Culture Short

Mináč's film gets Christopher Award


THE SLOVAK-Czech docu-mentary film Sila ľudskosti (The Power of Good) was recently honored with the 2006 Christopher Award. Filmmakers Patrik Pašš and Matej Mináč, who are of Slovak origin, were expected to receive the award at a gala event in New York on March 16. Mináč now lives in Prague, where he runs a production company.

The Christopher Award is given to films with a powerful humanitarian message. Past winners include American directors Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, and David Lynch and Italian director Roberto Benigni.

Sila ľudskosti tells the story of British stockbroker Nicholas Winton, who saved 669 Jewish children from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia by bringing them across Hitler's Germany to the UK.

The documentary has also received numerous other prizes, such as the prestigious International Emmy Award 2002 for best documentary.


Slovak film wins One World in Prague


SLOVAK documentary filmmaker Jaro Vojtek won the Czech Culture Minister's main prize for his My Zdes (Here We Are) at the 8th annual One World documentary film festival about human rights, the daily Pravda reported. In the movie, Vojtek tells the story of the Krnáčs, a family of Kazakh Slovaks, who returned to Slovakia after 40 years in Kazakhstan.

"I'm very happy, of course. I never even dreamed of anything like this," the young filmmaker said. "The message of the film is that it is not easy to leave your homeland and start a new life somewhere else just for your children's sake. It is a film about sacrificing, so that your children can have a better life and future," he told TASR news wire.

The festival took place in Prague from March 1 - 9 and featured 118 documentaries from 40 countries around the world.


Zamarovský named Hellenist ambassador


Zamarovský receives prize for promoting Greece.
photo: Courtesy of the Foreign Affairs Ministry

SLOVAK writer, historian and Hellenist, Vojtech Zamarovský, received the honorary title of Ambassador of Hellenism for 2006 in Athens in mid March. The title recognizes exemplary individuals and groups who have distinguished themselves through their work and contribution to Greek Studies, or through representing Greece abroad.

Zamarovský received the recognition for his life's work in spreading Hellenism in Slovakia and abroad, the Slovak Foreign Affairs Ministry informed The Slovak Spectator.

The Slovak Embassy in Greece will organize a series of events honoring Zamarovský's life and work to be held later this year. It also wants to unveil a plaque in his honour in Olympia.

Zamarovský was born in Trenčín on October 5, 1919. After completing his studies in economics and law, his interests turned to history and ancient Greece. In 1960, he published his first non-fiction book, Quest of the Seven Wonders of the World, on ancient monuments and corresponding cultures. His ability to distil his deep knowledge into a dense text that captured the general public's imagination made it a hit.

His other books include The Discovery of Troy, Gods and Heroes of Ancient Myths, The Greek Wonder, and Resurrection of Olympia.

Zamarovský's books are the most published of a Slovak abroad, SME daily wrote. They have been translated into 15 languages and exceed two million copies. His books are used as textbooks in Greece.


Bratislava Boys Choir tours London


THE BRATISLAVA Boys Choir will deliver four independent church concerts and participate in the Light project supported by the European Union during its stay in London from March 16 to 22.

The Choir's conductor, Magdaléna Rovňáková, told TASR news wire that the 44-member choir will sing the oratorio Jonah by English composer William Mathias under the baton of Graham Thorp within the Light project on the final day of their tour in the Guildford Cathedral in London. Performing with them will be an English orchestra, soloists and a girls' choir.

The Slovak premiere will take place at the Reduta (the Slovak Philharmonic Concert Hall) in Bratislava on April 1.


16th annual car show opens in Bratislava


THE INCHEBA exhibition and conference centre will host the most important event for car lovers of the year: the 16th annual Autosalon/Autoservis Bratislava exhibition of cars, accessories, autoshop and garage technology.

From March 22 to 26, more than 180 exhibitors will present a record number of 34 car brands, including Porsche, Bentley, Lamborghini, Volkswagen and Peugeot, just to mention a few. Visitors will also see more than 50 premieres of latest models. Motocykel, the only motorcycle fair in Slovakia, will be held at the same place and time.


Compiled by Jana Liptáková from press reports

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