Two directors. One is Czech, the other is German. Their common features are the year of birth and especially the interest in delicate portrayal of young lives. This is the first pair of creators whose films to be shown in the world premiere within this year's Proxima Competition.
Vojtěch Strakatý presented his feature debut After Party in Venice last year. His sensitive study of a young student uncovering her disillusionment is remarkable for its tender yet harsh atmosphere, emotive narration, and pitch-perfect casting. His second film On the Other Side of Summer emanates the same chimerical holiday mood. It observes the friendship of three girls, whose days flowing like still water are disturbed when they visit a small, seemingly ordinary island. In his loosely structured film, Strakatý paints a gentle study of girlhood and the fluidity of relationships, using the almost lyrical nature as a reflection of the characters’ souls. Here the director underlines and develops his distinctive poetics. You can feel the heat radiating from the screen at the Karlovy Vary Theatre from 4 p.m.
The second film Rain Fell On the Nothing New has a tougher plot, unravelling the struggles of a personal redemption through the journey of a released inmate trying to restart his ordinary life. With this feature debut, director Steffen Goldkamp explores further the motif of his graduation short After Two Hours, Ten Minutes Had Passed - screened at the Venice Film Festival -, where he depicted the life of boys detained in a correctional facility. Having completed his studies in Hamburg and Paris, Goldkamp founded his own production company, under whose auspices he made the film Rain Fell On the Nothing New. Thanks to the clinically precise direction, the tender yet raw picture offers an empathetic and intimate portrayal of people hovering on the edge of society. It will be screened in premiere tonight at the Karlovy Vary Theatre at 7 p.m.
