GUČA films

In her feature-length debut, Marie-​Mag­da­le­na Kochová uses the character of eighteen-year-old Johanna to explore the phenomenon of “glass children” – children who, because they have a special-needs sibling, are neglected by their family, however unintentionally. They often feel invisible, their problems are always considered less important, and they are often expected to help take care of their disabled brother or sister. Johana is about to graduate from high school, and so she must decide whether to leave home to study, or stay and help her parents. An immensely sensitive account of the nature of sibling love which, for once, puts “the other one” first. Anna Kořínek (kviff.com)

In her feature-length debut director Paula Ďurinová sets out to wander among varied rock formations in order to try and come to terms with the loss of her grandparents.

Scientist Edward O. Wilson has named the coming geological era Eremocene. In her analogue science fiction essay, Viera Čákanyová explores this era of loneliness in dialogue with a virtual alter ego from the future.

In a hierarchical kingdom isolated by magical nature, a young girl named Jasna lives. Gifted with the power of critical thinking and a fierce sense of justice, she comes into conflict with the evil ruler Volk. He condemns her to a difficult path from which there is no return. By overcoming her own fear, strong inner courage and meeting the protector of the forest, Orl, she finds the key to changing the system – the free establishment of the entire kingdom. The journey of the main female heroine is based on contemporary ecological and feminist perspectives and promotes interpersonal acceptance and love. Visually, the film combines live-action scenes with 2D and 3D animations, which are complemented by musical sequences inspired by the genre of contemporary rap.

Alcohol addiction is a constant in Pepa Lubojacki’s family. In an attempt to find a sisterly-brotherly way of dealing with it, text, long-term observation, beats and AI-animated photos are combined into an unflinching, yet loving form of disclosure.

Burn-out and depression are not individual phenomena but collective ones. The film is an invitation to rest through images and listening, so as to transform individual exhaustion into shared power to act.