Festival:
The 25th Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival
Dates:
October 26-31
About:
Upwards of 80 new and recent documentary features are presented at this well-regarded Czech event.
Among the offerings:
Opus Bonum:
Dark Light Voyage
Director: Eva Cadena, Tin Dirdamal
After a devastating discovery about the fate of a friend now confined to a mental institution, the director and his young daughter set out on a 1700 km long train journey from the north to the south of Vietnam, hoping to regain harmony and find answers to some questions along the way.
Lines
Director: Barbora Sliepková
The black and white film oscillates between intimate portraits of seemingly random protagonists and a socially critical account of the impact of urban transformation on both personal and community life.
No Desire to Hide
Director: Rikun Zhu
The ordinary lives of young people in China, with all their romantic problems, unfulfilled dreams and existential crises are interwoven into everyday dialogues and conversations with the director.
Tell Me
Director: Agustín Barrutia, Antonio Hamburger, Ashley Mosher, Brett Pedersen, César Málaga, Fermín Pedros, Gerónimo Tanoira, João Carlos Couto, Kevin Zayat, Lucía Valdemoros, Marta Pulk, Natalia Trzcina, Norika Sefa, Pablo Radice, Quentin Lazzarotto, Rodrigo Baptista, Rupert Clague, Sebastián López Borda, Shen Wei, Sonja Ortiz, Tanya Marar
At the onset of the first wave of the pandemic, filmmakers from across the globe, who had met during Werner Herzog’s masterclass in a Peruvian jungle. create a collaborative project about helplines used to share confessions of living in isolation.
When Flowers Are Not Silent
Director: Andrei Kutsila
An emotional black-and-white documentary capturing the mood in Belrus after yet another fraudulent election.
YOON
Director: Pedro Figueiredo Neto, Ricardo Falcão
In an ever-repeating cycle, Mbaye buys a second-hand car in Portugal, loads it with goods to sell and items to deliver to others, and sets off on a 4,500-kilometre drive to his native Senegal.
You Are Ceaușescu to Me
Director: Sebastian Mihăilescu
High school and university students, a teacher, and a gigolo meet in a vacant warehouse turned film studio to reenact scenes from the life of former Romanian President Nicolae Ceaușescu.
Testimonies:
African Apocalypse
Director: Rob Lemkin
A British university student of Nigerian origin sets out to retrace Captain Voulet’s deadly military mission to the area of today’s Niger.
Connection
Director: Andrea Dalpian
A purely observational story of two wolves during their forced stay in captivity until they are returned to the wild.
Globes
Director: Nina de Vroome
A playful essay which follows the entire lifecycle of a bee, which is more and more significantly impacted by human activity.
Rastorhuev
Director: Evgeniya Ostanina
An evocative portrait of the late Russian documentary filmmaker Alexander Rastorhuev, who was killed in the Central African Republic in 2018.
Roof of Leaves
Director: Anna Caroline Arndt
A portrait of Constantin, Sarah, and Gregor, who live in a polyamorous relationship.
The Spark
Director: Antoine Harari, Valeria Mazzucchi
Life in an autonomous zone of protection in an area near Nantes, home to a community of farmers, environmental activists, and anarchists.
Czech Joy:
Eyewitness
Director: Jiří Havelka
An anatomy of mass murder for one monitor and 34 talking heads.
Kinloss
Director: Alice Dousova
A meditation on advanced consumer capitalism through the journey of one of the largest ships in the Danish Maersk Line’s fleet of tankers.
Leaving Beginnings Behind
Director: Linda Kallistová Jablonská
Three girls growing up in a residential facility in Počátky, Czech Republic, over the course of ten years.
One-room School
Director: Petr Hátle
Grecia from Venezuela, Linda from Vietnam and Andriy from Ukraine are pupils of META, an inclusive school that supports the integration of young migrants into Czech society.
Ordeal
Director: Zuzana Piussi
Reflecting on the long-term crisis of the Slovak justice system, an investigation as to whether the justice system with its many failures can ever be corrected.
Peculiarity of Fisherman’s Soul
Director: Ivana Pauerová Miloševič
Six Czech friends head to Norway to fulfill their desire to fish at sea.
Points for the President aka Attempt at Contrarevolution
Director: Martin Kohout
In this provocative mosaic of opinions from different sides of the political spectrum, a reflection on where the ideals of November 1989 and the former sense of community have disappeared.
what (not) to doc 