The Echoes of the 28th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival begin this week in Bucharest. The programme will feature the award-winning films from last year's Ji.hlava IDFF which will be screened at the Czech Centre in Bucharest. Documentaries from the Ji.hlava’s 28th edition will also be screened in Belgium, Serbia, Slovakia, and the USA.
"We are delighted that Echoes of Ji.hlava enable us to share award-winning Czech and international films from Ji.hlava with global audiences while fostering connections between filmmakers, local professionals, and viewers," said Marek Hovorka, director of the Ji.hlava IDFF.
Screenings in Bucharest
The Echoes of Ji.hlava in Bucharest will start on March 6 and continue until April 3. The opening film will be World Between Us by Marie Dvořáková, which follows personal and professional life of Czech photographer Marie Tomanová, her passion and obsession for art, her fearlessness to make their vision a reality, and the boundless effort that requires. The film took home the Best Cinematography Award and the Student Jury Award at Ji.hlava 2024.
The program will once again showcase notable documentaries from Ji.hlava, including An Almost Perfect Family by Tudor Platon, which examines the generation gap and contrasts the behavior of Romanian youth with that of their parents. Also featured is Ms President by Marek Šulík, winner of the Opus Bonum Award, offering an intimate portrayal of Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová as she brings a human and open approach to the traditionally male-dominated world of high politics. Additionally, the Polish documentary Comrades by Joanna Janikowska, which follows members of the Communist Renewal Party in Bologna and received a special mention at the 28th Ji.hlava IDFF, will be presented.
Where will Ji.hlava go next?
The second half of March will be followed by the Echoes of Ji.hlava in Belgium (March 18–20), which will present five films from the Ji.hlava programme, and include masteclasses at film schools RITCS and LUCA School of Arts in Brussels. The Echoes will kick off with Dajori, an observational documentary by directors Martin Páv and Nicolas Kourek exploring the life of a Roma family in North Bohemia. The program will also feature Me + You, an intimate portrait of sisterly love and independence, an acclaimed debut of Zohra Benhammou and Romy Mana.
The Echoes of Ji.hlava will take place in Belgrade from April 1 to 8, featuring screenings of Peter Kerekes' "documentary comedy" Wishing on a Star and Daniela Meressa Rusnoková's Grey Zone, a documentary offering a sensitive perspective on the rarely discussed topic of premature births. The screenings and the accompanying programme will take place in the recently opened Czech House in Belgrade.
The Echoes of Ji.hlava will continue in the upcoming months in both New York and Bratislava.
This year’s Echoes of Ji.hlava take place in cooperation with the Czech Centres network. The Echoes of Ji.hlava IDFF in Belgium are held under the auspices of H.E. Jakub Skalník, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Brussels, and with the support of the City of Jihlava and the Vysočina Region.
