Czech Joy

When director and ethnologist Hana Nováková encountered an elk, it changed her life. And she wasn't the first. For centuries, people across continents and cultures have been fascinated by this ancient totem animal, one of the largest mammals in the northern hemisphere. Whereas in the past they wanted to conquer it, today they tend to listen to it. The director's cinematic odyssey is the result of several years of searching for the secrets of the moose. It leads from Czech forests through a Russian domestication station to the territory of the indigenous peoples of Canada. A collage of stories told from personal, spiritual, and scientific perspectives shows the moose as a guide between worlds, a symbol of balance and renewal, and a possible answer to the question of how we can heal our relationship with nature.“Filming animals across the planet is an extraordinarily epic undertaking—all the more so when it involves a ‘process film,’ i.e., the unfolding observation of events whose outcome we often cannot predict, even though we know for certain that they were triggered by the filming itself.” — Hana NovákováSource: Dok.revue

What determines the value of a work of art? One of the most discussed, and at the same time most elusive, questions of the contemporary art market is at the centre of Jan Strejcovský’s situational satire. Controversial art collector Robert Runták, gallery owner Olga Trčková, and intermedia artist Jiří David reflect on this from their respective positions. From the mosaic of confident statements and unlikely encounters between different worlds and opinions, it emerges that story, reputation, time, taste, emotions, trends, and contacts all play a role. Ultimately, however, it is mainly about agreement. Between those who create art, and those who pay for it. Strejcovský’s film also plays with the beliefs and expectations of the audience. Perhaps we are watching reality, perhaps a mystifying provocation.

Inspired by Jonas Mekas' diary films and his father's home videos, Michal Böhm composes a candid self-portrait of his own desire for fatherhood from numerous visual fragments. Six years of life, dozens of gestures, smiles, and silent faces captured by the nimble eye of an 8mm camera. A breakup with a partner, a new relationship, his mother's serious illness, meetings with friends. Demonstrations, pandemics, war, and weddings. Things both fleeting and fundamental. Life as a fabric of fleeting impressions and the camera as a tool that captures, shapes, and preserves them for future generations. And above all, reflections on the future and the legacy we will leave behind, and doubts about whether this is the right world and the right time to have a child.“But there had to be a soundtrack, and an 8mm camera doesn't record sound on its own. So in the end, I used fragments of conversations and excerpts from my own and other people's speech.” — Michal BöhmSource: Dok.revue

Peter will soon be eighteen. He already has the physique of an adult man. And considerable strength, which he sometimes turns against himself, sometimes against those close to him, including his father, who is raising him alone. Outbursts of aggression are a way for the adolescent boy to give vent to feelings and needs that he cannot otherwise articulate due to his autism spectrum disorder. His disability requires him to be constantly on guard. Despite this, and despite financial and institutional limitations, Peter's father, his sister Vanesa, and a pair of assistants try to create an accepting, safe environment for the boy. This intimate observational documentary, filmed over three years, highlights the patience and dedication of people who have decided to devote their lives to caring for others.“The film should therefore be a tribute to people in caregiving positions. We want to show what they have to deal with in life, their motivations and doubts, and also what life or working with disabled people brings them.” — Martin TrabalíkSource: Dok.revue