Čestmír Kopecký

The Hastrman

A strange nobleman returning after years abroad to a small Bohemian village in the beginning of 19th century. The nobleman feels closer to animals despite looking like a human.

Garbage, the City and Death

Romi (Gabriela Mícová), a prostitute, is anything but successful at her job: she is of far too gentle a nature for her clients. The more obstinately she is pushed to the streets by her pimp Franz (Stanislav Majer), the closer she is to a complete breakdown. One day Romi is addressed by a property speculator referring to himself as a "wealthy Jew" (Martin Finger). He does not demand any sexual services of her. He satisfies himself with Romi telling him stories, for which he lavishly rewards her. However, no one shares the sudden happiness with Romi. Her work-mates and current clients turn their backs on her, as does Franz, with whom Romi is in love. The whole story takes place in the setting of a dilapidated city, during the clean-up of which politicians openly split their profit with speculators and lobbyists, all under protection from the police.

The Karamazov Brothers

Dostoevsky’s latter-day opus about the siblings and their father is among the masterpieces of world literature. It asks profound questions about ethics and religion. Is there a God? Does the devil exist? Is everything allowed because we live in a world without morality? And if so, does patricide even constitute a crime? One of the most interesting adaptations of the material is The Karamazovs by Czech director Petr Zelenka. We witness a group of thesps from Prague on a trip to Krakow in Poland to stage the novel as a play in a derelict steelworks as part of the Closer to Life Festival. The project, however, is born under the bad sign, apparently doomed from the start. When they arrive, the roof is about to cave in, so that the actors are told to wear safety helmets. Their sole consistent audience is a laborer (Andrzej Mastalerz) who rather follows each dress rehearsal than watching over his seven-year-old son who has suffered a tragic accident in the factory.

Year of the Devil

Documentary maker Jan Holman follows the ultrafamous singer/songwriter Jaromír Novahica during his tour with the band Cechomor. The combination is very succesful, but it draws a heavy toll on the band members and Jan Holman.

Marian

Told via flashback, this raw, emotional drama chronicles the events that led a 22-year-old Czech Gypsy to prison. Marian was born to an alcoholic father and a terrible mother. As a result he is sent to a government orphanage where he is labelled a problem child for his inability to speak Czech. Life in the orphanage is devoid of love and offers only minimal physical comforts. Sometimes life there is brutal. His one bright spot was the time he first spent with a kindly and encouraging teacher who inspired in him hope for a better future. One day something goes wrong and the teacher is forced to punish Marian who retaliates by stabbing her. Marian is a teen by the time he is released from a juvenile reformatory. He falls in love for the first time, but because it is a foreign emotion, he doesn't know how to deal with it. By this time, the cruelty that has marked his life in institutions seems to have fated him to be a criminal and for Marian there can be no turning back.

Žiletky

A Czech-French existential tragicomedy. Its (anti)hero is a young man named Andrej (played by Filip Topol, leader of the Czech underground band Psí vojáci). The story turns on his fateful love for the powerfully attractive though superficial Kristyna (Markéta Hrubesová).

Domek u lesa

Every one of us has certainly been in a situation for which he or she is not prepared and is not able to orient him or herself immediately and correctly. And the hero of our story also finds out in a rather unpleasant way that it leads to a number of misunderstandings and bitter mistakes... Jaroslav Falta (J. Abrhám), a nondescript clerk, cannot resist the pressure of several people interested in buying his aunt's house after the hospitalization of his wealthy aunt (A. Hegerlíková). He is charmed and won over by the charm of a colleague from work - Alenka (J. Asterová) - after departure of his girlfriend on a business trip.

Škola hrou

Jitka, a librarian, is tasked with replacing an injured seventh-grade teacher at an elementary school. Despite her husband's resistance, she faces marital tensions, a dysfunctional classroom, and disgruntled parents. When a minor dereliction of duty leads to tragedy, she seeks help.