2024-04-06 10:46:48
The European Film Days festival, which has just started, offers more than thirty films. It takes place in Prague, Brno and Ostrava cinemas until Tuesday, April 9. The program of the 31st year of the event includes works by renowned directors as well as fresh debuts awarded at prestigious shows in Cannes and Venice.
The audience will see, for example, the village drama Tired Hope by Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan, winner of the Palme d’Or from the Cannes festival and the last representative of Turkey in the fight for the Oscar. The film tells the story of a young village teacher from Anatolia who has been waiting four years to be transferred to Istanbul. He already stops hoping when his colleague gives him back his hope.
The program also includes a new documentary by Wim Wenders about the German painter and sculptor Anselm Kiefer, a film by Bulgarian director Stefan Komandarev called Blažiny lekce, which won last year at the Karlovy Vary festival, or Don’t Expect Anything Good from the End of the World, which is a new film by the acclaimed Romanian director Radu Jude. According to the organizers, it speaks grotesquely about the time ruled by the social network TikTok and wild capitalism.
Among the works of acclaimed directors, the audience can also look forward to last year’s Chimera by the Italian creator Alice Rohrwacherová, winner of the screenplay award from Cannes. It tells the story of a man who can recognize the places where ancient Etruscan treasures are hidden. While he searches for his lost love, his friends use their rare abilities to become fabulously rich.
According to the organizers, the images reflect current topics regardless of genre. In Prague, viewers can go to the cinemas Světozor, Edison Filmhub and Přítomnost. In Brno, the screenings are hosted by the Art cinema, and in Ostrava by Minikino. The program is on the website. From April 10 to 14, festival echoes will head to dozens of cities.
The main competition focuses on debuts. The upcoming generation belongs to the section called First time, viewers can look forward to, for example, a black comedy with elements of the thriller Vincent must die by the French director Stéphane Castang.
In the film Paradise in Flames, a socialite disrupts the idyll. | Photo: Days of European Film
With two awards from Venice for direction and screenplay under 40, Swedish director Mika Gustafson’s debut entitled Paradise in Flames will also head to Prague. In it, teenage Laura takes care of two younger sisters while her mother is away for an extended period of time. The carefree summer melts away when a socialite comes calling.
Another competition section, Film & Music, will be occupied by documentaries, feature films and animated films revolving around rhythm and melody. This section will offer, for example, a portrait of Daaaaaalí!, in which the musician and director Quentin Dupieux offers a story as fantastic as the paintings of the surrealist painter Salvador Dalí.
The festival will pay tribute to the Austrian director Jessica Hausner. It will offer her successful films Lovely Rita, Hotel, Lourdes and, in the Czech preview, the novelty Club Zero. In it, Mia Wasikowska as Miss Novaková comes to a prestigious boarding school to show the students the latest food trends and teach them to eat consciously. However, a dangerously strong bond develops between her and the children, and the parents accuse her of manipulating their offspring. The screening will also include a masterclass with a filmmaker.
The Days of European Film will also present films dedicated to ecology and the relationship between man and the environment, to which a separate section entitled Living Planet is dedicated. The accompanying program will include discussions, screenings for seniors and schools, seminars for professionals and children’s workshops. For example, in Ostrava, after the release of the film Blažiny lekce, whose heroine is robbed by fraudsters of the money saved for her husband’s grave, there is a debate with experts about the unfair practices of businessmen and lying to the elderly.
European Film Days is a competitive festival for the third year. In the main competition of debuts, the winner will be chosen by a jury consisting of actress and curator of the Sharing Therapy project Ester Geislerová, director of distribution company Aerofilms Ivo Andrle and producer Jakub Jíra. In addition, the award for the best musical film and the Lux Audience Award, presented by the European Parliament in cooperation with the European Film Academy, will be announced. The winners will be announced on Tuesday.
Video: Trailer from the movie Club Zero
The film Club Zero tells the story of a dangerous bond between students and a teacher who teaches them the latest food trends. | Video: Aerofilms