You will find an optimistic remark about the direction of Slovak film at the start of the review of My Dog Killer and the special issue of the monthly Film.sk that you are holding in your hands also serves to testify that such a contention is appropriate. So what happened in Slovak cinema last year? In addition to a consistent account of distribution results, we also offer three evaluative studies by film theoreticians who, in separate texts, reflect on Slovak feature, documentary and animated production in 2012.

But we also move to the beginning of this year, as that is when the second film by director Mira Fornay My Dog Killer was released. It contributed to the aforesaid optimism, not solely by winning the Hivos Tiger Award at the Rotterdam Film Festival, where the noteworthy full-length feature début by director Mátyás Prikler Fine, Thanks was also presented. In 2013, further much-awaited new films by Slovak filmmakers should be released in cinemas. We have chosen at least three of them. One of these is Miracle which is featured on the cover of the magazine. Director Juraj Lehotský made it as his second full-length project. He made his début with the documentary Blind Loves and in 2008 the film won the C.I.C.A.E Award (International Confederation of Art Cinemas Award) at the Cannes Film Festival.

In the final part of the magazine, the activities of the jubilee Slovak Film Institute (SFI) – the sole state organisation operating in the area of audiovision in Slovakia – are described. The SFI is one of those institutions which cultivate this area most strongly; however, the initiatives of the filmmakers themselves are still important. Those who got on the pages of this magazine frequently deal with depressing, problematic, controversial topics. Where then is the aforesaid optimism? It lies in the belief that these films are not just of high quality but they are also capable of appealing to foreign audiences.


Daniel Bernát ( Editor-in-Chief )