Jakub Jurásek

On a cold February morning, 12-year-old Niki and his family arrive at the Kharkiv metro station to take shelter from the terrifying war raging outside. For Niki's family, daylight is synonymous with mortal danger, and the boy is not allowed to leave the station premises, living under the constant glow of their neon lights. While aimlessly wandering around the abandoned cars and full platforms, Niki meets Vika (11), and a new world opens up to him. As their bond strengthens, the children find the courage once again to feel the sun on their faces.

The northernmost city in the world, Longyearbyen, is the most populated settlement in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. A Czech social anthropologist attempts to make a new home for herself here with her family whilst also researching social transformations in the local community. The loss of jobs in the mining industry, as well as the complicated relationship between Norwegian natives, foreign immigrants, and tourists all contribute to the city's change of atmosphere whilst the surrounding snowy mountains melt and avalanches threaten the daily existence of the local population. This portrait of the microcosm of an ice town is a raw glimpse into the contemporary globalized world.

The real fate of Jiří Arvéd Smíchovský, a prominent hermeticist, occultist, believer in black magic and an exceptionally well-educated person with a brilliant memory. This avid book lover had doctorates in law, theology and philosophy and was fluent in five languages. He was interested in occult teachings, practiced magical ceremonies, was in contact with the Freemasons, but at the same time he was a member of the National Fascist Community while being homosexual. During the war he cooperated with the Nazis, after the war with the communist StB.

Roman is a top level cyclist recovering from an injury through hard work and strict regimen. To improve his performance, he even sleeps in an oxygen tent installed in his bedroom. That is a bitter pill to swallow for his wife, Šarlota, whose long-time wish is to conceive a child. And so they both brim with determination, get lost in their obsessions, and improve their bodies to a point where they might even frighten themselves.

Honza Marak has long since abandoned a career in IT and has bought a cottage on the outskirts of a small village, where he’s settled in with his wife Marketa, daughter Anyna and son Sayen. He works in the woods as a forest labourer repairing roads and enclosures, cutting wood to sell and assisting the foresters. Marketa earns a living as a masseuse and alternative healer, making use of various mind-altering plants and mushrooms, which leads to conflict with the old inhabitants and eventually with drug enforcement. Daughter Anyna attends a distant school where her grades deteriorate as she wanders the woods learning from nature rather than from her textbooks.

Honza Marak has long since abandoned a career in IT and has bought a cottage on the outskirts of a small village, where he’s settled in with his wife Marketa, daughter Anyna and son Sayen. He works in the woods as a forest labourer repairing roads and enclosures, cutting wood to sell and assisting the foresters. Marketa earns a living as a masseuse and alternative healer, making use of various mind-altering plants and mushrooms, which leads to conflict with the old inhabitants and eventually with drug enforcement. Daughter Anyna attends a distant school where her grades deteriorate as she wanders the woods learning from nature rather than from her textbooks.