- Occupation
Producer - Country
Czech Republic
Šantavá Martina
Heaven Hell
Heaven Hell is a full-length documentary film project dealing with human diversity that doesn't necessarily lead to hell even though it might seem like that from the outsider's point of view. It is an attempt to defend even very extreme notions of freedom if such notions are well-founded and lead to new horizons of human understanding. The film portrays people who have found pleasure in pain and decided not to hide this passion, or at least not to suppress and deny it any more. These people either inflict pain or demand it from others, but they do not force anyone to do anything. This closed society is often labelled by its members as BDSM.
On the Outside
This long-form observation compares the situation of prisoners sentenced for life with the situation of those who leave their prison cells after several years. What does a man do after years spent wating to get out? How does he cope with the fact that everything is different from what he imagined? What choices will he make? Will the situation be at least a little similar to what he expected? And what decisions are left for a prisoner sentenced for life? This film follows twists and turns in the lives of its protagonists. Based on the prisoner's stories, the film also ponders the universal issue of how to best deal with time and freedom.
Tantra
Sex is our lifelong companion. Tantra reveals a way to utilise the potential of sexual energy for personal development, to cultivate sexuality and to use its energy in all spheres of life. Tantra can become a discovery journey and awakening of hidden possibilities of improving the life potential - and certainly not only in terms of sexual power. The film focuses on the practice of the tantra teachers, examining their knowledge and experience, as well as on methods of purely pragmatic tantra sellers conducting business in a highly attractive and, without a doubt, lucrative field that is still largely perceived as something forbidden.
EM and HE
This documentary, free of any censorship or even self-censorship, is dedicated to two unconventional artists and friends from Litvínov. Em Rudenko, a non-conformist Ukrainian construction worker, poet and alcoholic, is an author of absurd and sexually tinged poems from the working-class environment. Xavier Baumaxa is an original performer, poet and an underground bard. In his work he parodies every possible genre, caricatures celebrities and ridicules more or less everything. The film director Vladimír Michálek followed both of these artists for more than two years on their journeys between their concerts, on the travels from one bizarre place to another and shot many of their performances, concerts and parties. The film features the most famous songs by Baumaxa: the grotesque 'ethno' Pozitiff Peopula, an anti-Nazi ballad Nazijazz and others. The film captures also an inter-genre project with the dumb-show called Silent Love and it presents previews from the ironic show Opičan Havel or a performance with Radim Hladík, Dan Bárta and Lenka Dusilová. A film about booze, cigarettes a ramble to and secret gig.
Poverty is No Vice
According to the Czech Statistical Office, ten percent of Czechs are in danger of falling below the poverty income level. The situation is especially critical for single mothers who represent one-fifth of the total number, followed by young people and seniors. This documentary film will feature up to five stories of Czech single mothers.
Heaven Hell is a full-length documentary film project dealing with human diversity that doesn't necessarily lead to hell even though it might seem like that from the outsider's point of view. It is an attempt to defend even very extreme notions of freedom if such notions are well-founded and lead to new horizons of human understanding. The film portrays people who have found pleasure in pain and decided not to hide this passion, or at least not to suppress and deny it any more. These people either inflict pain or demand it from others, but they do not force anyone to do anything. This closed society is often labelled by its members as BDSM.
On the Outside
This long-form observation compares the situation of prisoners sentenced for life with the situation of those who leave their prison cells after several years. What does a man do after years spent wating to get out? How does he cope with the fact that everything is different from what he imagined? What choices will he make? Will the situation be at least a little similar to what he expected? And what decisions are left for a prisoner sentenced for life? This film follows twists and turns in the lives of its protagonists. Based on the prisoner's stories, the film also ponders the universal issue of how to best deal with time and freedom.
Tantra
Sex is our lifelong companion. Tantra reveals a way to utilise the potential of sexual energy for personal development, to cultivate sexuality and to use its energy in all spheres of life. Tantra can become a discovery journey and awakening of hidden possibilities of improving the life potential - and certainly not only in terms of sexual power. The film focuses on the practice of the tantra teachers, examining their knowledge and experience, as well as on methods of purely pragmatic tantra sellers conducting business in a highly attractive and, without a doubt, lucrative field that is still largely perceived as something forbidden.
EM and HE
This documentary, free of any censorship or even self-censorship, is dedicated to two unconventional artists and friends from Litvínov. Em Rudenko, a non-conformist Ukrainian construction worker, poet and alcoholic, is an author of absurd and sexually tinged poems from the working-class environment. Xavier Baumaxa is an original performer, poet and an underground bard. In his work he parodies every possible genre, caricatures celebrities and ridicules more or less everything. The film director Vladimír Michálek followed both of these artists for more than two years on their journeys between their concerts, on the travels from one bizarre place to another and shot many of their performances, concerts and parties. The film features the most famous songs by Baumaxa: the grotesque 'ethno' Pozitiff Peopula, an anti-Nazi ballad Nazijazz and others. The film captures also an inter-genre project with the dumb-show called Silent Love and it presents previews from the ironic show Opičan Havel or a performance with Radim Hladík, Dan Bárta and Lenka Dusilová. A film about booze, cigarettes a ramble to and secret gig.
Poverty is No Vice
According to the Czech Statistical Office, ten percent of Czechs are in danger of falling below the poverty income level. The situation is especially critical for single mothers who represent one-fifth of the total number, followed by young people and seniors. This documentary film will feature up to five stories of Czech single mothers.
The Dream Journey of Petr Koukal
In Fall 2010, as Petr played the best badminton of his life, beating the world's top players, the bad news came. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer and had to undergo immediate surgery and subsequent chemotherapy. All of that but six months before qualifications for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Fortunately, this fear soon diminished into a comparatively smaller one: Can he fulfill his dream of becoming the first Czech badminton player with a double Olympic participation? Seven weeks after the chemo treatment, he was back on court, working hard to get back his strength. He defended the national championship title. His hair started growing again. In April 2011, the Olympic qualification started; in a year, his dream can come true. The film depicts one year in the life of a young man who has set himself a goal and goes for it.
Adoption - A Little Piece of Happines
Every child needs to feel wanted. Every child needs a family. Every child needs love. But not every child has that. On the other hand, there are couples or even single people who are willing or even craving to give an abandoned or orphaned child a family. The solution is adoption – creating a family based not on biological bonds but on a series of decisions, some made by parents, some made by authorities and some made by fate. This process – process of adoption – is not so completely different from biological parenthood and its ups and downs; which is one of the important issues our documentary wants to explore. This documentary would be a unique opportunity to watch family relationships developing over the spun of 20 years. We will see them as they make the biggest and toughest decisions in their lives and we will be there when they have to prove that they are ready to take to consequences. We will watch the fate of people who decide to create a family for somebody who needs it. And we will watch the development of the kids who started their lives with one of the biggest handicaps a person can have – being left alone in the world of strangers.
The Garden of Rübezahl
Made shortly before the Krkonoše National Park celebrates its 50th anniversary, this portrait of a landscape sets out to be a poetic as well as factual tribute to the area and it should provide some instruction regarding environmental conservation in the Czech Republic.
In Fall 2010, as Petr played the best badminton of his life, beating the world's top players, the bad news came. He was diagnosed with testicular cancer and had to undergo immediate surgery and subsequent chemotherapy. All of that but six months before qualifications for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Fortunately, this fear soon diminished into a comparatively smaller one: Can he fulfill his dream of becoming the first Czech badminton player with a double Olympic participation? Seven weeks after the chemo treatment, he was back on court, working hard to get back his strength. He defended the national championship title. His hair started growing again. In April 2011, the Olympic qualification started; in a year, his dream can come true. The film depicts one year in the life of a young man who has set himself a goal and goes for it.
Adoption - A Little Piece of Happines
Every child needs to feel wanted. Every child needs a family. Every child needs love. But not every child has that. On the other hand, there are couples or even single people who are willing or even craving to give an abandoned or orphaned child a family. The solution is adoption – creating a family based not on biological bonds but on a series of decisions, some made by parents, some made by authorities and some made by fate. This process – process of adoption – is not so completely different from biological parenthood and its ups and downs; which is one of the important issues our documentary wants to explore. This documentary would be a unique opportunity to watch family relationships developing over the spun of 20 years. We will see them as they make the biggest and toughest decisions in their lives and we will be there when they have to prove that they are ready to take to consequences. We will watch the fate of people who decide to create a family for somebody who needs it. And we will watch the development of the kids who started their lives with one of the biggest handicaps a person can have – being left alone in the world of strangers.
The Garden of Rübezahl
Made shortly before the Krkonoše National Park celebrates its 50th anniversary, this portrait of a landscape sets out to be a poetic as well as factual tribute to the area and it should provide some instruction regarding environmental conservation in the Czech Republic.
Czech TV
Kavčí hory
140 70 Prague 4
Kavčí hory
140 70 Prague 4