In September 2018, after a decade of Association KROKODIL’s various and very intense activities, the KROKODIL Center for Contemporary Literature finally opened. The Center is a physical space belonging to  Association KROKODIL, a meeting point for all interested in culture, and more specifically, literature, where many of our activities take place. Ever since the opening, various programs have been organized there on almost a daily basis. At the beginning of each month, we publish KROKODIL News, a bulletin in which, along with the program of the Center, one can also find news from our kitchen and other information related to different KROKODIL activities.

CAFE & DELI

The KROKODIL Center is also equipped with a bar as well as a cafe and deli with an educated and experienced chef and staff. We also deliver through Wolt and Donesi – look for “Krokodil Cafe & Deli” in the apps and order our specialties.With every online delivery, you get a special gift – a booklet from our Common Library series.

EXHIBITION SPACE

The KROKODIL Center is also an exhibition space. Exhibitions are on display for a month or two months and artwork can be purchased on the spot. So far our walls have welcomed 14 artists, including: Ana Petrović (“Toni Zec”), Miroslav Vujović Graforidža (“Provokart”), Aleksandar Zograf and Gorana Basta (“Snovi i tkanine”), Aleksa Gajić (“Krokiriki”), Nikola Puzigaća (“Kosmos, PUN K. & Love”), Jelena Jelača (“Paralelna realnost”), Dobrosav Bob Živković (“(Naučno-fantastični Bob”), Igor Čoko (“Svojom stranom ulice”), Political Poster Collective (“I tvoja sloboda se brani u Rožavi”) and Biljana Đurđević (“Oruđe delanja”).

EVENTS 

Since the opening of the KROKODIL Center, we’ve organized more than 150 different events. Along with regular weekly and monthly programs hosted by KROKODIL, including different panel discussions, debates, lectures, book promotions, and presentations from our Writers’ Residence guests,  many other events have also been held at the KROKODIL Center.

Hate poetry Belgrade

Hate Poetry is a type of public performance that was first organized in 2012 in Berlin, Germany. The first event was informally set up by a German-Turkish journalist Ebru Taşdemir and moderated by a German-Croatian journalist and editor Doris Akrap. Mostly left wing journalists of foreign origin gathered in the Taz Cafe and read racist comments, threats and other offensive content they received through social media or email. Since then, this type of performance has become very popular around Germany.

The first Hate Poetry event in Serbia was organized at the KROKODIL Center. We organize these events  monthly with different guests. The program’s moderator is Dragan Ilić. The participants so far have included Borka Pavićević, Nedim Sejdinović, Dragan Bursać, Anita Mitić, Brankica Stanković, Idro Seferi, Zoran Kesić, Branislav Trifunović, Gorica Nešović, Antonela Riha, Jovana Gligorijević, Aleksandra Nikšić etc.

Gigantomachia

Gigantomachia or KROKODIL’s Duel in Three Rounds consists of heated debates in three 15-minute rounds where experienced debaters and well known public figures discuss hot-button socio-political topics. Within the seven duels we hosted so far, the participants have included Svetislav Basara, Marko Vidojković, Zlatko Petrović, dr Đorđe Pavićević, Dubravka Stojanović, Biljana Srbljanović, Željko Hubač, Andrej Nosov, Teofil Pančić, Goran Marković etc.

Lik i delo

Through the program Lik i delo, we host various regional authors, both young and established,  including Vladimir Tabašević, Mirjana Đurđević, Slobodan Šnajder, Ivan Ivanji, Vladislav Bajac, Dubravka Ugrešić, Dragan Velikić, Filip David, Goran Marković, Svetislav Basara, Branko Rosić, Jelena Lengold and Jasminka Petrović.

Common Library

After the Languages ​​and Nationalisms project, which dealt with the complex issue of the reality of the existence of four political languages ​​in the region and its grand finale, the Declaration on the Common Language, the KROKODIL Association started a new project called Common Library. This project also deals with the topic of language, but from the literary and essayistic aspect. As a part of the Common Library project, we regularly organize events at the KROKODIL Center, and some of the participants so far have included Boris Buden, Dubravka Ugrešić, Lana Bastašić and Semezdin Mehmedinović.

Les Crocodiles

Les Crocodiles are here and they speak loud and clear. Through this program, we present a series of public conversations and debates about women in public space (with special emphasis on culture and literature), their (in)visibility and ways to increase their prominence, feminism, discrimination and equality and their position in the regional scene. So far two editions of this program have been were held.

In the first edition, titled “Feminism and Ferranteism”, Nađa Bobičić, Irena Jovanović and Marija Ratković talked about “Ferrante fever”, female experiences, anger, male violence, female protagonists, very thoroughly dissected female-female relationships and the political background behind all of this. 

In the second conversation, Dragoslava Barzut, Ljubica Pupezin and Jelena Lalatović talked about visibility, invisibility and the recognition of female authors in the region and the practice of rarely awarding women for their literary works. Both of the conversations were moderated by Iva Parađanin.

KROKODIL’s Cinema

KROKODIL Center also serves as a film-theater for 20th-century European cinema. In cooperation with Goethe Institute, we’ve organized screenings of German films such as Menschen am Sonntag (1930) and Lili Marleen (1981). In While in cooperation with Institut Français, we’ve organized screenings of French new wave films such as Jules et Jim (1962) and Ascenseur pour l’échafaud (1958). We’ve also organized a screening of Final Adventure of Kaktus Kid, followed by a Q&A with the director Đorđe Marković and the comic author Aleksandar Zograf.

KROKODIL’s Bazaar

KROKODIL’s bazaar is conceived as a marketplace of creative organizations, teams and individuals who are independent producers of handicrafts, accessories, and  other fashion and art products. With this program we want to help all independent creators who lack promotion as well as connect them with potential customers. The bazaar is held several times a year, and so far, a range of different products could be bought, from jewelry and clothes to homemade dog snacks.  

PLEASURE IN TEXT (Zadovoljstvo u Tekstu)

Pleasure in Text, a joint venture between KROKODIL Center and Remarker Media, takes the form of a live podcast. Hosted by authors Biljana Srbljanović and Vladimir Cerić, Pleasure in Text who talks about today’s pop-culture trends and events in an academic, yet relaxed way. So far, there have been seven live dialogues in of this format.

EAT & READ / EAT & TALK

This monthly program consists of two segments: Eat & Read and Eat & Talk. Each month we choose a state (city, region or culture) and create a specific menu centered on it, along with promoting several authors that originate from there. Besides the three course menu, we also publish a booklet containing fragments from the works of the chosen authors, together with their short biographies. This booklet comes for free with the menu. The Eat & Talk segment refers to the actual event during which, together with the lunch or dinner that are served to visitors, we organize a talk or discussion about chosen authors. So far, our Eat & Read / Eat & Talk events have been dedicated to Greece, Ireland, Italy (the city of Naples), the Southern United States and Denmark. 

LIVING IN BELGRADE: EXPAT CHATROOM

Moving away, living, and working in a foreign country is always full of challenges. With that in mind, KROKODIL has organized  Living in Belgrade: Expat Chatroom. The goal of this event is to gather foreigners who are also residents of Belgrade. So whether they just arrived or have years of experience, expats are welcome to hang out, exchange impressions and experiences of life here in our city, and of course, get acquainted with other expats. The official language of the Expat Chatroom is English. So far, five Chatrooms have been held.

PROGRAMS IN ENGLISH

In November 2020 we introduced regular monthly programs in English for those inhabitants of Belgrade who are not fluent in Serbian as well as for the regular or occasional visitors to our city. Debates, gatherings, open mic evenings, book promotions, various presentations, small concerts, etc. are all a part of our selection of programs in English.

KROKODIL IN SCANDINAVIA: COOPERATION WITH THE SCANDINAVIAN CORNER

Since its founding, KROKODIL Center has built a  successful partnership  with the Scandinavian Corner. 

By telling stories and talking, as well as traveling to Norway, Sweden, and/or Denmark,  . the lovers of Scandinavian countries, culture, and languages have their space in our Center to learn something new and have a chat. Within the Scandinavian Chatroom format, our guests have the opportunity to improve their vocabulary and discover literature from the North. If you speak a language from Scandinavia, no matter if you’re a beginner or at an advanced conversational level, KROKODIL Center is the place to check your knowledge. The Chatroom is hosted by professors and associates from the Scandinavian Corner and has welcomed many native guests. So far, there have been twelve Scandinavian Chatrooms. 

Test what you know, or what you learned at the Chatroom, about Scandinavia in this pub quiz format. Participate in Nordiqwhizz, together with a team, and use your collective knowledge about Nordic countries, history, and mythology to win prizes. Heliks publishing house has helped in organizing this quiz. So far, there have been four knowledge competitions at KROKODIL Center.

In our cooperation with the Scandinavian Corner, we also have a corner dedicated to cinematography. In the Nordic Cinema Corner, our guests have the opportunity to attend screenings of modern Scandinavian films, most of them within the Nordic Panorama film festival, which KROKODIL hosted in 2018.

FOR PARTNERS

KROKODIL Center is a technically equipped multifunctional space (85m2) with a stage, three microphones, stage lighting, a screen and a projector. It can be used for different purposes: 

• conference set-up (lectures, presentations etc): 50 seats
• restaurant set-up (lunches, working breakfasts etc): 35 seats
• standing capacity (parties, celebrations, small gigs etc): 80 people

KROKODIL’s center is a pet and baby/kid-friendly non-smoking place with a smoking area on the terrace. It is equipped with a restaurant kitchen with an educated and experienced chef and staff that serves a carefully selected choice of wines, drinks and food.

The space is ideal for lectures, trainings, meetings, work breakfasts, brunches and lunches, organized dinners, presentations, plannings, seminars, workshops, press conferences, corporate celebrations, parties and anniversaries.

You can send us your inquiry for renting of the space:  office@krokodil.rs, contact person:  Milan Adnađ

tel: 060/3568111.

Supporting and using the Center helps the work of KROKODIL Association.