František Štěpánek
Production
Known For

Three short story omnibus. The main hero and connecting link is Lieutenant Boruvka, created by Lubomír Lipsky. He deals with the murder case between climbers, the death of the dancer in the music theater and the strange disappearance of the mathematics professor.
Crime at the Girls School

Kinoautomat was the world's first interactive movie, conceived by Radúz Činčera for the Czechoslovak Pavilion at Expo '67 in Montreal. At nine points during the film the action stops, and a moderator appears on stage to ask the audience to choose between two scenes; following an audience vote, the chosen scene is played.
Kinoautomat

This is an engaging drama by director Karel Kachyna about the growing pains of a young teen (Jorga Kotrbova) and the hardships of a noble steed mistreated by a cruel neighboring farmer. The teen is having a hard time figuring out adult modes of behavior, and at the same time her heart goes out to the horse that is suffering under the treatment of the farmer next door to her family. As the teen adopts the horse as a friend, some clarification will be sure to come on the meaning of adulthood and the benefits of compassion.
Suffering

A poetic film about a dove getting lost on its way to Prague getting shot down by a paralyzed boy. An artist who finds the dove becomes friends with the boy. Together they take care of it bringing it back to recovery.
The White Dove

Set in a village, the story of a simple-minded, not-so-responsible young man who still manages to take care of his younger siblings after their father has left the family. Good thing he could lean on the principles of exemplary socialist morality. Not surprisingly, the attempt to capture something of the mentality and conditions of the contemporary village breaks down into simple, poster-like lessons.
Osení

Angelika, a ten years old daughter of a spa visitor Bachmann is terribly bored in Karlovy Vary spa. Her father enjoys different spa procedures, trying to lose some weight, but the little girl feels to be only waiting for something to enjoy. Moreover, she cannot speak any Czech unlike her father. Kája, a son of the hotel receptionist Vlasta, attempts to amuse her despite he cannot speak German. Both children make friends although there is the language barrier.
Carlsbad Ponies
A "fairly ordinary and mundane" working day in various operations of large steel mills...
Lidé jako ty

On one Sunday, when a scrap metal collection is announced, the children find a strange wire puzzle that grants every wish. Soon the town where the children live and go to school is in turmoil. But selfish adults, eager to investigate the mystery, destroy the spell...
Zázračný hlavolam
No description available.
Polka jede do světa

The rude and bitter mining engineer Štěrba strongly opposes the proposal of his colleague Ing. Vochoče to reopen mining in the old mine. Vochoč's plan is precisely prepared and could solve many problems. However, Štěrba does not want to explain anything to anyone, he does not want to talk to anyone, his only refuge is the pub and his only friend is a glass of alcohol. He has resigned himself to a relationship with his wife. No one knows that he has very good reasons to prevent Vochoč and the others from taking their meritorious initiative...
Zde jsou lvi
No description available.
Electricity Management

Three young men carry out a failed robbery of the box office of the Blaník cinema in Prague with tragic consequences. Only one of them has a chance to redeem himself.
The Road Back

Psychological study of country girl Jitka and her blossoming love for an older man afraid of her youth and spontaneity.
Vertigo

Now we see a naive reminder that television used to broadcast live productions, but in this case the live broadcast has taken on a surprisingly criminal dimension. One of the actors was killed during the broadcast - and it was seen by all the five million people who watched. Investigators are then reconstructing the suspicious event to find out whether it was an accident or a premeditated crime...
5 Million Witnesses
Based on a novel by Maria Majerova, this well-photographed but routine romantic drama is directed and co-scripted by Vaclav Krska. Set in a more old-fashioned time, the story centers around Lenka (Suzana Fisarskova), a young woman with a domineering, psychologically abusive father. When Lenka falls in love she suffers the ultimate injustice when her father and her family forbid her to marry the man. They see no advantage in such a union and want her to marry a wealthy local landowner instead, for obvious reasons. But Lenka is not as submissive as they think and she runs away to the city to look for the man she loves -- only to find a serious problem, though a surmountable one, is waiting for her.