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Czech That

New and interesting voices in Czach film today
"Why do I make movies? I'm looking for terra incognita, a land on which no filmmaker has yet set foot, a planet where no director has planted his flag of conquest, a world that exists only in fairy tales."
Karel Zeman
Film director and animator
 
Dear friends of Czech film,
It is August again and with it comes the annual Czech Film Week festival.
We consistently introduce works by talented young directors and producers to the Israeli audience. This year we are featuring some of the output of the producer Jan Macola, who will be our guest. We are opening with WE ARE NEVER ALONE, a dark drama with elements of grotesque black humor by the helmer-writer Petr Vaclav, which became a sensation at the Berlin IFF (we are also showing Vaclav’s other recent film, THE WAY OUT). If you need to restore your faith in humanity a little and challenge your perception of what is ‘normal’, then make sure not to miss the feature documentary NORMAL AUTISTIC FILM, a deeply compassionate, wonderfully funny and beautifully shot insight into the world of autistic children by Mira Janek. Deservedly rewarded with the Czech Academy Award for best documentary, it is one of my personal favorites. Olmo Omerzu’s FAMILY FILM travelled to and collected prizes at festivals the world over, and I hope you too will enjoy this eccentric mix of the comic and serious. I, OLGA HEPNAROVA is a true story of a woman who mowed down eight strangers on a Prague sidewalk in 1973. Screened at the Haifa IFF, the film gains additional meanings in the Israeli context, so we decided to include it in the Czech Film Week as well.
We are inching closer toward closing a coproduction agreement between the Czech Republic and Israel, so alongside our selection we are also showing THE MAN WITH AN IRON HEART, a Czech-themed story of the assassination of the brutal architect of the Final Solution, Reinhard Heydrich, in Prague in 1942. Not everyone was involved in the resistance though, as the fascinating documentary DOOMED BEAUTY about the most famous Czech actress of the WWII period, and her love affair with the Nazi propagandist Goebbels, shows.  
The Czech Centre has a close cooperation with the Train Theatre and the International Puppet Festival in Jerusalem. This year the festival celebrates the spirit of Karel Zeman’s amazing, fantastic world of animation that inspired such filmmakers as Steven Spielberg or Terry Gilliam. It is therefore fitting we pay homage to his genius during Czech Film Week too. Get ready for a true cinematic gem – you will surely be mesmerized by the beautifully restored THE FABULOUS WORLD OF BARON MUNCHHAUSEN, and will marvel at the unique mix of acting and animation and the elaborate tricks invented well before the time of computers. 
I believe the selection is wide enough to find a film to suit your taste, so now just lean back and enjoy the movies of Czech Film Week 2017!
Lukas Pribyl
Director
Czech Centre Tel Aviv
 

The Fabulous Baron Munchausen

Dir.: Karel Zeman
| 83 minutes

The tales of Baron Munchhausen receive a unique cinematic adaptions in the hands of the great Czech animator Karel Zeman. He takes the famous adventure stories and designs them in combination with Victorian images and expressionist amusements, resulting in a one-time cinematic celebration. 

We Are Never Alone

Dir.: Petr Václav
| 105 minutes

A store clerk tries to provide for her family, but suffers in the hands of her abusive hypochondriac husband. She believes she’s in love with one of her clients, but those feelings lead to nowhere. Petr Václav continues to examine with great sobriety life in the Czech Republic today. 

The Way Out

Dir.: Petr Václav
| 102 minutes

Zaneta and her family live in a housing project and try to keep afloat, but it is not so simple when you are Roma. The Way Out is a portrait of a young woman who wants to save her family. With determination and candidness the film examines the limits of social solidarity. 

The Man with the Iron Heart

Dir.: Cédric Jimenez
| 120 minutes

A thriller based on Laurent Binet’s bestseller about the assassination attempt on Reinhard Heydrich, Nazi criminal, architect of the “Final Solution.” The film portrays his personal life alongside his military activities. 

Doomed Beauty

Dir.: Helena Třeštíková, Jakub Hejna
| 90 minutes

Lida Baarova was a famous film star in Czechoslovakia in the 1930s, she was also Joseph Goebbels mistress. A thought-provoking portrait of an artist that could only speak of herself and decidedly ignored the horrors of the time. 

Family Film

Dir.: Olmo Omerzu
| 95 minutes

A married couple embarks on a sailing holiday, leaving behind their son and daughter. The yacht capsizes, the family dog disappears and the family faces a crisis. This smart, refreshing family drama was a hit at last year's festivals.

Normal Autistic Film

Dir.: Miroslav Janek
| 90 minutes

Director Miroslav Janek follows the lives of five youngsters that are on the Autism spectrum. One of the most stunning documentaries of the past few years, sensitive and offering a beautiful combination of humor and warmth. 

I, Olga Hepnarova

Dir.: Petr Kazda, Tomás Weinreb
| 105 minutes

Olga Hepnarova was a lonely young woman, always finding herself in conflict with conventions, the time, and herself. Until that faithful day, when her paranoia pushed her to do the unthinkable. Michalina Olszanska gives a mesmerizing performance of a woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown.