A Separate Peace: Ostrochovský Crafts a Church Noir for Sophomore Feature
For his sophomore narrative feature, Slovak director Ivan Ostrochovský recuperates a uniquely chilling scenario from a troubled chapter from the Czech Republic’s past, particularly with the intertwined political manifestations of Communism and Catholicism in the wryly titled Servants. A stark, austere reenactment of seminary students caught in a catch-22 in 1980 Czechoslovakia, Ostrochovský mines a familiar sounding scenario of corrupted authorities vying for control in a period piece which often takes on shades of a film noir. Poetically photographed and tinged by dueling metaphors of the sacred and profane, the narrative eschews explication on its finer historical points and instead proves to be an introduction to the thrashing tail end of a troubled historical era which can be utilized as a conversation piece for its historical recuperation as well as its relationship to continually shifting unrest and unease.…
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For his sophomore narrative feature, Slovak director Ivan Ostrochovský recuperates a uniquely chilling scenario from a troubled chapter from the Czech Republic’s past, particularly with the intertwined political manifestations of Communism and Catholicism in the wryly titled Servants. A stark, austere reenactment of seminary students caught in a catch-22 in 1980 Czechoslovakia, Ostrochovský mines a familiar sounding scenario of corrupted authorities vying for control in a period piece which often takes on shades of a film noir. Poetically photographed and tinged by dueling metaphors of the sacred and profane, the narrative eschews explication on its finer historical points and instead proves to be an introduction to the thrashing tail end of a troubled historical era which can be utilized as a conversation piece for its historical recuperation as well as its relationship to continually shifting unrest and unease.…
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- 2/21/2022
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
This number will increase as Cannes, Venice and other summer festival titles are added to the mix alongside studio releases.
French cinemas reopen this Wednesday (May 19) after lying dark for six months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with the country’s 100-plus distributors rushing to set theatrical dates for an estimated backlog of 400 stalled films.
As a result, French cinemagoers will have access to the richest and most diverse offering of films in the world over the coming months, spanning festival titles, local mainstream comedies and dramas, world cinema and studio blockbuster fare, as the summer advances.
As of May...
French cinemas reopen this Wednesday (May 19) after lying dark for six months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with the country’s 100-plus distributors rushing to set theatrical dates for an estimated backlog of 400 stalled films.
As a result, French cinemagoers will have access to the richest and most diverse offering of films in the world over the coming months, spanning festival titles, local mainstream comedies and dramas, world cinema and studio blockbuster fare, as the summer advances.
As of May...
- 5/17/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
The success of Paweł Pawlikowski’s Ida and Cold War has revealed, among arthouse audiences, a heretofore unimagined ravenous hunger for Eastern Bloc period dramas of Catholic conviction and political compulsion, shot in academy ratio and shimmery digital grayscale. Thus Servants, a hushed drama about underground activism, secret police, fear and trembling at a seminary in the former Czechoslovakia.
Two young seminarians, Juraj (Samuel Skyva) and Michal (Samuel Polakovic), arrive in Bratislava to further their studies. The seminary’s dean (Vladimir Strnisko) has maintained this sanctified space, with its almost medieval-brutalist bare walls, by accommodating himself and his institution to the state-affiliated Catholic movement Pacem in Terris, which in reality really was the Czechoslovak communist government’s primary check on the activity of the church post-Prague Spring. But the sounds of Radio Free Europe penetrate the cloistered environment, and students and teachers distribute fiery pamphlets. Juraj is drawn to an...
Two young seminarians, Juraj (Samuel Skyva) and Michal (Samuel Polakovic), arrive in Bratislava to further their studies. The seminary’s dean (Vladimir Strnisko) has maintained this sanctified space, with its almost medieval-brutalist bare walls, by accommodating himself and his institution to the state-affiliated Catholic movement Pacem in Terris, which in reality really was the Czechoslovak communist government’s primary check on the activity of the church post-Prague Spring. But the sounds of Radio Free Europe penetrate the cloistered environment, and students and teachers distribute fiery pamphlets. Juraj is drawn to an...
- 12/9/2020
- by Mark Asch
- The Film Stage
Ben Sharrock’s “Limbo” was named the best film at the closing event Tuesday of the International Film Festival & Awards Macao. Japanese auteur Koreeda Hirokazu was bestowed with the festival’s Spirit of Cinema honorary award.
The film follows a Syrian refugee in a remote Scottish island as he awaits his asylum application to be processed and his arm to heal allowing him to play his musical instrument. It was previously selected for the Cannes festival.
The IFFAM jury, headed by mainland Chinese director Ning Hao, made a unanimous decision before awarding the $60,000 prize to Sharrock, who also won the best screenplay award. “It was a thought-provoking piece of work, because of its in-depth exploration of society and also the relationship between culture and humanity. Combined with the director’s unique film language and a modern artistic style, it magically blends together and gives the audience unforgettable pleasure and enjoyment of all senses,...
The film follows a Syrian refugee in a remote Scottish island as he awaits his asylum application to be processed and his arm to heal allowing him to play his musical instrument. It was previously selected for the Cannes festival.
The IFFAM jury, headed by mainland Chinese director Ning Hao, made a unanimous decision before awarding the $60,000 prize to Sharrock, who also won the best screenplay award. “It was a thought-provoking piece of work, because of its in-depth exploration of society and also the relationship between culture and humanity. Combined with the director’s unique film language and a modern artistic style, it magically blends together and gives the audience unforgettable pleasure and enjoyment of all senses,...
- 12/8/2020
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Viggo Mortensen’s directorial debut “Falling” and the already acclaimed Chinese film “The Cloud in her Room” form part of the 11-title competition section announced by the International Film Festival & Awards Macao. The festival will take place entirely online this year, running Dec. 3-8.
The competition, which focuses on first and second films, also includes: Wang Xiaozhen’s “Love Poem,” which won the top prize at the First International Film Festival this year; Jeonju prize-winner “Black Light,” by Bae Jongdae; Cannes 2020 Label titles “Limbo,” by the U.K.’s Ben Sharrock, “Spring Blossom” by France’s Suzanne Lindon, and “Sweat” by Magnus von Horn; and “Back To The Wharf,” by China’s Li Xiaofeng.
Three other titles joining the competition are: “Servants,” by Ivan Ostrochovsky of the Czech Republic; “Shorta,” by Frederik Louis Hviid and Anders Olholm from Denmark; and “Tragic Jungle,” by Yulene Olaizola, from Mexico.
Prizes will be...
The competition, which focuses on first and second films, also includes: Wang Xiaozhen’s “Love Poem,” which won the top prize at the First International Film Festival this year; Jeonju prize-winner “Black Light,” by Bae Jongdae; Cannes 2020 Label titles “Limbo,” by the U.K.’s Ben Sharrock, “Spring Blossom” by France’s Suzanne Lindon, and “Sweat” by Magnus von Horn; and “Back To The Wharf,” by China’s Li Xiaofeng.
Three other titles joining the competition are: “Servants,” by Ivan Ostrochovsky of the Czech Republic; “Shorta,” by Frederik Louis Hviid and Anders Olholm from Denmark; and “Tragic Jungle,” by Yulene Olaizola, from Mexico.
Prizes will be...
- 11/10/2020
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Programme includes competition section of 11 features from first and second-time directors.
The International Film Festival & Awards Macao (Iffam) has confirmed that it is moving online for its fifth edition (December 3-8) and announced its full programme, including an international competition for first and second-time filmmakers.
The competition line-up of 11 features including actor Viggo Mortensen’s directing debut Falling; Cannes 2020 Label titles Limbo, Spring Blossom and Sweat; Jeonju film festival winner Black Light; and Chinese titles Love Poem, which won the top prize at this year’s First International Film Festival, and The Cloud In Her Room, which took the Tiger...
The International Film Festival & Awards Macao (Iffam) has confirmed that it is moving online for its fifth edition (December 3-8) and announced its full programme, including an international competition for first and second-time filmmakers.
The competition line-up of 11 features including actor Viggo Mortensen’s directing debut Falling; Cannes 2020 Label titles Limbo, Spring Blossom and Sweat; Jeonju film festival winner Black Light; and Chinese titles Love Poem, which won the top prize at this year’s First International Film Festival, and The Cloud In Her Room, which took the Tiger...
- 11/10/2020
- by Liz Shackleton
- ScreenDaily
The presitgious German event was held entirely online.
Vacuum, the feature debut by Ukrainian filmmaker Yelizaveta Smith has won the €1,500 best pitch award at Germany’s Connecting Cottbus (coco) East-West coproduction market today (November 6), which was held online due to the coronavirus pandemic
The film’s producer Aleksandra Kostine of Bosonfilm, also received the Producers Network Award which grants free accreditation to the Producers Network at the Marché du Film in Cannes 2021.
The script has previously been developed through Torino Film Lab Extended and Midpoint Feature Launch and is now at late development stage.
A graduate of Kyiv’s National University of Cinema and Theatre,...
Vacuum, the feature debut by Ukrainian filmmaker Yelizaveta Smith has won the €1,500 best pitch award at Germany’s Connecting Cottbus (coco) East-West coproduction market today (November 6), which was held online due to the coronavirus pandemic
The film’s producer Aleksandra Kostine of Bosonfilm, also received the Producers Network Award which grants free accreditation to the Producers Network at the Marché du Film in Cannes 2021.
The script has previously been developed through Torino Film Lab Extended and Midpoint Feature Launch and is now at late development stage.
A graduate of Kyiv’s National University of Cinema and Theatre,...
- 11/6/2020
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
Ivan Ostrochovský’s film took home the Grand Prize at this year’s hybrid edition of the Central and Eastern European Film Festival in Luxembourg. The physical side of this year’s hybrid edition of CinÉast concluded on Sunday 25 October with a screening of Servants by Slovakian director Ivan Ostrochovský, which had just won the festival’s Grand Prix the day before, during the awards ceremony held at the Kinepolis Kirchberg in Luxembourg. Belgian director Zoé Wittock, of the International Jury, explained that she and her colleagues, Polish director and scriptwriter Tomasz Wasilewski (president of the jury), director of the GoEast film festival Heleen Gerritsen, Luxembourgish producer Jani Thiltges (CEO of Samsa Film), and film critic and head of the selection committee of the Film Fund Luxembourg Boyd van Hoeij, had decided to give the film this distinction “for its suspenseful and nightmarish vision of a system that tries to control and regulate.
- 10/26/2020
- Cineuropa - The Best of European Cinema
Projects in development include new films by Roman Bondarchuk and Robert Budina.
New films by Russia’s Roman Bondarchuk and Robert Budina, whose credits include Waterdrop, are among 13 projects in development to be presented at this year’s east-west co-production market connecting cottbus (coco).
The event is normally held as part of FilmFestival Cottbus in Germany (November 3-8), but will run online this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Bondarchuk’s previous feature was Karlovy Vary 2018 East of the West title Volcano, whilst Budina’s last film A Shelter Among The Clouds premiered in competition at Tallinn, also in...
New films by Russia’s Roman Bondarchuk and Robert Budina, whose credits include Waterdrop, are among 13 projects in development to be presented at this year’s east-west co-production market connecting cottbus (coco).
The event is normally held as part of FilmFestival Cottbus in Germany (November 3-8), but will run online this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Bondarchuk’s previous feature was Karlovy Vary 2018 East of the West title Volcano, whilst Budina’s last film A Shelter Among The Clouds premiered in competition at Tallinn, also in...
- 10/19/2020
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
Projects in development include new films by Roman Bondarchuk and Robert Budina.
New films by Roman Bondarchuk (The Editorial Office) and Robert Budina (Waterdrop) are among 13 projects in development to be presented at this year’s east-west co-production market connecting cottbus.
The event is normally held as part of FilmFestival Cottbus in Germany (November 3-8), but will run online this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Bondarchuk’s previous feature was Karlovy Vary 2018 East of the West title Volcano, whilst Budina’s last film A Shelter Among The Clouds premiered in competition at Tallinn, also in 2018.
Among the other...
New films by Roman Bondarchuk (The Editorial Office) and Robert Budina (Waterdrop) are among 13 projects in development to be presented at this year’s east-west co-production market connecting cottbus.
The event is normally held as part of FilmFestival Cottbus in Germany (November 3-8), but will run online this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Bondarchuk’s previous feature was Karlovy Vary 2018 East of the West title Volcano, whilst Budina’s last film A Shelter Among The Clouds premiered in competition at Tallinn, also in 2018.
Among the other...
- 10/19/2020
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
Nael Marandin’s second feature film walks away with the Grand Prize, while Ivan Ostrochovsky’s Servants wins two awards and Daria Lorenci-Flatz bags an acting accolade. Shining a light on first and second full-length films, the 7th edition of the Saint-Jean-de-Luz International Film Festival has crowned Beasts by France’s Nael Marandin its victor, awarding the work the 2020 Grand Prize via a jury headed up by director Xavier Legrand. Decorated with the 2020 Cannes Film Festival’s Critics’ Week label, this second feature by the filmmaker (who made his name with She Walks in 2016) brings together Diane Rouxel, Finnegan Oldfield, Jalil Lespert and Belgium’s Olivier Gourmet in its cast and plunges viewers into a rural world, in the wake of a woman who’s forced to fight in a male environment against one man’s dominion. Produced by Julien Rouch on behalf of Diligence Films and co-produced by France 3 Cinéma and K’ien.
- 10/13/2020
- Cineuropa - The Best of European Cinema
As the Czech Republic claims Europe’s fastest-growing infection rate, with more than 8,000 new daily Covid-19 cases, a two-week shutdown of cinemas is stressing a sector that had been recovering amid easing restrictions.
A recent shakeup of the Czech Health Ministry and the appointment of outspoken epidemiologist Roman Prymula as Health Minister is hoped to turn around infection rates as the country is again headed into restrictions just short of a total lockdown with indoor cultural events involving more than 10 people banned as of Monday.
Vratislav Slajer of Bionaut production company, who heads the Czech Audio-Visual Producers Assn., was meeting with colleagues and government authorities Monday to learn more details on the shutdown and to make the case for safe continued operations.
“We want to present the argument that cinema distribution is an important economical part of the audiovisual industry,” said Slajer, adding that the film sector, which has adopted...
A recent shakeup of the Czech Health Ministry and the appointment of outspoken epidemiologist Roman Prymula as Health Minister is hoped to turn around infection rates as the country is again headed into restrictions just short of a total lockdown with indoor cultural events involving more than 10 people banned as of Monday.
Vratislav Slajer of Bionaut production company, who heads the Czech Audio-Visual Producers Assn., was meeting with colleagues and government authorities Monday to learn more details on the shutdown and to make the case for safe continued operations.
“We want to present the argument that cinema distribution is an important economical part of the audiovisual industry,” said Slajer, adding that the film sector, which has adopted...
- 10/12/2020
- by Will Tizard
- Variety Film + TV
The Swedish comedy Call Mom! by Lisa Aschan has come out on top in the Comedy Competition. The postponed Febiofest Prague 2020 (see the news) has announced the winners of its 27th edition. The Main Competition jury, comprising Czech filmmakers Beata Parkanová and Slávek Horák, and Czech actress Anna Polívková, stated: “Each of the films made an impact on us, affecting different parts of our personalities. That’s why we also decided to hand out a Special Mention. And it was precisely that award that represented the toughest choice, as it was hard to decide between these well-matched films. In the end, it went to Maria Sødahl’s Hope, which won us over with its sensitive telling of a story, with excellent acting performances.” The top prize went to the Slovak-Czech-Romanian-Irish drama Servants by Slovakian director-producer Ivan Ostrochovský, which premiered at this year’s Berlinale. “An extremely powerful story told by purely cinematic.
This year’s selection will be announced over two waves to account for pandemic conditions.
The first 32 features up for the 2020 European Films Awards has been announced with a second wave of “pandemic year” titles due to be revealed in September.
Scroll down for first selection of films
The titles include Armando Iannucci’s The Personal History Of David Copperfield and Viggo Mortensen’s Falling as well as Berlinale award-winners Undine, by Christian Petzold; Hidden Away, by Giorgio Diritti; Bad Tales, by the D’Innocenzo Brothers; Dau. Natasha, by Ilya Khrzhanovskiy and Jekaterina Oertel; and Delete History, by Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern.
The first 32 features up for the 2020 European Films Awards has been announced with a second wave of “pandemic year” titles due to be revealed in September.
Scroll down for first selection of films
The titles include Armando Iannucci’s The Personal History Of David Copperfield and Viggo Mortensen’s Falling as well as Berlinale award-winners Undine, by Christian Petzold; Hidden Away, by Giorgio Diritti; Bad Tales, by the D’Innocenzo Brothers; Dau. Natasha, by Ilya Khrzhanovskiy and Jekaterina Oertel; and Delete History, by Benoît Delépine and Gustave Kervern.
- 8/18/2020
- by 1100453¦Michael Rosser¦9¦
- ScreenDaily
Igor Luther worked on the fragmentary essay titled Self-Portrait where he looks back on his own fruitful professional career and turbulent private life. Slovak producer and director Ivan Ostrochovský, who revealed his latest fiction feature Servants at this year's Berlinale, is continuing in his producing efforts. After co-producing the experimental docu-pic Frem and Petr Zelenka’s dramedy Droneman (read the news), one of the projects he is currently working on as a producer is a documentary with the working title Self-Portrait, centred on the most acclaimed Slovak cinematographer, Igor Luther, who passed away at the beginning of June 2020. Luther commands a glowing filmography, having lensed Juraj Jakubisko’s The Years of Christ and Birdies, Orphans and Fools, Alain Robbe-Grillet’s The Man Who Lies and Eden and Afterwards and serving as DoP on films by Michael Haneke, Wolfgang Staudte, Andrzej Wajda, Aleksandar Petrović and a fruitful collaboration with Volker Schlöndorff with whom.
“You have to understand, we’re not here to be happy,” a so-called spiritual adviser counsels one of his wards in a Catholic seminary — a rare moment of truth in the shadowy morass of governmental and theological manipulation that consumes Ivan Ostrochovský’s impressively icy Iron Curtain noir “Servants.” Though happiness has never seemed the objective of priesthood so much as a kind of affectless peace, both are in short supply in a film that jitters and shivers with anti-authoritarian sentiment beneath its serene monochrome aesthetic. Form and feeling are at odds throughout this steadily transfixing tale of young seminarians standing up to the Communist Party’s infiltration of their school in the former Czechoslovakia.
All hard, clipped lines and spectral quietude, from performances to production design, this is a period piece with a dystopian bent. It may be set in 1980, though as its opaquely fragmented storytelling and hyper-meticulous mise-en-scène combine to disorienting effect,...
All hard, clipped lines and spectral quietude, from performances to production design, this is a period piece with a dystopian bent. It may be set in 1980, though as its opaquely fragmented storytelling and hyper-meticulous mise-en-scène combine to disorienting effect,...
- 3/12/2020
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Woody Harrelson, Agnieszka Holland and Hirokazu Kore-eda are among the industry figures headlining the 27th edition of the Prague International Film Festival, which is set to go ahead despite fears around the coronavirus.
Harrelson will appear alongside Oren Moverman, who is receiving a Kristián award for his contributions to global cinema, to present the L.A. cop drama “Rampart” in Prague. The duo were both nominated for Academy Awards for Moverman’s Iraqi war pic “The Messenger.”
Kore-eda, Slovak actor Milan Lasica and Czech actress Iva Janžurová will also be receiving lifetime achievement awards.
The festival unspools March 19-27 in the Czech capital, against a backdrop of growing uncertainty as the coronavirus continues to spread across the globe.
Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival and Greece’s Thessaloniki Documentary Festival announced they were postponing this year’s editions, while the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra event in Qatar was canceled.
Harrelson will appear alongside Oren Moverman, who is receiving a Kristián award for his contributions to global cinema, to present the L.A. cop drama “Rampart” in Prague. The duo were both nominated for Academy Awards for Moverman’s Iraqi war pic “The Messenger.”
Kore-eda, Slovak actor Milan Lasica and Czech actress Iva Janžurová will also be receiving lifetime achievement awards.
The festival unspools March 19-27 in the Czech capital, against a backdrop of growing uncertainty as the coronavirus continues to spread across the globe.
Earlier this week, Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival and Greece’s Thessaloniki Documentary Festival announced they were postponing this year’s editions, while the Doha Film Institute’s Qumra event in Qatar was canceled.
- 3/4/2020
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
U.K.-Irish production company Film and Music Entertainment (Fame), in Berlin with Agnieszka Holland’s “Charlatan” and Ivan Ostrochovsky’s “Servants,” has unveiled five new film projects from its Irish division, including new films by Georgian helmer Marian Khatchvani and Albanian director Fatmir Koci.
“Charlatan,” which Fame co-produced with Prague-based Marlene Film Production and Kevan Van Thompson (“Jojo Rabbit”), premieres in Berlin’s Gala Special Screenings on Thursday. The pic’s co-producers include Poland’s Madants Film, Czech Television, Barrandov Studios and Radio and Television Slovakia. Films Boutique is handling world sales.
“Servants,” which unspooled Sunday in Berlin’s new Encounters section, tells the story of 17-year-old best friends Michal and Juraj, who leave their home village of Spis in communist Slovakia to join a Catholic seminary in Bratislava. Fame co-produced the film with Ostrochovsky’s Bratislava-based Punkchart Films. Laurent Danielou’s Loco Films is selling “Servants” internationally; the...
“Charlatan,” which Fame co-produced with Prague-based Marlene Film Production and Kevan Van Thompson (“Jojo Rabbit”), premieres in Berlin’s Gala Special Screenings on Thursday. The pic’s co-producers include Poland’s Madants Film, Czech Television, Barrandov Studios and Radio and Television Slovakia. Films Boutique is handling world sales.
“Servants,” which unspooled Sunday in Berlin’s new Encounters section, tells the story of 17-year-old best friends Michal and Juraj, who leave their home village of Spis in communist Slovakia to join a Catholic seminary in Bratislava. Fame co-produced the film with Ostrochovsky’s Bratislava-based Punkchart Films. Laurent Danielou’s Loco Films is selling “Servants” internationally; the...
- 2/25/2020
- by Ed Meza
- Variety Film + TV
Steady market trade, mixed response to festival films.
Heading into the second week of a rainy Berlin lacking Asian buyers due to Coronavirus fears, there has been a mixed response to the inaugural festival selections of Carlo Chatrian, and a steady stream of Efm deal-making with at least one spectacular Us acquisition understood to be in the works.
Occurring later than usual due to the Academy’s decision to bring the Oscars forward this year, Berlin kicked off 17 days after Sundance Film Festival. That offered some comfort to sales agents in their annual scramble with producers and agents to lock in talent.
Heading into the second week of a rainy Berlin lacking Asian buyers due to Coronavirus fears, there has been a mixed response to the inaugural festival selections of Carlo Chatrian, and a steady stream of Efm deal-making with at least one spectacular Us acquisition understood to be in the works.
Occurring later than usual due to the Academy’s decision to bring the Oscars forward this year, Berlin kicked off 17 days after Sundance Film Festival. That offered some comfort to sales agents in their annual scramble with producers and agents to lock in talent.
- 2/25/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
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