14-12-2022

Treasures of Slovak Cinema on Prestigious VoD Platform LaCinetek

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    The Return of Dragon by Eduard Grečner The Return of Dragon by Eduard Grečner source: Slovak Film Institute's FB page

    BRATISLAVA: Seven digitally restored classic Slovak films have been made available on the French VOD platform LaCinetek in the Hidden Treasures section. The platform is streaming in France, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and Austria.

    Until now, there had been only one Slovak film on LaCinetek, The Boxer and Death / Boxer a smrť (1963) by Peter Solan, produced by Film production and distribution Bratislava, which French director Michel Hazanavicius included in his selection.

    „ I was thinking about how to get more Slovak classic films, which I believe the world should discover, to this prestigious and for us hermetically sealed platform. The Hidden Treasures section, dedicated to the presentation of institutions, was the only option. However, until recently, this section exclusively included the so-called associated institutions, i.e. institutions that stood at the beginning of LaCinetek. After several months of discussions with the managing director Jean-Baptiste Viaud, it was finally achieved,"  said Rastislav Steranka, the director of the National Cinematography Centre within the Slovak Film Institute.

    The list of films in The Golden Era of Slovak Cinema selection includes: The Sun in a Net / Slnko v sieti (1962) by Štefan Uher, produced by Film production and distribution Bratislava, The Barnabáš Kos Case / Prípad Barnabáša Kos (1964) by Peter Solan, produced by Czechoslovak Film Bratislava, The Return of Dragon / Drak sa vracia (1967) by Eduard Grečner, Czechoslovak Film Bratislava, Birds, Orphans and Fools / Vtáčkovia, siroty a blázni (1969) by Juraj Jakubisko, Slovak film Bratislava, COMO FILMS and Lux Compagnie Cinématographique de France, Wild Lilies / Ľalie poľné (1972) by Elo Havetta (Czechoslovak Film Bratislava), and Pictures of the Old World / Obrazy starého sveta (1972) by Dušan Hanák (Czechoslovak Film Bratislava). The collection will be accessible on the platform for at least three years.

    „Within VoD platforms, such a special presentation of the Slovak audiovisual heritage on LaCinetek is a huge success. The Slovak Film Institute will be here with its own selection in the company as for example La Cinémathèque de Toulouse, La Cinémathèque française, Deutsche Kinemathek or Gaumont,“  Steranka also said.