This autumn fans of documentary films can once again look forward to an interesting event that has been traditionally organised since 2005 by the Institute of Documentary Film together with the Czech Film Center. This year the Panel of Forthcoming Czech Documentaries will once again be presented not only to film professionals and journalists, but also with free entry to the general public. That is also why the event will be held on Monday, September 29, when Documentary Mondays are regularly held in the Cinema Světozor. “The documentary genre is luckily no longer neglected and relegated only to television screens. Not only critics, but mainly audiences have come to appreciate them. In the case of the Czech Republic its boom is not only evident in the growing number of screening in the cinemas and the number of visitors to our partner festivals such as One World and Ji.hlava, but also in the prestigious awards for their filmmakers. Thus we are pleased to see how films that we helped bring to life through some of our activities regularly receive awards or are “just” screened at important or even small festivals, thereby finding their way to audiences. Luckily, the public’s interest in the documentary genre is currently considerable and we would like to help out our film community as much as possible. I strongly believe that, just like last year, this year the large hall in Světozor cinema will be bursting at the seams during the Panel of Forthcoming Czech Documentaries,” stated the Executive Director of the Institute of Documentary Film, Bojan Schuch.
Presentation
The goal of the panel is to draw professional and lay public’s attention to the successes of Czech documentaries in the recent past and to introduce the current state of documentary film. The audience will have a unique opportunity to get introduced to 10 selected documentary projects in various states of development or production and to learn, right from the filmmakers and producers, what all precedes their introduction in the cinema or at a festival. Each project will be supplemented with a short preview.
“The ten chosen projects, which will be presented to the public by their filmmakers during the Panel, should give a certain representative sample of current documentary film – a spectrum of titles, according to which the various approaches of the filmmakers to the material and trends in Czech documentaries can be seen. The individual stages of development should ideally be represented in the selection, being development, production and post-production, and of course it should show the preparation of interesting themes in various documentary genres. The choice of the projects in the current-day situation takes into account the presence of the lay public in the hall of Cinema Světozorin addition to all the other criteria. Thus we are trying to choose projects by interesting filmmakers that are more well-known by the public and that already have some experience or are at least able to present their project in an interesting manner,” stated the Head of the Czech Film Center, Markéta Šantrochová.
Catalogue
During the course of the evening the new bilingual printed catalogue of Czech documentary films, Czech Docs 2014 – 2015, will be introduced. It include 64 forthcoming Czech documentaries that are in post-production, in production or in the in development stage. The catalogue is meant primarily for film professionals, including Czech and foreign festival selectors, representatives of television stations, distributors and sales agents in order to present the current production of Czech documentaries in a clear and concise manner. In addition to the printed version, an online version of the catalogue will also be launched on the day of the event at czechdocs.dokweb.net.
In addition to the ten projects that the filmmakers will be presenting in Cinema Světozor, for which you can find information below, the catalogue also newly contains an overview of 20 feature-length documentary films completed in the period from June to November 2014. These include, for example, Life According to Václav Havel by Andrea Sedláčková, which originated as a co-production between Czech Television and ARTE or the biographical film The Old Man and the World from Petr Horký, which brings a distinctive perspective on the stormy events of the 20th Century through the eyes of a man that came to know the entire world. Jan Šípek’s film Buttons of Consciousness is a portrait of two Czech scientists who are also interested in meditation and it also evokes this feeling in the minds of the viewers. Olga Sommerová’s film The Magic Voice of a Rebel takes a closer look at the dramatic fate of Marta Kubišová, connected with the political tragedy of the nation after the occupation in 1968 and her activities in Charta 77.
Screening
After the presentation the evening will continue with the preview screening of the feature-length documentary Daniel’s World by director Veronika Lišková, which takes a look at the world of the Czech paedophile community without prejudices or social stereotypes. The main figure in this tale of forbidden love and the constant struggle for self-reconciliation and for the possibility of acceptance in society is the young writer Daniel, who was born a paedophile. He is in love and he does not even hide his orientation from the parents of the boy he adores. The screening of the documentary on the borderline form of love and the human capability of trust and tolerance will be followed by a discussion with the director Veronika Lišková.
“The film could only have been made thanks to the trust and the courage of several people, first and foremost the main protagonist Daniel and other members of the paedophile community. In addition to the film’s producers, Czech Television also definitely showed great courage when it decided to support this controversial theme,” stated Veronika Lišková, the director of the documentary, which arose as a co-production of Vernes and Czech Television as part of Martina Šantavá’s creative team. This film can be seen at its premiere in the Czech Joy competitive section of the Ji.hlava international documentary film festival.
VoD
Last year Cinema Světozor’s large hall was bursting at the seams. In addition to the presentation of the forthcoming projects the audience got to see the projection of Ivo Bystřičan’s documentary film My Last 150 Thousand Cigarettes (2013). For those who would like to enjoy the film again or did not have the opportunity to see it yet, the Institute of Documentary Film has prepared, together with the VoD documentary portal DAFilms, a streaming of the film online at www.dafilms.cz. The film will be available to for streaming free of charge from Friday September 26 until the day of the Panel, September 29.
Presented Projects:
Climbing Higher / CZ, SK / 2015 / 100’ /
Director: David Čálek
Producer: Richard Němec, Petr Plewka – Verbascum
The film presents the mountain climber Radek Jaroš’ long and demanding journey to the peak of his last eight-thousander – K2. Using the climber’s extensive archive we will be witness to his journey from the very beginning to the last peak. We will not only look at his sporting performances, but also the mark they left on Radek’s family.
Lída Baarová – Doomed Beauty / CZ / 2015 / 75’
Director: Helena Třeštíková
Producer: Hana Třeštíková – Produkce Třeštíková
The fate of Lída Baarová contains all the elements of a Greek tragedy. Beauty, love, fame, rejection, punishment, flight, the loss of her home and, ultimately, reconciliation with all this in the wisdom of old age. And, just like in Greek tragedies, this all takes place with dramatic political twists. Nobody in Europe could avoid those in the twentieth century, let alone a woman of such exceptional beauty, ambition and fame.
Pepik the Czech Goes to Poland in a Quest for the Love of God / CZ, PL / 2015 / 90’
Director: Vít Klusák, Filip Remunda
Producer: Zdeněk Holý, Jana Bebrová – Vernes
What happens when a representative of the most atheist nation in Europe, Pepik from the Czech Republic, is sent to the most religious country in the EU, Poland? A performative documentary in the style of Borat about two neighbouring countries with very different views on religion.
Healing Me / CZ / 2014 / 75’
Director: Tereza Tara
Producer: Tereza Tara
Healing me is a documentary film about the road from illness to recovery. Director Tereza Tara had kidney problems. She visited doctors, who were not able to find an answer as to why she got sick. So she decided that she would use the illness as an opportunity to change her life for the better and she turned to experts that deal with the psychosomatic roots of illness.
Tribes / CZ / 2015 / 16 x 26’
Director: Pavel Abrahám, Bohdan Bláhovec, Daniela Gébová, Petr Hátle, Jan Látal, Janek Růžička, Jan Strejcovský, Štepán Vodrážka, Jiří Volek, Jan Zajíček
Producer: Petr Kubica – Česká televize
A documentary journey into the mysterious world of urban subcultures. The serial maps 16 significant urban subcultures with an emphasis on their visual expression, with each part being devoted to one tribe. Tribes looks at the astonishing world of people who want to differentiate themselves from others, thereby creating their own original ideal about their way of life.
Adventurer in Film Karel Zeman / CZ / 2015 / 80´
Director: Tomáš Hodan
Producer: Ondřej Beránek – Punk Film
A biographical film that looks back at the life, work and significance of a genius of world cinema. At the same time it reveals the inspirational sources of his work and his reception internationally while looking behind the scenes at this pioneer of special effects. If we count the awards from the festivals and the multitude of publications that we can conclude that Karel Zeman is one of the most successful and celebrated Czech filmmakers in the world.
Always Together / CZ / 2015 / 80’
Director: Eva Tomanová
Producer: Jiří Konečný – endorfilm
Petr was a city boy from a block of flats on the outskirts of Plzeň. After high school he studied cybernetics in the UK. His wife, Simona, studied the Czech language and history at Charles University. Today they have been together for 25 years, they have nine children, no running water, bathroom or toilet and they all live together in a caravan. Their concept of an alternative lifestyle is drawn out ad absurdum.
Girl Power / CZ / 2014 / 80’
Director: Sany
Producer: Sany
Girl Power is an international documentary about women who have devoted their lives to graffiti and street art. When making the film the director and writer Sany visited 17 countries and interviewed the most expressive women from these communities. The film brings another perspective to the phenomenon that is understood by most of society to be vandalism.
Gadjo / CZ / 2015 / 90’, 70’
Director: Tomáš Kratochvíl
Producer: Vít Klusák, Filip Remunda – Hypermarket Film
After his wife left him the film’s director moved from the centre of Prague to what is said to be the worst Gypsy ghetto in the Czech Republic. Here he is taken under the wing of an infamous clan of former mobsters. Gadjo helps them repair a damaged house and he literally becomes one of the family. He decides to determine the cause of the decline in the ghetto in which he has found his new home.
Sugar Blog / CZ / 2014 / 110’
Director: Andrea Culková
Producer: Daniel Tuček – Golden Dawn
The director, currently threatened by gestational diabetes, is forced to give up refined sugar, literally from day to day. Suffering from withdrawal symptoms, she finds out just how difficult it is to stop using this addictive substance and how difficult it is to find something without sugar in it. Thus she decided to investigate the results of centuries of consumption of sugar on individuals and on society.
Contact:
Institute of Documentary Film, Filip Šebek: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 776 160 952
Czech Film Center, Denisa Štrbová: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 221 105 321
