At age 13 he played one of the leading roles in the film "Sophomore Year Roll Call" based on a true story about civilian casualties resulting from fighting in the Balkans in World War II-era Yugoslavia. Produced in 1961 by the major Belgrade film studio, UFUS, it enjoyed tremendous success during the 1960s and 1970s, with as many as 90 percent of Yugoslavia’s population estimated to have seen it. It is still being screened regularly today.