Chronicle

synopsis

Landscape, architecture, animals, people. Different seasons. Work and leisure. Times of peace and times of crisis. From images captured over many years, Martin Kollár has compiled a collective portrait of contemporary Slovakia, which, through the lens of his camera, appears both familiar and dystopian. Static shots come to life thanks to the movement of figures and the interplay of parallel lines. Each tells a separate micro-story. Sometimes with a point, sometimes without. The individual images follow each other rhythmically, graphically, and thematically, or contrast humorously. The mosaic of everyday and absurd scenes thus presents an unexpectedly systematic report on the chaos and madness of the times we live in.

“We decided that the film didn't need to have a story or a main character. The only limit would be the physical borders of Slovakia. Within those borders, we wanted to have complete freedom in recording reality.” — Martin Kollár

biography

Martin Kollár (born 1971) is a Slovak photographer, cinematographer, and director. He studied cinematography and photography at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava. His medium-length film 5 October premiered in Rotterdam. As a cinematographer, he has worked on films such as Goat, 107 Mothers, and Wishing on a Star.

film details

director:	Martin Kollár
producer:	Katarína Tomková
script:	Mária Rumanová, Martin Kollar
photography:	Martin Kollar
editing:	Marek Šulík
sound:	Václav Flegl, Jakub Trš

contact

Katarína Tomková / Punkchart films
katarina@punkchart.sk