News archive / News detail
29.04.2005
Czech Filmmakers PresentUpcoming Feature Films in Pilsen
Czech Filmmakers Present Upcoming Feature Film Projects in PilsenPress Release
Pilsen, 29 April 2005 – The Panel of Upcoming Film Projects, organized by Czech Film Center in cooperation with Media Desk CR and Finále Plzeň, took place in Pilsen today at the 18th annual Finále Plzeň film festival. The filmmakers presented more than fifty Czech feature films in various stages of completion – finished screenplays, film projects in production and films in post-production.
\\\"Czech Film Center’s goal is to bring contemporary Czech cinematography into the spotlight, particularly abroad, in a systematic way. We’re trying to provide Czech film professionals with the requisite contacts and to help them plug into the existing network in the international film industry. The Panel of Upcoming Film Projects in Pilsen is one of the ways we do that. And it is the only presentation of forthcoming Czech films there is. It gives domestic and foreign journalists, film professionals and festival organizers a current overview of contemporary Czech film and an indication of what they’ll have to choose from in the near future,” explains Jana Černík, Director of Czech Film Center.
With regard to finished screenplays, more than thirty projects were presented, some of which will be filmed in the immediate future. Among them were Loving Hell from director Alice Nellis and producer Pavel Šolc and Grandhotel from director and producer David Ondříček. Producer Vratislav Šlajer of Bionaut Films presented four current projects, including Carp from Icelandic director Börkur Gunnarsson and Substitute starring Ivan Trojan.
Václav Marhoul and Tomáš Vorel presented their latest projects as well.
At the end of this year, AQS and BIOSCOP will begin filming I Served the King of England, based on Bohumil Hrabal’s novel of the same name and directed by Jiří Menzel.
As for films in production, producer Kateřina Černá of Negativ presented the upcoming films Good Times Without Warranty (Hezké chvilky bez záruky) from director Věra Chytilová and Kisses (Pusinky, originally titled The Last Summer/Poslední léto) from director Karin Babinská. The filmmaking trio Ondřej Trojan – Petr Jarchovský – Jan Hřebejk also presented a new film, Beauty in Trouble (Kráska v nesnázích), inspired by the poem of the same name by Robert Graves. Their latest flick will feature Aňa Geislerová, Emília Vášáryová and Jana Brejchová and will start filming this summer.
Projects in post-production presented at the panel included, among others: Lunacy (Šílení) from director and designer Jan Švankmajer and producer Jaromír Kallista, Something Like Happiness (Štěstí) from director Bohdan Sláma and producer Pavel Strnad, and Pavel Göbl’s directing debut Still Living... (Ještě žiju s věšákem, plácačkou a čepicí) produced by Jiří Konečný.
Like last year, a bilingual brochure of the forthcoming projects was published to accompany this year’s panel. It will be available for downloading at http://www.filmcenter.cz.
Besides journalists and Czech filmmakers, the panel was also attended by representatives of the most important European film festivals: Joel Chapron, IFF Cannes Delegate for Eastern Europe, Anna Hoffmann, Programm Coordinator of the FORUM section at IFF Berlin, Sergio Germani, IFF Venice Delegate for the Czech Republic, and Robert Richter, IFF San Sebastiano Delagate for Eastern Europe. The panel naturally attracted a number of foreign distributors and international sales representatives, too. “The presentation of projects during Finále Plzeň is a great market. It’s a wonderful opportunity to hook up partners who can easily begin working together and elevate Czech projects to the international level,” said the Austrian co-producer of Želary Danny Krausz (Dor Film), who attended the panel for the second time in a row. “I had heard of the plans for Želary before I went to Pilsen for my first meeting with producer Ondřej Trojan. That meeting resulted in the effective co-production with Austria and the film’s box-office success. In 2004, Želary contributed to increasing the attendance of Austrian film-goers at films from the participating countries. Before that, no Czech film had received the kind of attention Želary did. When such contacts are further developed a supported by both parties, financial benefits come into play. The festival in Pilsen has an international audience, which is strengthening its standing on the international scene. Moreover, when new laws supporting cinematography take effect and start helping my Czech colleagues, there will be nothing to stop us from building even more productive cooperation between our two countries in the future.”
For more information contact: Jana Černík, +420724329949, ; Markéta Šantrochová, +420724329948, ; Renata Elhenická, +420602935760, .
