The Sundance Film Festival will world premiere two films with Czech minority co-production participation. In previous years, the American festival introduced Bohdan Sláma´s family drama Four Suns (2012) followed by Czech filmmakers with short films. In 2016, director Ondřej Hudeček's short film Peacock, the first Czech film to ever bow at the U.S. festival, won the Short Film Special Jury Award for Best Director at the festival while in 2020 two animated shorts by students from FAMU made it to the short film competition: award-winning, critically acclaimed and the Oscar-nominated puppet film Daughter (2019) by Daria Kashcheeva that eventually won the Short Film Jury Award and SH_T HAPPENS (2019) by Michaela Mihályi and David Štumpf.

This year, the Czech participation at the Sundance FF extends through minority co-productions on feature-length projects: Georgi Unkovski’s DJ Ahmet will premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition and Mr. Nobody Against Putin by David Borenstein in the World Cinema Documentary Competition. However, the Czech Republic’s strong reputation in animation will be reaffirmed with the inclusion of Jan Saska’s latest short animated film, Hurikan, in the Short Film Program. 

After an eventful festival run starting at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award, Saska´s film has bowed at DOK Leipzig, Sitges International Film Festival, Ottawa International Animation Festival, or Melbourne International Film Festival among others before landing in Utah. Following the success of his Oscar-shortlisted Happy End (2016), Hurikan ventures into the hard-boiled genre with a uniquely Czech sensibility. The film follows its pig-headed protagonist on a chaotic, action-packed night as he attempts to deliver a keg of beer to a shop run by a barmaid he hopes to impress. Rendered in monochrome with a 2D, comic book-inspired noir aesthetic, Hurikan reflects influences from Katsuhiro Otomo, Hayao Miyazaki, and Sylvain Chomet. Produced by Martin Vandas of MAUR film and Kamila Dohnalová of Last Films, in collaboration with partners from France, Slovakia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, French sales company Miyu Distribution handles the international rights to Hurikan.

Spinning traditions

U.S.-born writer and director Georgi Unkovski who grew up in Macedonia is no stranger to Sundance Film Festival. Unkovski premiered his short film Sticker (2019), a dramedy about Dejan who after an unsuccessful attempt to renew his car registration falls in a bureaucratic trap that tests his determination to be a responsible father, at the U.S. festival. The film won over 50 awards and was acquired by HBO Europe. While Unkovski graduated at the Rochester Institute of Technology, he moved to the Czech Republic to pursue a post-graduate program at the FAMU in Prague, and shot more than 10 student films during this period. 

DJ Ahmet is Unkovski´s feature-length debut that portrays generational conflict and cultural transformation in a secluded Yoruk village in North Macedonia. The film centers on a young boy Ahmet whose passion for electronic music is at odds with the conservative values of his community. Living in the remote village, far from modern urban influences, Ahmet aspires to become a DJ—a career that symbolizes his yearning for personal expression and a break from the pastoral traditions upheld by his fathers’ generation.

The coming of age story gains emotional depth as Ahmet falls in love with a local girl whose parents have already arranged her marriage against her will. This subplot underpins the clash between individual desires and social norms and mirrors Ahmet’s own struggle to reconcile his aspirations with the constraints of his environment. 

Shot between October and December 2023 in the villages of Kodzalia and Ali Koç near Radovish, as well as in Skopje, the cinematographer Naum Doksevski captures the Balkan landscape creating a vivid contrast between the idyllic rural setting and the modern aspirations represented by Ahmet’s electronic music. Unkovski employs a storytelling that balances intimate character studies with broader social commentary. The film’s pacing and tone reflect the tension between the slow rhythms of traditional village life and the dynamic energy of Ahmet’s music. Social media and digital aesthetics are woven into the visual language, underscoring the film’s themes of generational shift.

The film is a co-production between North Macedonia´s Cinema Futura and Sektor Film, alongside Czech Alter Vision and Analog Vision, Serbia’s Film House Bas Čelik and Backroom Productions and 365 films from Croatia .

The Czech Film Fund supported the project with €120 000, underscoring the country’s commitment to fostering diverse and international stories, particularly in projects that navigate cross-cultural themes. Czech involvement extends beyond funding, bringing creative and technical expertise to the production as the whole film has been edited in the Czech Republic and Czech-based North Macedonian director and FAMU guarantor at the editing department Ivo Trajkov supervised the script as a story editor. Films Boutique has picked up international rights to DJ Ahmet.

While DJ Ahmet is a regional story, the film embraces a universal topic of exploration of how young people navigate the pressures of tradition, modernity, and personal freedom. The film’s focus on electronic music as a symbol of change and individuality makes it especially relevant to younger audiences internationally, offering a look at how global youth cultures intersect with local identities.

Defying propaganda

Mr. Nobody Against Putin, the latest documentary by U.S.-born, Denmark-based filmmaker David Borenstein, offers an unprecedented glimpse into life in Putin's Russia through the eyes of Pavel “Pasha” Talankin, a teacher turned accidental documentarian. Premiering in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at Sundance, the film uncovers the chilling impact of state propaganda. Borenstein frequently explores the intersection of cultural identity, migration, and globalization, often employing intimate, character-driven approach to illuminate larger social issues. 

Talankin is beloved by his students and provides a sanctuary for self-expression within the school in a small town of Karabash. However, with the onset of the war in Ukraine, the state mandates propaganda lessons that transform his role from mentor to enforcer of hollow slogans. In a quiet act of defiance, Talankin keeps the camera rolling—filming not only state-ordered activities but also the broader social shifts gripping his town. These thousands of clandestine recordings form the backbone of a film that juxtaposes moments of everyday life with the devastating consequences of authoritarianism, as former students are sent to the frontlines, some never to return.

The Czech Republic has been previously a coproducer on documentaries about shifts in the Russian society including the Russo-Ukrainian war. The Czech production outfit Hypermarket Films consistently partners on projects by Vitaly Mansky (Eastern Front, Gorbachev. Heaven, Putin's Witnesses), while also producing Filip Remunda´s latest feature-length documentary Happiness to All (2024) which looks into Russian life before and after the full-scale invasion on Ukraine depicting a society caught between Soviet nostalgia and capitalist disillusionment and frustrations leading to radicalisation. The film won the Best Central and Eastern European Documentary Award at 28th edition of the Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival.

Mr. Nobody Against Putin, produced by Danish outfit made in copenhagen, is however coproduced on the Czech side by Radovan Síbrt, Alžběta Karásková, and Petra Dobešová of PINK. Síbrt is a versatile producer whose work spans prime-time entertainment and boundary-pushing documentary cinema, often addressing socially sensitive and taboo topics such as Adina Pintilie´s award-winning Touch Me Not (2018), Greta Stocklassa´s Blix Not Bombs (2023) or Jan Gebert´s When the War Comes (2018) among others. The Czech Film Fund supported the production of the film with €40 000 reinforcing the country’s commitment to amplifying voices from politically fraught regions, while Czech professionals worked on the visual and sound post-production. 

Borenstein and Talankin found out a way how to smuggle the shot material out of Russia (Talankin is credited as a co-director and a cinematographer), however "It was clear that if the film were to be made, Pasha would have to leave Russia," explains Síbrt. And the Czech producer became engaged in a rescue mission. “We worked together on how this could be done and, most importantly, where he could go to feel safe,” says Síbrt. The escape was planned in 2023 after Talankin’s activities came under the scrutiny of local authorities. With the help of numerous individuals whose identities remain undisclosed, the team successfully relocated Talankin to the Czech Republic, where he now resides safely. Reflecting on the experience, Síbrt shares, “Watching the events of recent years through Pasha’s perspective—his love for his hometown, his work, and his school community, mixed with painfully honest reflections on current events—is truly remarkable. We’re pleased that this is recognized by the selection of the film for one of the most prestigious festivals in the world, and we’re proud to represent the Czech Republic with a feature-length documentary after such a long time.” The domestic theatrical release will be managed by Aerofilms, while international distribution rights are handled by DR Sales.