Petr Pýcha

An ageing proprietor of a technology company has dedicated his whole life to his work, so it comes as a big blow when things suddenly start to fall apart at the seams.

Honza Marak has long since abandoned a career in IT and has bought a cottage on the outskirts of a small village, where he’s settled in with his wife Marketa, daughter Anyna and son Sayen. He works in the woods as a forest labourer repairing roads and enclosures, cutting wood to sell and assisting the foresters. Marketa earns a living as a masseuse and alternative healer, making use of various mind-altering plants and mushrooms, which leads to conflict with the old inhabitants and eventually with drug enforcement. Daughter Anyna attends a distant school where her grades deteriorate as she wanders the woods learning from nature rather than from her textbooks.

Mischievously self-assured Mára and somewhat eccentric Heduš set out into the frozen wastes in search of adventure – by car, naturally. After all, Mára’s turning fifteen soon. A road movie about the flies that occasionally buzz around even in winter, and a story that tells of the elusive bond of boyhood friendship and the irrepressible desire to experience something, even if you don't exactly know what.

This is not just a game. It is an escape from everyday life, an escape which is impossible to give up. Loaded Eels is a black comedy about a group of men who decided to escape from their everyday lives through role-playing. They pretend to be soldiers of SWAT team, evacuating community centers, dragging unsuspecting people into their game. They are driven by Adrenalin and delusion which makes them feel like Robin Hood. Stealing from the rich, giving to the poor. Everything goes smoothly until they find themselves in the wrong place and at the wrong time.

Nina is pregnant with Jakub. Today, he introduces her to his family. They’re all gathered in the hospital at the bedside of his grandfather. Just as the young lady tries to put on a brave face, she is faced with the surprising reaction of the dying relative: he wants to see her breasts. This sparks a debate to which she is not invited – should the patriarch’s last vow be satisfied?

The band Tataturk was one of the best and most progressive Czech rock bands of the 1990s. Everyone knew hits such as Černej písek (Black Sand) and Vánoce na poušti (Christmas in the Desert). They sold out Strahov Stadium, played with U2, and even performed at Václav Havel's birthday party. They were also popular in Turkmenistan, where their hits became a symbol of the "Turkmen Spring." Where might they be today if a bomb hadn't exploded at the airport when they were flying to Turkmenistan for a tour...