SEVERAL Slovak films will be screened at the second Czecho-Slovak festival in Australia held in Melbourne and Sydney between August 21 and September 7. Altogether 16 films will be Slovak only or made in co-productions, the Slovak Film Institute (SFÚ) wrote in the press release.
The programme includes both old and new, and short and feature-length films from Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The Slovak portion includes movies from the 1960s, like Birds, Orphans and Fools by Juraj Jakubisko, and Before Tonight Is Over and The Boxer, both by Peter Solan. Newer films will include documentaries Normalization (Kauza Cervanová in Slovak) by Robert Kirchhoff, Lyrist by Arnold Kojnok, Velvet Terrorists by Pavol Pekarčík, Ivan Ostrochovský and Peter Kerekes, as well as feature films The Confidant by Juraj Nvota and Candidate by Jonáš Karásek.
All of the screened films reflect Slovakia’s recent past and its impact on today’s society, the SFÚ informed.
In addition to documentaries and feature films, there will also be several short films, including animated movies.
The aim of the festival, which is the first and only event to present Slovak and Czech cinematography in Australia, is to establish a regular event presenting the films and the cultures of the two countries, according to SFÚ press release.
This year, the festival will be accompanied by an exhibition of photos of Slovakia, posters for Slovak films as well as non-film productions by Czech director Ján Švankmajer. Another accompanying event will be a roundtable discussion over the promotion of Slovakia and Slovak cinematography, SFÚ informed.
The festival is organised by the Czech and Slovak Film Festival of Australia association and IKSIMA Films. It will be held on August 21-29 in Melbourne and on September 2-7 in Sydney.
