Marek (13), who hates his mother’s boyfriend, is constantly shooting and posting videos online. These impress Tereza (12), “a good family girl”. Together, they start filming risky situations which they stage. Then Tereza suggests they run away from home. They stage even rougher videos and pretend Marek kidnapped her. After Marek calls Tereza’s mother, there is no way back. They buy train tickets to go as far as possible and end up in Bucharest, in a dirty suburb apartment-block neighbourhood, stealing food.
“The concept of this unconventional road trip of two children is rooted in the tradition of verism, which demands observation rather than staging. The low-budget method assumes a minimal crew which works with maximum concentration to develop and create the best possible conditions for two 13-year-old children whose performance is crucial to the result. The film will be partially based on improvisation”, Zdeněk Jiráský said in a statement.
The film is produced by Jordi Niubó through i/o post (Czech Republic) and coproduced by Arina film production (Slovakia) and Tangaj Production (Romania).
The project is supported by the Czech Film Fund, the Slovak Audiovisual Fund, the Czecj Ústi Region (Ústecký kraj) and Sony Europe, as Sony cameras and lenses were used in the shooting.
The total budget is 500,000 EUR.
“We started shooting on 1 March 2022 and wrapped filming on 30 May 2022. The shoot took over 40 days in the Czech Republic (March) and in Romania (April). We are in the editing process now, and looking for a Work in Progress platform as we still miss approximately 50,000 EUR to complete the film, whose premiere should take place next year”, producer Jordi Niubó told FNE.
“It is Zdeněk´s fourth feature film but his second author film, so he is coming back to himself. I think it is a very important moment in his career. It is also the second feature film for our production company i/o post. This time an international coproduction, so this is also an important step for us. Independence is the key word for Zdeněk, for us and also for our main characters, who run away from home. I believe that for our main protagonists it will be a starting point of a great acting career”, Niubó also said.
Zdeněk Jiráský was born in 1969 in Jičín and studied Screenwriting and Dramaturgy at FAMU. After several documentaries for the Czech Television, his debut feature Poupata won four Czech Lions in 2012 (including for directing and best film), as well as the RWE & Barrandov Studio Film Foundation Award for best script. His other feature films include historical dramas V Tichu (2014) produced by Slovak Furia Film and coproduced by i/o post, the Czech Television, the Radio and Television of Slovakia, and the Slovak Film Institute, Krystof (2021) produced by Alef Film & Media (SK) and coproduced by i/o post and Fulfilm, as well as the docudrama Buh s nami (2018), which he made for the Czech Television.
Production Information:
Producer:
i/o post Czech Republic)
Jordi Niubó: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Coproducers:
Arina film production (Slovakia)
Tangaj Production (Romania)
Credits:
Director: Zdeněk Jiráský
Scriptwriter: Zdeněk Jiráský
DoP: Michal Černý
Editor: Petr Turyna
Cast: Daniel Zeman, Maiša Kollmannová, Anita Krausová, Marian Mitaš, Réka Derzsi
