How I met Czech film

Did you know that the film The Proud Princess the Queen – a sequel to the iconic fairy tale after 20 years – almost got made? What role did the English flag play in The Snowdrop Festival? Why did Marián Labuda deliberately speak Hungarian in front of Václav Klaus? The renowned film historian invites readers on a journey marked by stories from the personalities who make up the pantheon of Czech cinema. The names speak for themselves: František Vláčil, Elmar Klos, Jiří Menzel, Zdeněk Svěrák and Ladislav Smoljak, Jana Plodková, Bolek Polívka, Dušan Klein, Julius Satinský, Kryštof Hádek, and more. For half a century, Pavel Taussig has been meeting those who have dedicated their lives to making Czech films, and now, in a year that marks an anniversary not only for Czech and Czechoslovak film but also for the author himself, he has come to share these encounters in interviews he conducted with filmmakers over the last forty years: Elmar Klos A black-and-white dream, partly in colour František Vláčil I'm not one for artificial tragedies Jiří Krejčík A versatile creator Ladislav Helge A return from great solitude Bořivoj Zeman For the audience's entertainment Josef Mach Attempting humour Oldřich Lipský The director who clapped the clapperboard Zdeněk Podskalský The director from the tower Jiří Menzel A fortunate encounter with Bohumil Hrabal Dušan Klein How film came to the poet Vlastimil Venclik A welcome guest Karel Smyczek In the good neighbourhood of Czech film Eva Kantůrková and Zdenek Sirový The myth of the Czech land Jiří Brdečka A final confession Jan Otčenášek Between prose and film Jiří Marek A boy captivated by film Vladimír Körner Apparition and prophecy Vladimír Novotný A magician with a camera Stanislav Milota Even a cameraman must have ethics Jan Zázvorka How a film is built Jiří Sternwald If I weren't a musician… Jaroslava Adamová She never dreamt of film stardom Miroslav Horníček Film wishes and complaints Svatopluk Beneš The elegant gentleman of Czech film Ladislav Smoljak and Zdeněk Svěrák Milan Lasica and Július Satinský Living together Marián Labuda No giddy entertainer OLDŘICH NAVRÁTIL I'D RATHER DO NOTHING AT ALL Bolek Polívka His Majesty the jester Jana Plodková Searching for the fairy-tale forest of Řáholec Kryštof Hádek Still a nice boy