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Havel
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The Made In Prague On/Off Festival is turning 24 with a hybrid edition, showcasing the latest films both in cinemas and online.
The festival will open with the UK premiere of Havel, a biopic about the charismatic playwright turned president set largely against the backdrop of the Seventies. It will also team up with the Polish Film Festival to present the UK premiere of Agnieszka Holland’s biopic Charlatan, about Czech faith healer Jan Mikolasek.
Jiri Havelka´s debut, Owners will also screen. Hailed as "the comedy of the decade", the action is set in a residents’ association meeting, where 12 homeowners must agree on building management. As the meeting progresses their characters, ranging between idealists, profiteers and manipulators, are revealed to hilarious but chilling effect. With a nod to Sidney Lumet’s 12 Angry Men, this is a perceptive portrayal of contemporary Czech society.
Documentary is represented in the programme by Simon Sfranek's Meky, which follows pop star Miro Zbirka, and hanor – The Alchymical Furnace by directors Jan Danhel and Adam Olha offers a playful, poetic and candid insight into Jan Švankmajer´s artistic practice and his production company Athanor.
Czech animation is represented by Alexandra Májová’s and Kateřina Karhánková’s Hungry Bear Tales. Aimed at three to eight-year-olds, there will also be an online art workshop to help youngsters create their own Picnic with Bears.
For details of the full programme visit the official site.
Championing Czech art and cinema the Made in Prague Festival will also be promoting documentary The Painter and the Thief - read our interview with director Benjamin Ree here and The Painted Bird by Vaclav Marhoul, which depicts the horrors of war.
