2015 Premières? A Full Load of Animated Films

In the first half of 2015 a situation will occur with regard to premières of Slovak and co-production films which is distinctly unusual for our environment – no less than three full-length animated films are to be premièred in cinemas, even though only one of them is a majority Slovak film. The last full-length Slovak animated film for cinemas was made 35 years ago – it was The Bloody Lady (Krvavá pani) by the artist and director, Viktor Kubal.

2015 started in Slovak cinemas with the full-length feature film Hostage (Rukojemník) which takes us back to the time of communist Czechoslovakia, but this is reflected primarily through the eyes of child heroes. It is the story of young Peter who lives in a border town with grandparents, as his father and mother have emigrated to neighbouring Austria. Peter experiences common childhood situations connected with games, friendships, first signs of love, curious examination of the world, boyish desires and disappointments. In the end, the problems he is most sensitive to appear in the foreground – they concern his parents. All this against the backdrop of a period which at some times is just cheerfully awkward, but at others it is a period that silently but efficiently bends human characters or breaks their necks outright. The experienced Juraj Nvota directed the Slovak-Czech co-production. He returned to the communist period in his previous films (The Confidant – Eštebák, 2012 and Music – Muzika, 2007). Nvota should also present his next film this year, this time a documentary. It is entitled Elsewhere (Inde) and deals with the Slovak artist Alexander Mlynarčík.

As far as feature films are concerned, one more new film with a majority production share from Slovakia will be premièred in cinemas in the first half of 2015. Seven Ravens (Sedem zhavranelých bratov) is based on the classical fairy tale and made in a Slovak-Czech co-production (with Eurimages support). The story of a girl who decides to free her seven brothers from a curse was made by the well-known Czech director Alice Nellis.

The new films confirm the ongoing close collaboration between representatives of Slovak and Czech cinema. However, co-productions between Slovakia and Hungary also appear sporadically, this time in the form of the film entitled Mirage. It was directed by the Hungarian filmmaker Szabolcs Hajdu who cast Isaach De Bankolé in the title role.

After a digression to feature film (Children), the prominent Slovak documentary filmmaker Jaro Vojtek (Here We Are, The Border, Gypsy Vote) returns to documentary with his new film So Far, So Near (Tak ďaleko, tak blízko). The film shows families with autistic children and Vojtek characterises it as a film largely about reconciliation. In his view, parents have to primarily accept the given state of affairs in order to be able to cope with everything required by life with an autistic child. And it requires a high degree of empathy to break down the barrier that separates them from their children even though they are always close to each other.

Director Robert Kirchhoff ’s docu-drama Normalisation (Kauza Cervanová) was premièred in cinemas two years ago and it also attracted attention at festivals. This year, he should present two new projects to audiences. The first one is entitled The Island of Fools (Ostrov bláznov), made together with Czech director Filip Remunda. It is a documentary jam session with musicians Laco Deczi, Ľubomír Tamaškovič and Ján Jankeje. The second film Through the Forest (Cesta lesom) will get its première in cinemas in the second half of the year and, in this case, Kirchhoff bears witness to the destinies of European Roma in the form of an essayistic fresco, and he reflects on the tragic context of the Romani Holocaust, i.e. Porajmos.

By contrast, another reputable documentary filmmaker, Marko Škop, should demonstrate this year how well he has coped with a feature film. His feature début Eva Nová tells the story of a woman – a cured alcoholic and former well-known actress – who above all yearns for the affection of her son. The documentary filmmaker Ivan Ostrochovský has also decided to try a feature film. You can read more about his project Koza, which tells the story of a boxer from the margins of society, and which was included in the Forum Section at the Berlin IFF, in the Interview section. However, Ostrochovský is also preparing the documentary Guard (Garda) which broaches an important topic hitherto avoided by filmmakers. It presents an account of the activities of the notorious Hlinka Guard during the First Slovak Republic, and it uses the last living survivors.

Guard will be screened in cinemas in the second half of the year, but let us now return to the first half – a rare situation when three full-length animated films will be premièred. LokalFilmis is a Slovak project of young director Jakub Kroner who has already made two successful feature films: Bratislavafilm (2009) and Lóve (Lóve, 2011). In view of his previous animated sitcoms, it can be expected that Kroner will inject a deal of irony and sarcasm into his new film, that he will develop a bizarre plot ad absurdum and also include references to notable figures in public life and pop culture in his eccentric game.

The further two animated films to be premièred in the spring were made in Slovak minority co-productions and, unlike Kroner’s film, they make use of puppet animation. Little from the Fish Shop (Malá z rybárne) was made by the experienced Czech filmmaker, Jan Balej; he was inspired by a fairy tale by H. Ch. Andersen. It is the story of the Sea King’s daughter. The King left the ravaged coastal waters together with his family and went to live among people. But his daughter Little encounters trouble when she falls in love with a carefree young man, Baron. Another marionette film by Czech filmmaker Radek Beran is entitled Little Man (Malý Pán); it is based on the book Big Journey of the Little Man (Velká cesta malého pána) by Lenka Uhlířová and Jiří Stach and tells the story of a small hero who takes off on a dramatic journey across the world thanks to his dream. Beran’s film shows not only the marionettes but also their strings; the marionettes are located in a real forest.

Other Slovak documentaries will be premièred in cinemas over the course of the year (for instance Okhwan – Mission Impossible, Excursions – Exkurzie, Suri) as well as feature films (Fear – Strach, Wilson City – Najhorší zločin vo Wilsonove, Agave – Agáva, Cleaner – Čistič). And, so as not to miss out on the world of animation either, the première of the Czecho-Slovak omnibus film by director Jan Bubeníček, Grandpa Cactus Trilogy (Trilógia Kaktusák) is provisionally planned for December.

Daniel Bernát
Hostage (Rukojemník) PHOTO: Alef Film & Media