A sociologically focused documentary about life in the Na slatinách shantytown on the borders of Prague’s Michle, Záběhlice and Strašnice districts, built during the First Republic on meadows and marshes, which still exists today without running water or sewerage and is largely ignored by the authorities. The narrative is based on the testimonies of long-time residents, some of whom would prefer to move to more civilised surroundings, while others are content with the rural character of this remote location. The film is a second-year documentary project.

For three years, the director has been capturing the ever-changing face of Bogotá from the windows of her 19th-floor flat. The time-lapse footage alternates between day and night, depicting everything from minor street scenes to major events – fireworks, a fire, demonstrations and riots. Their political context is occasionally complemented by the sound of television news reports. Gradually, however, the filmmaker’s private life also becomes interwoven with her observations of the city: we hear conversations with her partner and read their messages to one another, ranging from everyday questions about what’s for dinner to tense moments in their relationship. Following the death of her life and film partner, the footage – originally a record of everyday life – takes on new meaning. While the image remains turned outwards, towards the city beyond the windows, the sound opens up the intimate space of a family whose members we never see directly. The bird’s-eye view maintains a distance from the events taking place far below the windows; at the same time, however, personal experience permeates the captured images. From fragments of the city, sounds, news reports and private conversations emerges a cinematic reflection on memory, mourning and the significance that ordinary moments acquire the instant they become memories.“It is a first-person account of a family looking outward while the story unfolding within gradually pulls them apart.” — Patricia Ayala RuizSource of the quote: Interview with the director. ALZATE VARGAS, César. Entrevista a Patricia Ayala Ruiz: Un diálogo que no termina. Canaguaro: Revista de cine colombiano.

If you want to see the war live, all you have to do is pay five shekels to look across the Israeli border at the devastated Gaza Strip. In Sderot, Jewish and Israeli society come together around a tourist telescope trained on the front line. An observational sociological study on the monetisation of war and the loss of compassion asks who these people are and how they feel.“Compassion, even when it feels almost impossible, may be the only place from which healing can begin.” This film was created independently through the voluntary collaboration of all creators. This is a fully independent film. No member of the creative or production team, and no member of the crew, received any payment for their work on the film. 

The fractured walls of unfinished houses in the filmmaker’s hometown become screens for images of family life crushed by punishing labour. The digitally resurrected voice of a “white glove” – an intermediary between Chinese authorities, banks and investors – recounts a life that came to a tragic end with the collapse of the property market. “My uncle was the ‘maverick’ of our family and at times a source of crises. His life was a wild obsession with land; his ambitions and solitude reflect a microcosm of China’s history, from land reform and urban demolition to the real estate debt crisis.” — Jingyuan Liang

“Mum’s back from the protests and she’s alive!” A young son greets his mother, who has become an activist in Afghanistan under the ruthless, reactionary rule of the Taliban. The shops, cafés and playgrounds she used to visit are closed. Universities are not operating, and social life for women is non-existent. Despite the ever-present risk and threat of death, Zainab joins other women in street protests to help topple the fundamentalist regime. 771 days under the Taliban rule begins and ends with a perilous escape with the most precious things the director and mother possesses – her son, a laptop, and a hard drive containing footage from this strictly guarded country. “The Taliban have spilled out onto the streets of our cities – Kabul, Herat, Mazar-i-Sharif, Farah. They have flooded our cities. They have flooded our streets, our homes, our dreams. The Taliban.”

This drama-documentary about student life at FAMU was presented as a series of episodes covering the student’s journey from the entrance interview and lectures to the making of a film. The narrative is stylised in a light-hearted, humorous manner, employing grotesque shorthand, irony, exaggeration and pantomime to illustrate the difficult lot of a film student faced with the school’s strict demands and the complexities of preparing and shooting a film. The film features students of the time – such as Pavel Juráček and Jaromil Jireš – and lecturers: A. M. Brousil leads a seminar on film criticism, Radovan Lukavský teaches film acting, František Daniel comments on a screenwriting exercise, and Jan Kučera assesses the footage: “Well, it’s not bad, but it’ll need some editing.” The film was produced by FAMU with extensive student involvement (camera, production, assistants, actors); however, it is not a student film, as its director had already been a graduate for five years and was teaching at the Department of Film Directing.

Ahmed moved back to Egypt from Saudi Arabia in 2017. That was the last time he saw his classmate and best friend. This evocative account of loss uses videos and an inner monologue to look back in time and, through six symbolic gifts, explores why some friendships fall apart and where the line between care and dependence lies.“I don't claim to have told the complete truth… but I hope that everything I’ve said here is true.”

This promotional film showcases the work of Czechoslovak Airlines. Using three flights as examples, it showcases some of the professions involved – pilots, technicians, air traffic controllers, hydrometeorologists – and a selection of typical situations, including the dramatic guidance of an aircraft in poor visibility. This work by Štefan Uher, a future pioneer of the Czechoslovak New Wave, is notable among other things for its striking visual style.

This portrayal of the lives of modern-day cowboys – labourers at pastoral cooperatives in the Šumava borderlands – emphasises their loneliness and the tedium of their monotonous, repetitive tasks in an isolated location, where the only entertainment are card games, the guitar, radio or the occasional letter delivered by border guards. The attempts to capture ambient sounds have a modern feel, though the herdsman’s narration is recorded in post-synchronisation. A formal highlight is the romanticised widescreen stylisation of the imagery (a first at FAMU) together with the melody of the song Riders in the Sky, reminiscent of American Westerns or J. Polák’s Czech film Death in the Saddle (1958). The superb work of lifelong friends – cinematographers J. Franta and I. Šlapeta – is also evident in the panoramic shots of the objects on the floor and on the walls of the barracks. The work is a documentary exercise by second-year students of the Department of Film and Television Journalism.

The film captures a performance by the actors of the Toulavý Kabaret (Wandering Cabaret) in the Reduta Hall, featuring characters with real names but fictional backgrounds and biographies. The individual sketches take place against a black backdrop and are imbued with black humour and absurdity. Kraus was already an experienced stage actor at the time, and Sýkora had appeared in major films of the Czechoslovak New Wave, whose directors also cooperated with cinematographer Dodo Šimončič. Following the August occupation of Czechoslovakia, both actors emigrated – Kraus to West Germany and Sýkora to the USA, the latter of which was also home to the film’s director. This work is a television exercise by second-year students of the Department of Directing.

Adelina, a young Georgian trans woman, spent eleven years locked away in her family home, where her parents hid her for fear of the hatred of a conservative society. It was only her escape to Vienna that brought her the freedom she longed for and the chance to devote herself to her love of dance. However, the ties to the past are hard to sever. As she gets used to her new life in exile on the outskirts of a foreign city, her mother back in Georgia faces harassment. Through compelling imagery and sound design, director Rati Tsiteladze brings to life the protagonist’s relationship with her family and her own body. In doing so, he delves beneath the surface of the trauma she has endured and shows just how difficult it can be to find a true home. “Ever since I was a child, I’ve wanted to be a dancer.” 

This documentary on FAMU is designed with an emphasis on its informative and promotional role. It presents FAMU as a renowned school with a practical focus (“film as a noble form of entertainment is taught through the act of filmmaking”); an institution with international achievements (the New Wave phenomenon) and an openness to international students. The curriculum is covered in detail (from the production of feature films to physical education, which is “the most photogenic of all the compulsory theoretical subjects”), while other sections feature interviews with prominent alumni (Jan Němec, Pavel Juráček, Juraj Jakubisko) and key founders (A. M. Brousil, Karel Plicka); commentary and film clips run throughout. The film was made by the director after she had completed her studies and was produced by Krátký film based on a contract with the Commission for the Promotion of Film Abroad.