Czech Films 2011–2012 2012 / Tramvaj / Czech Republic, France 2012
A tramdriver arrives at work with a gloomy face, she switches on the tram lights and moves off. During the journey, however, every time a man in a raincoat gets on, her spirits are raised and she gets increasingly excited by the ride. Even so, we sense that she is alone, but things can change. This short film was screened at the Cannes festival.
A tram driver goes through the same routine every day – she arrives for work while it’s still dark, she turns on the lights and sets off, picking up passengers on the same old tedious journey. One person is like the next – office workers in raincoats as grey as the sullen, overweight woman’s humdrum life. But the tram’s jerky movements on the uneven track, the power she exerts over the control lever, and the presence of so many men stir the woman’s imagination and the journey suddenly seems drab no longer; things even start to look rosy... Back at the tram terminal, it’s dusk again, but perhaps with the promise of a better future, or at least of a pleasant evening ahead. Thanks to the chosen stylisation, this surprisingly lascivious and sexually explicit film preserves the affability and warmth also found in Green Porno, Isabella Rossellini’s collection of stylised short films. Despite the presence of numerous phallic objects, the film retains its innocence, also through the use of retro music (especially appropriate for the stylisation of Tram) which was written for the Czech war drama Protector.
7 min / Color, DCP
Director Michaela Pavlátová
/ Screenplay Michaela Pavlátová
/ Music Petr Marek
/ Editor Michaela Pavlátová, Milos Krejcar
/ Producer Pavel Strnad
/ Production Negativ s.r.o.
/ Contact Negativ, Aerofilms
/ Distributor Aerofilms
Michaela Pavlátová (b. 1961, Prague) studied animation and has been a leading Czech animator and director since the early 1990s. Her short film Words, Words, Words (Řeči, řeči, řeči, 1991) was nominated for an Oscar and was awarded at Montreal, Tampere, Hiroshima and Stuttgart. Her short film Repete (1995) won a Golden Bear at the Berlinale. In 1999 she contributed to the film anthology Prague Stories (Praha očima…) and, four years later, she debuted as a feature film director with Faithless Games (Nevěrné hry), which won the New Director award in San Sebastian. Her second film Night Owls (Děti noci) won Best Actor and Best Actress in competition at KVIFF in 2008. She also teaches and occasionally works as an actress. Tram was screened this year at Cannes during the Directors’ Fortnight and was awarded at the prestigious festival in Annecy.
Negativ
Ostrovní 30, 110 00, Praha 1
Czech Republic
Phone: +420 603 360 661
E-mail: [email protected]
Aerofilms
Milady Horákové 383/79, 170 00, Praha 7
Czech Republic
Phone: +420 224 947 566
E-mail: [email protected]
Pavel Strnad
Producer
Michaela Pavlátová
Film Director
Kateřina Černá
Producer
Daniel Němec
Sound Designer
Ivo Andrle
Distributor
Zuzana Pudilová
Distributor
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