Národní 28, 110 00 Prague 1, Czech Republic, Tel.: +420 221 105 321, Fax: +420 221 105 303, info@filmcenter.cz, www.filmcenter.cz
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D: Ivo Trajkov
CZ 2007 I 84 min I 35 mm
Cast: Ivo Trajkov, Miroslav
Táborský, Karel Zima, Madla
Zimová
Domestic release:
September 27, 2007
A nameless director (played by the director himself) has hit rock bottom:
His production firm has gone bankrupt.
All he has left, apart from his artistic plans, are debts. His private life has fallen apart, he can’t establish a more permanent relationship with anyone.
Nevertheless he can’t resist the temptation. He buys an amateur camera and aimlessly crosses the countryside in his mistress’ car, meeting up with both a silent hitchhiker and with a female hitchhiker (or hitchhikers that look alike), who tell of their experiences with loves, without hiding their sexual desire. And he has to continually decide whether to share the ride with the peculiar, though charismatic young man, or with the outwardly unavailable girl.
D: Lucie Králová
CZ 2006 I 95 min I 35 mm
Documentary film
Domestic release:
September 27, 2007 www.lostholiday.com
In 2001 Czech tourist Láďa found a suitcase containing 22 rolls of undeveloped film in a Swedish dumpster. When developed, the negatives produced 756 snapshots of unknown Chinese tourists on their trip through Scandinavia.
Documentary filmmaker Lucie Králová and her team decided to search for those people based on their lost photos in a world where every fourth person is Chinese. The documentary detective story Lost Holiday is a film about travel, photos, and identity in an interconnected world, about memory and the importance of treasuring images, about Czechs,
Europeans, and Chinese.
D: Juraj Jakubisko
SK, CZ, UK, HU 2007 I 140 min I
35 mm
Cast: Anna Friel, Hans Matheson,
Karel Roden, Deana Horváthová
Domestic release: October 25, 2007 www.thebathorymovie.com
The gruesome tale of Countess
Elizabeth Bathory, notorious yet obscure, has been recounted by historians, writers, poets, playwrights, musicians, painters, and moviemakers. Tradition has it that
Countess Bathory was the greatest murderess in the history of humankind, as documented by her entry in the Guinness Book of
Records. She tortured her victims, exclusively women, before killing them. She bathed in their blood, and tore the flesh from their bodies with her teeth while they were still alive.
Through his lens of magical fantasy, director Juraj Jakubisko lifts the veil on the horrific legend and presents its many faces in this provocative new film inspired by the life of this notorious woman.
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D: Miloslav Novák
CZ, IT 2007 I 100 min I 35 mm
Documentary film
Domestic release:
November 1, 2007 www.mirstuleni.cz
Framed by two stories, this feature documentary fable deals with the concept of “human nature.” The first story is about a seal named Gaston who, according to the Prague Zoo director, became “the most famous animal on earth” after he managed to reach Germany during a devastating flood. The second story took place 50 years earlier and tells the life story of a seal named Ulysses and the photojournalist who, in front of the cameras, tossed the animal into the famous Di Trevi fountain.
Fellini took inspiration from the story for La Dolce Vita. Referring to photojournalists such as
Patellani, he coined the term
“paparazzi”, i.e. those who create the “nature” of contemporary man.
D: Michal Krajňák
CZ 2007 I 100 min I 35 mm
Cast: Petr Čtvrtníček, Josef
Polášek, Jiří Lábus, Rudolf
Hrušínský
Domestic release:
November 8, 2007 www.posledniplavky.cz
Jarda Kuchar, a small-time hustler, rents out his apartment every summer only to escape to a remote lake in the middle of nowhere. For three months each year he is the big-city-weary hotshot in a former holiday resort, especially for a local villager named Kamil Hospes, with whom
Jarda runs the picturesque pub
Tropicana. The regulars consist of a pair of odd-ball brothers, Jirka and Peter, and a caretaker of the local transformer station, Pepa
Vrtilek. However, this season will be different: a local legend
(a monster of a catfish called
Lojza) has appeared! And ever opportunity-oriented Jarda sees a chance to improve his income.
D: Kryštof Hanzlík
CZ 2007 I 90 min I 35 mm
Cast: Agáta Hanychová, Pavla
Tomicová, Kryštof Hádek
Domestic release:
November 15, 2007 www.crashroad.com
Veronica longs to fly, because staying stuck on the ground means refusing everything adventuresome, romantic and pleasant that life has to offer. But her life is different: Veronica lives with her mother, an alcoholic, and her mother’s partner. One day, when he is drunk, he chases Veronica to the roof of a house and falls off, killing himself. Because he was in debt as he was addicted to gambling, his creditor starts threatening Veronica. Her mother will not protect her since she is always drunk. Thus, the young girl must leave home. She tends to meet boors and egotistic bastards on her journeys, but Veronica does not intend to give up. Because if a person can find good people, then she can fly too...
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D: Martin Dolenský
CZ 2007 I 85 min I 35 mm
Cast: Michal Malátný, Tatiana
Vilhelmová
Domestic release:
November 29, 2007 www.chyttedoktora.cz
Nothing very unusual has happened to Michal. He finds himself in the middle of a situation he is partly responsible for and partly not, but it’s up to him to solve it.
Everyone expects it of him and he himself would like to arrange things honourably and peacefully for everyone involved. But it isn’t possible. There seem to be plenty of alternatives. And because this is a film, Michal can try all of them. We have all found ourselves in pretty much the same situation, even if it wasn’t quite as critical, and how we desperately searched for any kind of at least somewhat honourable way out.... Was there any?
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D: Dušan Klein
CZ 2008 I 100 min I 35 mm
Cast: Bolek Polívka, Josef
Somr, Jan Budař
Domestic release:
January 10, 2008 www.svatbanabitevnimpoli.cz
Distinctive characters, a kind view of their dreams, worries and transgressions, which none of us can avoid, and an original plot.
This is the prepossessing setting of a comedy that will take us to
Zvestov, a picturesque Moravian village, where the men like to act out a famous Napoleonic battle.
They do it with such enthusiasm that they almost cause a tragedy and turn the romantic wedding of
Tomas and a beautiful French girl,
Claire, into bloodshed. In the end, everything is resolved with common sense, humour and love, which will drown out all the sabre-rattling and is more powerful than dreams about fame.
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D: Jiří Vejdělek
CZ 2008 I 90 min I 35 mm
Cast: Ivan Trojan, Jan Budař,
Emília Vášáryová, Jiří Lábus
Domestic release:
January 3, 2008 www.bucfilm.cz
Václav, the village loser, in his
40’s bordering on autism, lives with his widowed mother on the outskirts of the village. He is seen by villagers as the local fool, nothing but a constant pain for them, but there is also a skeleton in the village closet concerning his father’s death. He gets no mercy from his brother
František either. The two forever compete for the attention of their mother, and now even for
František’s mistress Lída. The tension between Václav, his brother and the village escalates into a criminal act. Václav is put into prison. Mother decides to ask for a presidential pardon from Václav Havel, but the village referendum is a must to submit the request...
Coming Soon
Experts
Fimfárum II.
Grandhotel
Pleasant Moments
Indian and the Nurse
Taming Crocodiles
Rail Yard Blues
Beauty in Trouble
Marta
I Served the King of England
Virginity Sucks
Born Into Shit
Money Makes Man
Rules of Lying
The Rafters
The Ro©k Con Artists
Holiday Makers
Best Wishes!
Czech Phenomenon: Dancing Lessons
Violin Knight
Industrial Elegy
Who Will Teach Me the Half of the Character
Left, Right, Forward
I’ve Got to Tell You
Never Been Better
Half Past Three
Reminiscences
I Guess We’ll Meet at the Eurocamp
Encounters with Film
The Events of Pavel Štecha
Záviš, the Prince of Pornofolk…
Lost Holiday
TRAILERS
INTERVIEWS WITH THE DIRECTORS
FILM EVENTS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC
CATALOGUE OF CZECH FILMS 2006 – 2007 IN PDF VERSION

The most tireless Czech director Jan Hřebejk started shooting his brand new film U mě dobrý on August 14 even before his last feature Teddybear has been released to Czech cinemas
(September 6) . His new comedy, in the spirit of one of his last comedies Cosy dens (1999), once again stars Bolek Polívka, Jiří
Schmitzer and Petr Forman. The Czech premiere is planned for
May 2008.
Director Michaela Pavlátová (Faithless Games) is in preproduction of her newest film Night Owls . The 0.9 mio Euro budget budget production (from the production company
Negativ) is a coming-of-age drama about losing love and finding one's self, starring Martha Issová and Jiří Mádl.
Shooting will start in October 2007.
Karin Babinská’s debut Dolls will have its international premiere at this years Montreal World Film Festival. Her debut, which was awarded best film at the domestic film festival
Pilsen Finále, tells the story of three young girls hitchhiking into Western Europe and will compete in the First Films World
Competition. The Bitch’s Diary by Irena Pavlasková, another
Czech feature film, will be screened in the Focus on World
Cinema section at Montreal.
2005 San Sebastian winner Bohdan Sláma is currently in production of his newest feature Country Teacher . Once again, just like in his previous film Something like Happiness , it will feature Pavel Liška as the main character. The international co-production (Pallas Films /D, Why Not Production /F, Negativ
/CZ) will have its Czech premiere in Fall 2008.
The Czech Film Commission visited the filming of the French period film
Faubourg 36 on the set in Prague-Letňany. In one of the halls here the sets of the
“Chansonia” theatre, in and around which the film’s story takes place, have been put up. Paris, 1936: Three unemployed theatre staff use the French general strike in order to take over their former home theatre "Chansonia" to present their own programme in it. But they run up against an unscrupulous speculator, who doesn’t want them to succeed…
The film’s director is Christophe Barratier, who debuted with the film Les
Choristes , which was the most-attended French film of 2004 and was also nominated for two Oscars, among other awards. Galatée Films produces the film,
Pathé Renn Production, Constantin Film Produktion and Blue Screen Productions act as coproducers, the last being also executive producer in the Czech Republic.
The film is an important job for the Czech film industry both with regard to the number of filming days and concerning the construction of the sets and decorations. The Czech Republic will see 76 of the total 81 shooting days. The production, which started with 5 shooting days in France in July, will remain in the Czech Republic until October 17th.
Extensive backdrops and sets were built here at several locations around Prague;
80% of the shooting is taking place on sets, which are all in the Czech Republic.
The film’s budget is approx. 28 million EUR and around 25% of this will be spent in the Czech Republic. There is a crew of 150 people working on the film, two-thirds of which are Czechs. Not to mention 4,500 extras that will be used during shooting and they are all local.
“A film with such demands on the set construction and extras is very expensive if shooting in France. So we started to look for locations outside of France, where we could shoot the film cheaper but in the same quality. And the Czech Republic was the best choice for several reasons.” production manager Francois Hamel explains.
Good accessibility and the distance from Paris to Prague were reasons that made a difference. There are several flights daily. Some actors, for example, can comfortably shuttle between Prague and Paris. As far as transporting materials by car it is a question of a day. That would all increase the cost in countries that lie farther east. Another huge plus is Czech experience with work on high-budget projects and on period projects. Last, but not least, the Czech Republic is known for the professionalism of its film professionals and the high quality of the set construction. “The main concerns such as construction, decorations and costumes, and also camera and lighting technicians, were important for us,” Francois Hamel elaborates, adding: “The extras were also another reason. We needed several thousand extras that look like Parisians, which we found in the Czech Republic.”
The French producers are very satisfied with the cooperation with the Czech partners and the Czech crew. “They are all completely professional, reliable. They understand what projects like ours need. The shooting is very well prepared and is smooth as silk,” Mr. Hamel confirms.
THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA:
THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE (2005)
Following the blockbuster movie The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe , partially shot in the Czech Republic in 2005, The
Chronicles of Narnia returned to Prague with its sequel Prince Caspian . On one of the film’s sets, in the forest near Dobříš,
Central Bohemia, we caught up with the producer Mark Johnson.
You have been filming here for five months and there is still a month to go. What is your assessment of the filming so far?
The filming has gone entirely without a hitch. At the beginning we were a little worried about how such a large and very international team would adjust and how they would cooperate amongst themselves. We have people here from different countries, there are about 150 foreigners in the crew, the other roughly two-thirds of the crew are Czechs. The cooperation has gone completely smoothly. The Czech crew is very experienced and professional. We also can’t praise the work in the studios enough. Barrandov Studios are great, you can feel the filming tradition in the older ateliers and the new stages are also fantastic. And Barrandov has a great back lot, where it was possible to build a huge and wonderful castle decoration.
And what were the main reasons for choosing the Czech Republic?
The film’s director, Andrew Adamson, is from New Zealand, and of course he would have rather filmed there. The better part of the first Narnia film was filmed there, too. But this time we were looking for a better combination of location and infrastructure, especially as far as soundproof studios are concerned. We primarily needed forests, wooded areas, for exteriors. We went to look at many European countries, and here in the Czech Republic we found suitable locations and wonderful studios. The standard of living in Prague also decided in its favour. It didn’t take long to convince anyone in the crew to come here to work and live. That can’t be said about every destination. Andrew Adamson also consulted with other directors who have already filmed in the Czech Republic, including Martin Campbell, the director of Casino Royale, and they all recommended filming in Prague.
Do you think that tax incentives, if they could be implemented, would speak in favour of the Czech Republic?
Certainly. Incentives are very important at the current time. You have a film industry at the highest level in the Czech
Republic and introducing incentives would ensure it is preserved and your competitiveness is maintained.
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian is a Walden Media and Disney production. The Prague based international production company Stillking Films handles the local services and serves also as associate producer. The film’s premiere is planned for May, 2008.
D: Jan Svěrák I CZ, UK 2007 I 97 min
Public screening 1:
Public screening 2:
P & I screening:
P & I screening:
Sept 7th
Sept 9th
Sept 8th
Sept 10th
9:00 PM
9:45 AM
7:30 PM
9:00 PM
Cumberland 1
Cumberland 2
Varsity VIP 2
Varsity 4
D: Jiří Vejdělek I CZ, SK, RO 2007 I 110 min
Public screening 1:
Public screening 2:
Public screening 3:
P & I screening:
P & I screening:
Sept 8th
Sept 10th
Sept 14th
Sept 7th
Sept 9th
7:45 PM
9:15 AM
11:45 AM
9:30 AM
4:45 PM
Varsity 2
Cumberland 2
Varsity 6
Varsity 6
Varsity VIP 3
D: Jiří Menzel I CSSR 1966 I 90 min
Public screening: Sept 10th 3:30 PM Cumberland 2