Little Trouble Girls, a Slovenian coming-of-age film, follows 16-year-old Lucia, played by Jara Sofija Ostan, and her friendship with senior Ana-Maria, played by Mina Švajger, as they head to a Catholic choir retreat and where Lucia encounters someone who challenges her faith.
Directed by Slovenian filmmaker Urška Djukić, the film was selected as Slovenia’s Official Entry for Best International Feature Film at the 2026 Academy Awards and is included in a shortlist of feature films for the European Film Awards.
Following its festival tour, including the Tribeca Film Festival, where it won the Best Cinematography Award, Little Trouble Girls will premiere at the IFC Center on December 5th and Laemmle’s Monica Film Center on December 12th with a national rollout to follow.
At her mother’s urging, introverted Lucia joins her Catholic school’s all-girls choir, where she befriends Ana-Maria, a popular older student. When the choir travels to a countryside convent for a weekend retreat of intensive rehearsals, Lucia navigates the unfamiliar surroundings, complex teenage social structures, and her own awakening sexuality.
A series of initiations, including an eye-opening experience with a handsome construction worker, test Lucia’s friendship with Ana-Maria and the other girls, as she begins to question her beliefs and disrupt the harmony within the choir.
Director Djukić spoke about what she wanted to accomplish with the film, saying, “With Little Trouble Girls, I wanted to explore the mysteries of the senses as tools for understanding ourselves. I think the long-standing taboo around sexuality has left us still unable to fully understand or harness its potential power.”
Peter Bradshaw, in a review for the Guardian, said, “This elegant and mysterious debut from Slovenian director Urška Djukić, with its superb musical score and sound design, reinvents the cliched idea of a Catholic girl’s sexual awakening.
Watch the official trailer for Little Trouble Girls, above.
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