Czech That Film 2022 LIVE & ON-LINE

Press release, Czech Centers - Headquarters, dated April 4, 2022  

This year’s Czech That Film festival will present 6 feature films and 3 documentaries. The selection is complemented by 8 short films. The first festival "live screening" will take place on Tuesday, April 5, 2022 in Austin, Texas. The online version will be available from May 13 to May 22. The showcase is jointly organized by the Czech Centers and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic in cooperation with partners.

The featured films include the award-winning Ondříček's Zátopek and the Bird Atlas directed by Olmo Omerzu with Miroslav Donutil in the lead role. The New York audience will appreciate the involvement of the Czech Center New York, which plans to organize at least three live screenings in cooperation with the local Consulate General. The New York program will include films such as Two Ships (dir. Jan Foukal), Occupation (dir. Michal Nohejl) and Diary of a Modern Dad (dir. Jan Haluza). Even though the 11th Czech That Film festival is affected by Covid-19 for the third time, the partnerships established in recent years are not losing their strength.  

"There is interest in our cinematography in the world. Not only film classics, but also contemporary works are popular. The fact that we are organizing the 11th year of Czech That Film, which is intended primarily for overseas audiences, and the fact that even the covid wave has not affected the interest in our festival, is a proof. A high-quality film selection and cooperation with renowned partners play a significant role in this success,” said Ondřej Černý, CEO of the Czech Centers.  

The Finále Plzeň Festival once again collaborated on the selection of films for this year. The Festival Director Eva Veruňková Košařová said that the films were selected with regard to the given target audience. "Of course, we also pay attention to the genre and thematic diversity which will be represented not only by feature films, but also documentaries and animated short films," she added.

The online part of the festival will take place in the same way as last year, i.e. in cooperation with Artinii using the Artinii Film Festival Platform. It is a cloud technology that provides modern solutions for organizers of hybrid film festivals.  

"Every activity that enhances the visibility of the Czech Republic abroad has indispensable value. The work that the Czech Centers are doing on this mission is admirable," said Radovan Čech, Executive Director of Artinii, adding: "I believe the latest edition of the showcase will once again delight our devoted fans and attract a lot of new ones, too."

The Czech Centers project coordinator Anna Puklová emphasized that the aim of the festival is a comprehensive presentation of the selection of contemporary Czech cinema with regard to the context of the USA and Canada and the availability of films for these countries."The online environment continuously allows us to reach a wider audience. However, live screenings have always been the basis of the showcase, and we are glad that, at least in selected cities, viewers can watch films in a cinema environment,” she concluded.

Viewers can look forward to classic screenings in Washington D.C., Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Austin, Dallas and San Marcos. The Czech That Film festival will kick off on Tuesday, April 5, 2022 in Austin with the film Occupation (dir. Michal Nohejl). Czech films will be presented online to North American audience during the ten spring days from 13 to 22 May. 

• Czech that Film

Czech That Film 2022

Press release 🠓