On 26 October, a screening of bachelor’s degree films by students of the Miroslav Ondříček Film Academy in Písek took place. The event was organised and hosted by producer Štěpán Chaloupka.

Among the seven films screened were two feature films that received financial support from the Jiří Menzel Endowment Fund – ‘Naše svatba’ (Our Wedding) by director Ivanna Kravchuk and ‘Pérák’ by director Michal Pazderka. Both were excellent. It is always a pleasure to see professional actors lending their support to help students bring their works to life. In these two films, for example, the cast included Jan Šťastný, Kristýna Frejová and Jan Hrušínský.

Each of these seven films had its own charm; for instance, the animated film “Mezi časy” and the documentary “Hledání génia loci” were particularly captivating. Overall, the wide range of ideas and the diversity of their execution are worthy of praise, not least in the films “Nathan”, “Diplomant” and “Růst”.

At a time when culture and public service media are facing all manner of pressures, we hope that these young filmmakers will be able to create freely and that those who presume to decide for others will interfere as little as possible in their work.

Talent should be supported!