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The Czechs have been considered pioneers in animation film since the beginning of the previous century. From traditional, cut-out, clay, puppetry, knitting and even ginger bread: innovative animation is as much a tradition as it is an art form in the Czech Republic. Here’s your chance to dive into the golden age of the Czech animation era right here in VERA. With names such as Jiří Trnka, famous for his works involving puppetry (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Hand), then Czechoslovakia quickly became known for its unconventional, dreamlike and somewhat eerie animation around the world. Many creators followed, all with their own unique styles and methods, all characterized by their experimentation and innovation. A well known name from the later part of the Czech animation’s golden age is Jan Švankmajer, who made surrealist works that combined stop-motion animation with real life objects and actors, which is very clear in his film Alice (which we screened last season as some of you might remember). An animation series that took over the world is Pat & Mat by Lubomír Beneš and Vladimír Jiránek, which became particularly popular here in the Netherlands as Buurman & Buurman. The fact of the matter is that an incredible number of Czech artists have made animations during this era, all in unique styles and telling original story lines. Expect a wide variety of visual styles, often in earthy colour tones. They mostly tell simple, almost childlike stories that have a dark edge, and some of them get weirder and dreamier with every frame. Thanks to a collaboration with FILMY ČESKY we are able to screen a wide ranging selection of Czech animation shorts by some of the bigger names and lesser known artists from the 1960s, 70s and 80s. FILMY ČESKY has a great amount of Czech animations, ranging from old children’s shows to more experimental or abstract works, all free to watch. Make sure to check out their channel: https://www.youtube.com/@FILMYCESKY447 after the screening when you’ve got the hang of Czech animation.

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Jiří Bárta

Adolf Born

Hosted by

Vera Groningen

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