I. A Calendar»
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
1. - 4. 12.
The 7th annual festival Filmasia (FILMASIA – 7. festival asijských filmů) presented in the Aero and Světozor cinemas in Prague the most interesting films from throughout Asia. The programme mostly featured films by young filmmakers considered among the best of the up-and-coming talent at present. These included film by already renowned directors such as Johnnie To’s Dyut meng gam (2011, Hong Kong), Korean Kang Hyeong-cheol’s film Sseoni (2011) and especially another Korean director Bong Joon-ho, for whom the organizers arranged a complete retrospective of his films.
2. 12.
The Bio Oko cinema in Prague hosted the ceremonial premiere of the Czech punk film Gorilla (Gorila, dir. Pavel Sličný, 2011).
2. - 8. 12.
The Czech film Skid (Smyk, 1960) by director Zbyněk Brynych was shown at Celluloid Curtain: Europe’s Cold War in Film in Vilnius, Lithuania. The National Film Archive (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague lent the film to Vilnius.
2. 12. 2011 - 26. 2. 2012
The Museum of the Moving Image in New York exhibited in conjunction with the Czech Center in New York collages of Czech film director, animator and artist Jan Švankmajer. These consists of 50 works created for the shooting of his latest film Surviving Life (Přežít svůj život, 2010, CR – SR), which the museum also screened. The collages were accompanied by a fifty-minute compilation of Švankmajer’s short films. Starting in early 2012 the museum, which had reopened in 2011 after several years of extensive reconstruction, screened a retrospective of films of the Czech artist.
3. 12.
The film Melancholia (2011, Denmark – Sweden – France – Germany) by director Lars von Trier was selected as the best European film of 2011 at the 24th European Film Awards in Berlin. Susanne Bier was chosen as the best director for the Danish-Swedish film Hævnen/In a Better World (2010) and the award for best screenwriter went to European academics Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne for the film Le gamin au vélo (2011, Belgium – France – Italy). Awards for best actors went to British actor Colin Firth (The King’s Speech, dir. Tom Hooper, 2010, Great Britain – Australia – USA) and Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk about Kevin, dir. Lynne Ramsay, 2011, Great Britain – USA).
4. 12.
The Czech animated film The Emperor’s Nightingale (Císařův slavík, 1949) by director Jiří Trnka was lent by the National Film Archive (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague to Frankfurt or a screening upon the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the cinema at the German Film Institute.
5. 12.
The 18th Awards Ceremony of the Government Committee for Current Affairs Coverage Promoting Awareness of Physical Disabilities in Television, Radio and the Press (18. ceny Vládního výboru pro zdravotně postižené občany za publicistické práce zaměřené na problematiku zdravotního postižení, uveřejněné v televizi, rozhlase a tisku) was held. The Government Committee for Physically Disabled Citizens organized the annual ceremony. For awarded filmmakers and films see 18. ceny Vládního výboru pro zdravotně postižené občany za publicistické práce zaměřené na problematiku zdravotního postižení, uveřejněné v televizi, rozhlase a tisku.
5. - 9. 12.
The National Film Archive’s screening hall Ponrepo in Bio Konvikt (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague, the Romanian Cultural Institute, the Hungarian Cultural Centre and the Institute for the Studies of Totalitarian Regimes hosted the festival Agitprop Cinema – Collectivisation in Pictures. The theme-based festival acquainted viewers with a specific period of film history – the agitprop film era – for films mainly shot in the 1950s in communist dictatorships of Central and Eastern Europe. A narrower theme for the selection was the collectivisation of agriculture. The following films were screened: Thirst (Žízeň, dir. Václav Kubásek, 1949) and Goat Milk (Kozie mlieko, dir. Ondrej Jariabek, 1952) both from Czechoslovakia, also Mitrea Cocor (dir. Victor Illiu, Marieta Sadova, 1952, Romania), In sat la noi (dir. Jean Georgescu, Victor Illiu, 1951, Romania), Talpalatnyi föld (dir. Frigyes Bán, 1948, Hungary) and Tízezer nap (r. Ferenc Kósa, 1967, Hungary).
5., 7., 12., 14. and 22. 12.
A screening of several films by leading representative of German expressionism Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau (real name: F. W. Plumpe, 28. 12. 1888 – 11. 3. 1931) entitled Das beste von Murnau took place at the National Film Archive’s Ponrepo screening hall at Bio Konvikt (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague. Murnau most famous films were screened including Nosferatu – Eine Symphonie des Grauens (1921), Tartüff (1925), Der letzte Mann (1924), Faust (1926) and two other films shot in American production: Sunrise (1927) and Tabu (1931).
7. 12.
iShorts evenings – screenings of shorts films - continued with the theme FAMU vs. FAMO IV, in which four short films of four students from the two film schools “face off”. The competition’s fourth year featured the feature films Little Boxes (Krabičky, dir. Jan Čapek, 2011), Seven Days (Sedm dní, dir. Lukáš Buchar, 2011) – both FAMO (Film Academy of Miroslav Ondříček in Písek, n. g. o., Filmová akademie Miroslava Ondříčka v Písku, o. p. s.), as well as Non-swimmers (Neplavci, dir. Jakub Šmíd, 2011) and Dawn (Úsvit, dir. György Kristóf, 2011) – FAMU (Film and TV School of Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, Filmová a televizní fakulta Akademie múzických umění v Praze). The winning film was Seven Days (Sedm dní) by screenwriter and director Lukáš Buchar; second place went to Little Boxes (Krabičky) by screenwriter and director Jan Čapek.
7. - 11. 12.
The international festival Animation Now! The 3rd Festival of the Present Animation took place in the north Polish “tri-opolis” of Gdynia, Gdańsk and Sopot. The retrospective screening entitled “From Year Zero, Anifest” presented the Czech animated work and organized two three-day workshops of traditional techniques of animation under the guidance of Czech filmmakers and animators Lenka Křížová and Lucie Sunková. Also screened at the Polish festival was the film Car Fairy Tales (Autopohádky, dir. Jakub Kohák, Břetislav Pojar, Michal Žabka, František Váša, Libor Pixa, 2011), a feature-length fairy tale film composed of four animated and one feature fairy tale that links everything and creates a frame for the story. Each of the fairy tales is made with a different technique and a different team of creators. Czech producer Martin Vandas led at the festival a master class devoted to the history of the puppet project Fimfárum, whose third part 3D Fimfarum the Third Time Lucky 3D (Fimfárum do třetice všeho dobrého 3D, dir. Kristina Dufková, Vlasta Pospíšilová, David Súkup, 2011) was also included in the programme. Also represented here was the animation performance group Mateřídouška from Brno; the 10th Olomouc Festival of Film Animation /PAF/ (10. přehlídka animovaného filmu (PAF) prepared for the Polish festival a programme of experimental films and audio-visual concepts of Czech animation.
8. - 11. 12.
Olomouc (Czech Republic) hosted its 10th Festival of Film Animation /PAF/ (10. přehlídka animovaného filmu /PAF/). The festival focused on a broad concept of animation within the context of cinematography, media studies and visual art. In the sections Girls and boys in animation, Light and dark in live animations, PAF Rewind: Rotoscoping, Different Visions competition, PAF Kult, Aport animation and Konvikt resident & PAF Art a number of lectures, visualisations, performances, workshops and exhibitions were held. In addition to the ten competition films by young filmmakers, the Different Visions competition section also screened Tomáš Luňák’s feature-length film Alois Nebel (2011, CR – Germany – SR), shot using rotoscoping. This technique, bordering on animation and photo-realistic recording, was perfected over the years and a number of filmmakers have employed it to contribute significantly to the history of animated film. In addition to Alois Nebel, other non-competition films screened included Vals im Bašir/Walz with Bashir, Ari Folman, 2008 (Israel – France – Germany – USA – Japan – Finland – Switzerland – Belgium – Australia) and Renaissance (dir. Christian Volckman, 2006, France – Great Britain – Luxembourg). The jury awarded the main prize to Alexandra Moralesová for Skin (Kůže, 2011) her bachelor work for FAMU's center of audiovisual studies (Filmová a televizní fakulta Akademie múzických umění v Praze – Centrum audiovizuálních studií). For other awarded films – see 10. přehlídka animovaného filmu (PAF).
8. - 14. 12.
A loose association of four one-room art cinemas in Prague (Atlas, Evald, Lucerna and MAT) organized a week of the most successful and most popular films of 2011 – the BEST FILM FEST 2011 with a special CZK 69 ticket price. The programme included the Czech films Innocence (Nevinnost, dir. Jan Hřebejk, 2011), Leaving (Odcházení, dir. Václav Havel, 2011), Lidice (dir. Petr Nikolaev, 2011, CR – SR), the fairy tale Micimutr (dir. Vít Karas, 2011, CR) or the feature-length animated film Alois Nebel (dir. Tomáš Luňák, 2011, CR – Germany – Slovak Republic). Also screened were the co-production Czech-Slovak films The House (Dům/Dom, dir. Zuzana Liová, 2011) and Gypsy (Cigán, dir. Martin Šulík, 2011), films awarded at foreign festivals including The Tree of Life (dir. Terrence Malick, 2010, USA) and Melancholia (dir. Lav Diaz, 2008, Philippines), Oscar-winning films The King’s Speech (dir. Tom Hooper, 2010, Great Britain – Australia – USA), Black Swan (dir. Darren Aronofsky, 2010, USA) and other foreign films shot by respected directors such as Biutiful (dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2009, Spain – Mexico), 3/Drei (dir. Tom Tykwer, 2010, Germany), La piel que habito (dir. Pedro Almodóvar, 2011, Spain – USA), Midnight in Paris (dir. Woody Allen, 2011, USA – Spain) or the 3D feature-length dance documentary Pina (dir. Wim Wenders, 2011, Germany – France – Great Britain).
14. 12.
The ceremonial pre-premiere film Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (dir. Brad Bird, 2011, USA – United Arab Emirates), partially shot in Prague, was held at the IMAX cinema in Prague. The film was first screened in the USA the next day, exclusively in IMAX format. As of mid 2011 there were operating in 46 countries 560 IMAX cinemas, included the Flora palace cinema in Prague.
14. 12.
The ceremonial premiere of the Czech film Flower-Buds (Poupata, dir. Zdeněk Jiráský, 2011) was held at the Světozor and Lucerna cinemas in Prague.
15. 12.
Czech Minister of Culture Jiří Besser named Michal Bregant Ph.D, director of the National Film Archive (Národní filmový archiv). This appointment was made upon the recommendation of the commission in the properly announced selection competition. Michal Bregant Ph.D. assumed the post on 2. 1. 2012.
16. 12.
Czech President Václav Klaus accepted the resignation of Czech Culture Minister Jiří Besser. Besser submitted his letter of resignation on 8. 12. to Czech Premiere Petr Nečas.
16. 12.
The National Film Archive’s screening hall Ponrepo at Bio Konvikt (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague hosted a screening of the premiere of Ondřej Vavrečka’s second feature-length documentary Ultimum refugium (2011). This film is a pendant to his previous film The Beginning and the Lion (Počátek a lev, 2009). The expression Ultimum refugium has many meanings, e.g. the last refuge or possibility before the end. The film is a pictorial journal, i.e. a time record of what happens to the author. People of various professions and interests appear in it – from the Nobel Prize for Literature recipient Gao Xingjian, to the Prague archbishop, a soil expert, ornithologist and moderator for the TV station Al Jazeera English.
18. 12.
The first-ever concert of the Prague Film Orchestra, which played the most famous film melodies livened up with Christmas motifs, was held at Lucerna cinema. The orchestra was founded in 2004 by a multi-instrumentalist, nineteen-year-old Jiří Korynta. The orchestra features some seventy young enthusiastic students. It is the only orchestra in the Czech Republic specialising in film music and plays only from originals, not prepared scores acquired from the USA.
19. 12.
The National Film Archive's Ponrepo screening hall at Bio Konvikt (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague screened a group of films by Walther Ruttmann and Hans Richter, founders of the German avant-garde. The series was devoted to the middle stage in the development of both famous German documentary filmmakers. Walther Ruttman’s film Melodie der Welt (1929) – the first long German film with sound that critics around the world admired for its audiovisual montage – was screened. Other films represented the work of Hans Richter – e.g. Vormittagsspuk (1927), the film considered the most important contribution to German film Dadaism. The leading musical representatives of this trend, Darius Milhaud and Paul Hindemith, appeared here as actors.
19. 12.
Fifty-eight Czech film critics and journalists nominated films, filmmakers and actors for the Czech Film Critics’ Awards for 2011 held on 14. 1. 2012. The most nominations – eight – went to the films Long Live the Family! (Rodina je základ státu, dir. Robert Sedláček) and Flower-Buds (Poupata, dir. Zdeněk Jiráský). Five nominations went to Alois Nebel (dir. Tomáš Luňák, CR – Germany – Slovakia) and Innocence (Nevinnost, dir. Jan Hřebejk), three nominations went to the film Eighty Letters (Osmdesát dopisů, dir. Václav Kadrnka), two nominations went to Zuzana Liová’s film The House (Dům/Dom, ČR – SR) and one nomination to the film Perfect Days (2011) shot by director Alice Nellis.
20. 12.
Czech President Václav Klaus acted on the nomination of Czech Premier Petr Nečas and appointed Alena Hanáková the new Czech minister of culture.
20. 12.
Seven Czech amateur films shot between 1934 – 1988 were screened at the National Film Archive’s Ponrepo screening hall at Bio Konvikt (Národní filmový archiv) in Prague under the title Without Falsity and Unfounded Illusions – Amateur Film as a Reflection of Its Times. The first film was A Soldier’s Story (Příběh vojáka, dir. Vladimír Šmejkal, Čeněk Zahradníček, 1935), one of the representative films from the countless films of the Czech avant-garde of the 1920s and 30s. The second screened film Across Prague in Spring 1934 (Napříč Prahou na jaře 1934, dir. Kresl – Vlk – Zelený group), is the work of members of Film-Photography group of Left Front. The film A Time for Gathering Stones (Čas shromažďování kamení, dir. Rudolf Mihle, 1968) captured the atmosphere around the Berlin Wall. The same director shot The First Hours of the Occupation (První hodiny okupace, 1968), the film capturing the events of 21 August 1968. The film Was It Necessary (Bylo to nutné? (dir. Bedřich Princl, 1985) followed the demolition of the Prague-Těšnov train station building, which fell victim to the construction of the Prague arterial road.
20. 12.
The Antikvariat and Fiducia club in Ostrava (Czech Republic) hosted the first public screening of the documentary film on Czech writer, translator and journalist Jan Balabán (29. 1. 1961 – 23. 4. 2011). The director of the film entitled Jan Balabán, Records from 1998 to 2010 is Petra Všelichová. The film was created in 2011 in the production of Čestmír Kopecký – První veřejnoprávní s. r. o. and Czech Television Ostrava (ČESKÁ TELEVIZE – Televizní studio Ostrava). Czech Television (ČESKÁ TELEVIZE) broadcast the film on 29. 12. on its ČT2 channel.