“Golden Palm unanimously at the Cannes Film Festival, 1985"
"Prize International Federation of the cinema Press (FIPRESCI) at the Cannes Film Festival, 1985"
"In 1986, the film was selected for the Oscar of the best foreign film, and for the Golden Globe of the best foreign film."

The Yugoslavian When Father Was Away on Business (Otac na Sluzbenoh Putu) takes place in the early 1950s. The title is a euphemism: because of the strained relationship between Yugoslavia and the USSR, various private citizens have disappeared in the middle of the night, accompanied by the police. One such "vanishing" individual is Miki Manojlovic, the father of 6-year old Moreno D'E Bartolli, from whose viewpoint this story is told When Manojlovic, an employee in the labor ministry is whisked away to prison, his family reacts with pride, assuring one and all that he is "away on business" because of his fervent political beliefs. The sad truth: Manojlovic has ended up behind bars because of his sexual peccadilloes. The film details the tribulations of a fatherless family struggling to cope with the financial deprivations of Communism. Director Emir Kusturica won the Cannes Film Festival Golden Palm award for his work on When Father Was Away on Business.