Three Czech animation features and three short film programmes boast their visibility at the 2022 Anima Festival.

Kabul, Afghanistan. Herra, a young woman of Czech origin, decides to leave everything out of love for her future husband, Nazir. She then becomes a witness and actor in the upheavals her new Afghan family is going through. 

• Our film review

Michaela Pavlátová will have her own reserved spot at the Futuranima section of the festival (2 March), in which she will talk about the film's procedure: from the adaptation of the  Czech journalist Petra Procházková’s novel 'Frišta' to the finished film project (more info). 

The Anima Festival people comment on their programme:

The upcoming Czech presidency of the EU was an excellent opportunity for us to take a closer look at the current state of Czech animated film. That Czech animation is doing well is beyond doubt - after all, at the international festivals we are regularly impressed by well-made and pertinent Czech films, both in the short and long format, and both by the excellent animation schools and the production companies.

With this focus, we want to explore who are the inheritors of the rich Czech puppetry film tradition, who are the emerging talents, and how acclaimed filmmakers like Jiří Barta, Michaela Pavlátová, and Jan Balej continue to develop their trajectories -  Karin Vandenrydt, Festival Directress

Two more Czech features (and both stop-motion efforts) to be showcased. 'A Colourful Dream' by Jan Balej tracks a troupe of travelling perfor mers lands on an island governed by a despotic ruler with strict police control (watch the trailer).

The children' film 'Even Mice Belong in Heaven' by Denisa Grimmová & Jan Bubenícek describes a mismatched friendship story between a mouse and a fox.

The 'Chic Czech (5+)' programme includes 'Hopu' by Lucie Kokoliová, the acclaimed puppet film 'The Kite' by Martin Smatana, and a lot of other gems for children.

The third, 'Czech This!' programme boasts the Oscar-nominated 'Daughter' by Daria Kashcheeva, but also the Toronto-selected animation documentary 'Love, Dad' by Diana Cam Van Nguyen.

And there's a big surprise; the veteran Czech director Jiří Barta (The Vanished World of Gloves, The Pied Piper, Toys in the Attic) will present his new animation feature film in development, Golem, for a 15-minute session after the 'Czech this' screening (26 Feb). 

The project mixes live-action, 2D animation, 3D animation and claymotion; it was first presented at Cartoon Movie 2021 (read our preview), and we'll be glad to hear more about the project's development.

Golem

Fruits of Clouds, Kateřina Karhánková

Anima Festival takes place 25 February - 6 March 2022 (Brussels and online). This Focus is organized in collaboration with the Czech Centre Brussels, the Czech Film Center in Prague and the Anifilm Festival in Liberec.

• Anima Festival