Archive of films Tram / Tramvaj

Czech Republic / France
2012, 7 min

Section: Czech Films 2011–2012
Year: 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.

Synopsis

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.

About the director

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.

Contacts

Negativ
Ostrovní 30, 110 00, Praha 1
Czech Republic
Tel: +420 777 697 543, +420 224 933 755
Fax: +420 224 933 472
E-mail: [email protected]
www: www.negativ.cz

Aerofilms
Milady Horákové 383/79, 170 00, Praha 7
Czech Republic
Tel: +420 224 947 566
E-mail: [email protected]
www: www.aerofilms.cz

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About the film

Color, DCP

Section:	Czech Films 2011–2012

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

Guests

Pavel Strnad

Producer

Michaela Pavlátová

Film Director

Kateřina Černá

Producer

Daniel Němec

Sound Designer

Ivo Andrle

Distributor

Zuzana Pudilová

Distributor