The Canary Connection

In communist Czechoslovakia in 1980, 15-year-old Mara dreams of leaving her village to study in the city and become a pilot. But her father, a widowed Ruthenian farmer, insists she stay and work the land. When her village faces destruction due to a new dam, their generational conflict intensifies, revealing the struggle between tradition, identity, and the desire for freedom in a context of historical change.

A filmmaker goes on the run rather than complete his latest picture in this offbeat comedy from Macedonian auteur Ivo Trajkov. A director (Trajkov) has grown weary of battling his producer for control of his latest project and decides to hit the road, borrowing his girlfriend's auto and stealing the production bankroll from the project's financiers. While at first the director claims to have a grand scheme for his ill-gotten gains, his plans take a serious left turn when he meets a strange young woman and an eccentric hitchhiker.

A man who believes his days are numbered is saddled with more bad luck than he expects in this metaphorical comedy-drama from director Ivo Trajkov. Ever since he was a boy, Josef (David Svehlik) was been convinced he's destined to die at the age of 29, so he's understandably nervous as his 28th year is drawing to a close. Fate doesn't appear to be on Josef's side when his wife asks for a divorce and moves out, taking their young son with her, and he's next fired from his job fixing scales. Josef is in an unsettled state of mind, and his new friendship with free-spirited Gabriel (Karel Zima) doesn't help much, but Josef begins to wonder if luck is on his side again when he meets a lovely and warmed hearted woman, Olivia (Verica Nedeska).

The story of this political thriller takes place in the 90s and follows one night of the life of the Deputy Minister Nikola and his wife Ana.

A drug-addicted punk, Kwicka, lives with his companion and son in a dilapidated sublet. His alternative way of life collides with harsh reality when he receives a letter from social services warning that his child will be taken away. Kwicka tries to make things right, but his impulsive behaviour turns his rescue efforts into a free fall.

An ailing communist reflects on a young boy childhood in Stalinist Yugoslavia.

Spring 1939. The bishop of Banska Bystrica learns that the Antichrist was born in the village of Piargy, which had been buried by an avalanche a few days earlier.

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.

The budget for the program to colonize Mars was so drastically cut back that settlements never appeared on the faraway planet. Now the only reminder of the ambitious plan is an abandoned base inhabited by a very lonely robot. The silence and tranquility of the red planet is eventually disturbed, however, by a privately-funded Czech crew, whose members have taken on the mission for very different reasons...

The architects' plans for Central Bus Station to swallow visitors has turned into an endless maze of corridors. Once a gift to the citizens of Tel Aviv now serves to the immigrants. Yonathan has been a guide there for 17 years and is able to show the other side of the station's significance to those who walk with him. Yonathan knows that the purpose of going down to the building is to find not only himself, but also a society that harbours its values, protects its original traditions and wants to defend its home.

Two brothers are torn apart after finding out they will inherit few millions from their father.

This existential drama depicts a godless and stressed family whose members do not live happy lives. A household without joy and pervaded by nervousness, dissatisfaction, and frustration creates an oppressive atmosphere. Everyone hides their desires and dreams within themselves. Unexpectedly, a bigoted grandmother visits this family and begins to "save" them. The mother, father, and teenage daughter are exposed to her criticism on a daily basis, and the grandmother's idea of redemption is forcefully imposed on them. The family undergoes a forced transformation, especially when apparent miracles begin to happen. However, this process increasingly repels the granddaughter, who is experiencing her own adolescent problems, and her clash with her grandmother ends in tragedy.

The story of the film *They Call Me Lars* pays homage to the “hard-boiled detective genre,” with present-day Prague standing in for 1930s Los Angeles. But private eye Lars doesn’t wear a suit like the legendary detective Phil Marlowe of old. He’s a tough guy in a leather jacket, with a shaved head and a scruffy beard. After being kicked out of the police force for complete insubordination, he scrapes by however he can. He solves various problems for his clients or, conversely, causes trouble for others. It depends on the assignment. The only thing left to him from his time in the service is his former partner and friend Gold. The only thing he has left from his time in government service is his former partner and friend Gold, and it is Gold who offers him a lucrative deal.

A director and a psychiatrist visit the central Slovenian prison in Dob. The director believes the place also contains locked up stories, while the psychiatrist believes that, through his psychodrama method, he can create a liberating creative space for the inmates and offer them a perspective for the future. A liberated zone within a closed facility?

An actor pursues his ex-mentor throughout Berlin in order to kill him.