Karel Vachek and honey

Ji.hlava will also see a special screening of documentary essay Communism by Karel Vachek, the classic of Czech cinema. The author’s ninth film that takes many hours and has four parts, maps out the contemporary Czech political scene, philosophy, religion and art. “One of the key points of the film is that if you want to live in the truth, you also have to be a bit of a bastard. The truth is hurtful for everyone and so it seems that it’s better to avoid it!” says the director who already turned seventy-nine.

What to recommend from other sections? Definitely the story of human relentlessness made by the Macedonian duo Tamara Kotevska and Ljubomir Stefanov, Honeyland. The film follows the “protector of bees”, Hatidza, who lives with her old and immobile mother in the Macedonian mountains where she keeps bees. The film is one of the winners at this year’s Sundance festival.

Another director team, this time composed of Jennifer Baichwal, Nick de Pencier and Edward Burtynsky from Canada, brings to the audience Anthropocene: The Human Epoch. In twenty countries on six continents, the authors follow the effects of human activity on the planet’s ecosystem.

The Brink by American director Alison Clayman shows the mentality of Steve Bannon, the right-wing populist and former strategist of president Trump.