the cooperation that has exceptional meaning for both countries.
"This exhibition will present works that will show our public the essence of traditional Chinese culture that was created by ancient scholars by depicting their rich lives and spirituality," Plenković said, expressing satisfaction that Croats will be better acquainted with the works and paintings of ancient Chinese scholars.
He underscored that the programme and exchange in tourism and culture that will occur throughout the year originates from the idea of connecting Croatia and China.
Plenković assessed the visit by Prime Minister Li and his delegation as a path to a new partnership and mutual respect which, he said, makes it possible to establish new cultural and tourism routes in order to mutually increase the visibility of the two countries.
The greatest value of the Silk Road, he believes, was the exchange of cultural goods, languages, philosophies, science, and art along with trade that developed from country to country.
He recalled Marco Polo, a Venetian trader and world explorer who originated from the Croatian island of Korčula and opened Europe's path to that new world.
Plenković said that this was a new opportunity for China to become familiar with Croatia's culture and art, and added that last year 250,000 Chinese tourists visited Croatia.
Prime Minister Li thanked his host for the attention he is dedicating to this exhibition. When we look back, we have to mention the Mediterranean civilisation, of which Croatian culture is an important factor, Li said and added that Croatia is a country of a thousand islands. He recalled the Marco Polo, who was born on one of those islands, was the first to connect the civilisations of the East and the West.
As soon as I set foot on Croatian soil, I sensed the charming civilisation with a beautiful nature and the hosts' hospitality, he said.
Dubrovnik, where the Summit of Central and Eastern European Countries and China (16 + 1) is being held tomorrow, is a place that connects culture with the contemporary world, he said and recalled that a British author once wrote: If you are looking for heaven on earth, go to Dubrovnik!
He underscored that Croatian-Chinese cooperation aspires for the true development of the two countries.
Because of the growing number of Chinese tourists visiting Croatia, he announced the possibility of introducing direct flights.
More news about relations between Croatia and China can be found in the Politics section.
Zagreb and Ljubljana Stock Exchanges Presented in New York
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 9th of April, 2019, more than sixty meetings with investors were held by five Croatian and three Slovenian issuers as the Zagreb and Ljubljana stock exchanges presented their markets and issuers in New York on Monday, at the second largest international stock market - Nasdaqu, in cooperation with the Auerbach Grayson investment company and with a very good response from American investors, as the Zagreb Stock Exchange announced on Tuesday.
Although the Zagreb and Ljubljana stock exchanges have repeatedly presented their markets and issuers at local and regional investment conferences and on other similar occasions, this was the first time that such an event was organised outside of Europe, the statement said.
With the management bodies of both the Zagreb and the Ljubljana stock exchanges, investors were introduced to the Croatian companies AD Plastik, Arena Hospitality Group, Atlantic Group, Podravka and Valamar Riviera, as well as the Slovenian companies Krka, Petrol and Triglav Group. The Croatian investment association, Intercapital, presented the Croatian and Slovenian market and its potential, and, as previously mentioned, the companies held more than sixty individual meetings with US investors.
"For the first time in the history of the Zagreb Stock Exchange, we're organising the presentation of our most prominent issuers who have voluntarily accepted the highest standards of corporate governance and reporting to US investors.
We are very pleased with the level of interest and we hope that acquainting US investors with our companies and the potential of our regional market will result in their interest in investing in Croatian and Slovenian companies,'' said the director of the Zagreb Stock Exchange, Ivan Gažić, the president of AD Plastik, Marinko Došen, added that he hopes that the New York presentation will help attract new investors to Croatia.
"We support all the activities of the [Zagreb] exchange, which will enable us to revive the Croatian capital market with joint forces, we're pleased with the level of interest of American investors in AD Plastik, and I believe that the potential of our shares and business will be recognised on that market as well,'' Došen stated.
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Zagreb Lakes Ready for Swimmers
All the beaches at the Jarun and Bundek lakes in Zagreb will be ready to welcome those who decide to spend long summer days inland rather than on the coast. The Andrija Štampar Institute has conducted an analysis which shows that water quality in the lakes is excellent this year, reports Večernji List on April 9, 2019.
Jarun’s Large Lake, Small Lake, Island of Rowers, Island of Trešnjevka and Island of Universiade will be available to swimmers starting from 1 June. The eastern, western and southern part of the Bundek lake will also be open for swimmers.
The last time such good water quality was recorded in 2017 when all the city beaches were also declared safe for swimmers. In recent years, there were occasional problems with water quality at some beaches. For example, in 2015, swimming was not allowed at Jarun’s Small Lake and on the Island of Universiade, while in 2016 the southern part of the Bundek Lake was closed down.
The worst situation occurred last year when water analysis showed that as many as three beaches at the Jarun Lake had to be closed down.
The way in which the Andrija Štampar Institute determines whether the water is of a good enough quality is quite simple. Samples taken during the previous season are compared to the samples taken prior to the new swimming season.
“Analysis of data found that, in the 2018 swimming season, out of the total of 128 individual samples taken at Jarun Lake, 125 were of excellent quality and three were of good quality, meaning that 98 per cent of samples were excellent,” explained the institute.
The new swimming season on the lakes will start on 1 June and last until 15 September. All the citizens at the official beaches will swim under the watchful eyes of lifeguards. On the other hand, citizens are advised against swimming at unofficial locations, although it does happen quite often.
“People often ignored the bans, although there were warnings posted everywhere that the water quality was not satisfactory. In particular, we were not able to convince people who have been coming here for years and who simply ‘had to take a swim in their Small Lake’”, said Jarun representatives.
Translated from Večernji List (reported by Mateja Šobak).
More Zagreb news can be found in the Lifestyle section.
After Renovation, "Europa Cinema" Will Remain Art Cinema
ZAGREB, April 8, 2019 (Hina) - Europa Cinema (Kino Europa) will remain an art cinema after the necessary renovation, the Office of Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić has said in a press release which was prompted by announcements of Cinema Europa's management which said that the movie theatre in downtown Zagreb would be shut down as the lease for the premises has ended and the City of Zagreb was taking it back.
"After the necessary renovation, Kino Europa will remain an art cinema. The lease awarded to the current tenants ten years ago has expired and under the law and in accordance with the lease agreement, the current tenants need to leave the facilities by June 1. Apart from ownership, the city needs to be in possession of the facility to be able to carry out the renovation," the press release said.
More than 2,000 people gathered in front of Cinema Europa in Zagreb on Saturday afternoon to show support for the cinema’s management, as the future of the Zagreb movie theatre Europa Cinema (Kino Europa), which is the oldest active cinema in Croatia, seemed uncertain.
On Friday, the cinema’s management announced that they would close the cinema this weekend after they received notice from the City of Zagreb that they would need to exit the premises on 1 June 2019 due to renovations.
Cinema Europa management said in a statement that the City was using the guise of the renovations to get rid of the cinema’s current management and bring a new tenant in.
However, on Saturday afternoon, the Zagreb Film Festival director Boris T. Matić admitted that their reaction a day before was a result of their shock and surprise. He said that 10 years ago when they were awarded the lease, the cinema was in a state of dilapidation. Matić insisted that under the concession agreement, they were supposed to invest two million kuna, and they had invested five million kuna to date.
On Saturday afternoon, the city authorities said that the renovation of the premises was necessary and refuted allegations that there were plans to repurpose the building, located in Zagreb's Cvjetni Square.
Matić said that he would hold a news conference on Tuesday to inform the public about the the details of the investments the current management had made so far.
Croatia’s Minister of Culture, Nina Obuljen Koržinek, on Saturday morning also raised her voice against the closure of Europa Cinema. She called on the two sides to show their good will and reach agreement on the future functioning of the cinema.
The City of Zagreb said in a statement on Saturday that the current management’s lease expires on 1 June and the premise would remain a cinema after renovations are complete.
Mayor Bandić accused the current tenants of exerting pressure on the city, adding that he expected a public apology over untrue claim that the cinema would be converted into a night club.
Europa Cinema, which turns 94 years old this month has been extremely successful over the last ten years, holding over 14,000 projections with over one million visitors. In 2016, Cinema Europa won the European Best Cinema Award. The cinema is a protected cultural heritage and national treasure of Croatia.
Europa Cinema said a second protest would be held on Tuesday, 9 April at 5:30 pm outside the cinema.
Zagreb Film Festival director Boris T. Matić said on Sunday, responding to a statement from the City of Zagreb, that he never said the city planned to convert the Europa cinema into a nightclub and that he had heard this from hospitality circles, and once again apologised to the Jewish Film Festival for his "hasty act."
"I never said the City of Zagreb planned to open a nightclub, but that I heard from hospitality circles that they want to convert the cinema into such a venue," Matić said in a press release, adding that in his statements to the press he had voiced his doubts about that.
"I doubt that and believe it's some malicious imputation both against us and the city structures, but it troubles us that we still haven't received a concrete answer about the future of the cinema... I heard this story from hospitality circles two years ago. I think it's an imputation against us and the City of Zagreb because the cinema is protected cultural heritage," Matić said.
He once again apologised to the Jewish Film Festival, which had to be relocated from the Europa cinema to the Student Centre on the eve of its opening.
Speaking to the press before the opening of the festival, Mayor Bandić slammed "those disparaging city institutions and the mayor," saying they were "shamelessly using spins to realise personal interests, but they won't succeed."
Asked about the importance of the festival for Zagreb, he was it was "inestimable" because it made the city a multicultural, multi-ethnic and multi-confessional European capital.
More Zagreb news can be found in the Lifestyle section.
Europa Cup: Croatia Water Polo Fails to Defend Title, Takes Silver Against Hungary
The Croatia water polo team failed to defend the Europa Cup title after losing to Hungary in the final in Zagreb 8:10 (2:2, 1:3, 2:3, 3:2), reports HRT on April 7, 2019.
However, most important for coach Ivica Tucak is that Croatia’s semi-final victory over Spain secured the team placement in the final tournament of the World League, which will be held from June 18 to 23 in Belgrade. The winner of that tournament in Belgrade automatically qualifies for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The “Baraccudas” played a solid game, though there were visible flaws. Hungary opened the match with a 0:2 lead, but Croatia came back to make it 3:2 with Joković’s goal at the start of the second quarter. Unfortunately, Manhercz equalized at 3:3, and when Croatia failed to utilize having an extra player in the pool, Hungary scored again for the 3:4 lead. At the half-time, Hungary was up 3:5, and in the third minute of the third quarter, Kovacs scored for 3:6.
Joković was able to reduce Hungary’s lead (4:6), though nothing could help Croatia come back, and Hungary convincingly managed to hold onto an advantage of two or three goals until the end, which ultimately gave them the 8:10 victory and the Europa Cup title.
Loren Fatović was one of the most effective in the Croatian ranks with three goals, while Maro Joković scored two, and Andro Bušlje, Ivan Buljubašić and Josip Vrlić scored one.
Peter Manhercz was the best for Hungary with three goals.
In the match for third place, Spain was better than Italy 9:7 (3:1, 0:2, 5:3, 1:1), while Montenegro defeated Serbia in the match for fifth place 16:14.
Prime Minister Andrej Plenković also attended the final match in Zagreb.
In other Croatia water polo news, the national team has been grouped with Australia, the USA, and Kazakhstan for the World Championships, to be held from July 14 to 27 in South Korea. The draw for the tournament was held on Sunday at the Westin hotel in Zagreb.
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