Stories with continuation from Helena Trzeshtikova

ST. PETERSBURG. At the festival "Message to Man", a retrospective of films by the Czech documentary Helena Trzeshtikova began.

In the 40 years since graduating from the Prague Academy of Fine Arts, Helena Třeštíková has made more than 50 films. Many of them have received recognition in the director’s homeland and beyond. In the treasury of Trzheshtikova awards there is also Prix Arte (European Oscar), received in 2008 for the René tape.

She studied at the famous faculty of FAMU, which is one of the top ten best film schools in the world, in the department of documentary. It is non-fiction films that determine the face of modern Czech cinema. Although in the early 70s it did not resemble his fantastic take-off, when one after another the masterpieces of Foreman, Khitilova, Hertz, Yakubisco, Menzel, Kahini appeared on the screen. The events of 1968, which delayed for many years the democratic transformations within the country, put an end to the history of the “Czech new wave” (Česká nová vlna). The return to the beginnings began only after the Velvet Revolution.

Helena made the decision to enter the Prague Academy after meeting in 1968 with a student who worked on a film about political prisoners. After graduating from FAMU in 1975, Helena Trzeshtikova tried her hand at dramaturgy. Later, she took up directing. In 2007 there was a short-term “campaign in politics”. As the Minister of Culture of the country, she only stayed for two weeks, after which she resigned onerous authority.

From the very first works, the director preferred the style of the documentary annals. If we talk about analogues of chronicles in other countries, first of all it is worth recalling the British project Up Series, in which 14 children from different walks of life took part. Season One - Seven Up! - started in 1964. The 8th episode - 56 Up - was released in May 2012. Over the years, the technique of observing heroes has also been used in the documentary series Born in the USSR. Also a British project, but with the participation of an international team, which included director Sergei Miroshnichenko, cameraman Vyacheslaa Sachkov, composer Ilya Demutsky. Filming continued from 1991 to 2012. In 2011 Miroshnichenko shared plans to continue work on a series of new series.

Helena Trzeshtikova, like her like-minded people, managed to realize the dream of Andrei Tarkovsky - to show the life of a person throughout its entirety. In her retrospective, which is being shown as part of the Message to Man festival in St. Petersburg, as well as in the Moscow cinema Oktyabr, several of her works are involved. The Russian premiere of the 2017 Family History saga (Strnadovi) has just taken place. Her characters are the spouses Strnad, Ivan and Wenceslas, who celebrated the 35th anniversary of their life together. They appear on the screen young, happy, full of hope and plans. The birth of five children, the difficulties of their upbringing, the instability of the family business, the home routine at some point lead to Ivana’s brittle, fragile psyche. Continued filming for a long time was in jeopardy.

The 2012 Kettner family is at the center of the narrative of The Private Universe (Soukromý vesmír). Their 37-year-old family chronicle, unfolding against the backdrop of different periods of the country’s life. She is also full of drama, loss and gain. The hero “René” for 20 years of filming turns in front of the viewer from a charming and intelligent 17-year-old guy into a recidivist who only briefly leaves the prison. Progressive multiple sclerosis is another test that has fallen on the tape measure of his fate.

Hard drugs deprived the heroine of a different story with the continuation of the film Katka, children, health, youth, beauty. Dreams of happiness cannot withstand deadly craving. In reality, degradation, body trade, theft and begging.

Another fresh work is presented in retrospect - Zkáza krásou (“Doomed Beauty”), which is dedicated to the Czech film actress Lida Baarova. An affair with Goebbels led to the collapse of the career of a 30s star, a tragedy for her family, a poor old age, obscured by abundant libations.

Elena Tanakova © Gallerix.ru