Youthful energy and human imperfections. Creators introduce the Czech queer series Filter

The new Czech Television miniseries had its world premiere at KVIFF. Told through the perspective of teenage boys, it explores life at secondary school, the complexities of relationships, and generational challenges.

For producer Jaroslav Sedláček, it was essential that the queer series aimed at young audiences would also resonate with older viewers. “I wanted parents and grandparents to understand what young people are going through and the challenges they face. It can open up conversations between generations,” he said. Director David Semler agreed that Filter was conceived as a series capable of bridging the generational divide.

According to the young cast – many of whom were appearing on camera for the first time  and won over the hearts of the entire auditorium, as one audience member remarked – his approach was absolutely crucial. “The world moves incredibly fast. Even though I’m only twenty-three, I already notice differences between myself and the sixteen-year-old boy I play. But David developed the characters together with us rather than imposing ready-made ideas. We spent a lot of time talking things through, and I put a part of myself into my character,” explains lead actor Antonio Šoposki.

The cast also praised Semler for giving them considerable freedom to shape their dialogue, allowing the conversations between the teenage characters to feel natural and authentic. “I’m not interested in black-and-white characters. We all have a light side and a dark side. We all make mistakes, even when we’re trying to be the best versions of ourselves,” Semler said, explaining the depth of the characters.

The discussion then turned to the role of the intimacy coordinator, whose presence was an important part of the production. “We cast the series through social media rather than traditional screen tests, and from the very beginning we made it clear that the project would include non-explicit intimate scenes,” producer Jaroslav Sedláček explained. According to Šoposki, the intimacy coordinator served as an essential intermediary between the actors and the director. Although he felt comfortable discussing sensitive scenes directly with Semler, he believes having that this role was invaluable.

“Intimate scenes are awkward for everyone. The coordinator found solutions that made the actors feel comfortable while ensuring the scenes worked on camera,” Semler said. He added that while improvisation was encouraged in many other aspects of the series, intimate scenes were carefully choreographed and thoroughly discussed in advance so that everyone involved felt safe.

Reflecting on the 19-day shoot, Sedláček said “I felt a tremendous sense of responsibility. I asked everyone to be considerate and supportive, making sure no one felt embarrassed or excluded – for example, simply because they weren’t familiar with filmmaking jargon.”