National Competition 3

For the past several years, the National Competition has presented audiences the best that domestic cinema has to offer. This year’s three blocks boast a total of fifteen films, a number which not only reflects the fact that Pragueshorts has recently opened itself up to animated and documentary works but that also shows the earnest joy felt by the programming team at the quality of the submissions.

Piotr Jasiński’s unusually sensitive drama Bunk captures a fragile moment in the life of two eighteen-year-old friends forced to reevaluate the true essence of their relationship. Do you get aroused at the sight of beautiful Baroque curves? Never fear: Tomáš Navrátil and David Payne’s The Baroque is here to say you’re not alone. Darker emotions characterize Adriana Bendžalová’s nihilistic miniature I Will Die in This House, while more experimental forms of filmmaking are represented by Nina Rybárová and Tomáš Rybár’s charmingly playful Criss Cross, which was inspired by the aesthetics of old video game consoles. The National Competition’s second block concludes with Daria Kashcheeva’s soul-searching Electra, which premiered in Cannes and was named Best Short Film at the Toronto IFF.

The three-member international jury will present an award for Best Czech Film, which comes with a financial reward of 2,000 euros.