As part of the official programme of the International Festival of Animated Films Anifilm, a presentation of 10 projects of short animated films in preparation and the announcement of the results of the 4th edition of the Czech Horizon Grant Supported by the PPF Foundation took place on 6 May.

The aim of the Czech Horizon Grant Supported by the PPF Foundation is to support Czech professional short animated projects. This format allows creators to try new approaches and technologies, among other things. Creators also often work on bolder or more serious themes than the themes commonly used in feature films and TV series. The total sum of the grant is CZK 1,000,000 and it is realised with the support of the PPF Foundation, its organiser is the Občanské sdružení pro podporu animovaného filmu association and it’s hosted by the International Festival of Animated Films Anifilm.

The presentation of the producers and creative teams of the ten short projects was held in front of an audience and, importantly, before a five-member jury composed of Michal Prokeš (creative producer at Oneplay), Zuzana Křivková (producer), Jan Bubeníček (director and animator), Lukáš Janičík (film editor) and Eliška Děcká (Czech Film Centre). The jury decided which projects in the Czech Horizon Grant Supported by the PPF Foundation would receive support. Five projects received support.

Lightsiders, directed by Jan Drozda, received a production grant of CZK 100,000. The jury was impressed by the ‘fresh and modern visual concept and the promise of an attractive combination of the trending video mapping format with traditional animation. The jury also appreciates the potential for further use of content and technological principles.’

The largest grant totalling CZK 300,000 was given to What the Water Took, directed by Ondřej Moravec. The jury explained their decision as follows: ‘We are awarding support for the professional pitch of a well-prepared project that has great potential to attract an international audience and introduce them to the tradition of Czech folk songs in a captivating way, among other things.’

The animated film The Beach by Marek Náprstek received CZK 200,000 for its production. The jury appreciated mainly that ‘the film uses a distinctive visual stylisation that, despite its expressiveness, remains playful, even tender at times. The story makes use of the main advantages animation provides, ie an artistic shortcut, association and metaphor.

The next awarded project, which received support in the amount of CZK 200,000 by a unanimous decision of the jury, is Psychoskop Tannenwald, which is being prepared by the directorial duo Agáta Mayerová and Vojtěch Kiss. The jury commented on their decision as follows: ‘The ancient memory of the Sudetenland hills seeping from the misty landscape together with the memories of the famous TV programme creates a unique project whose experimental slow cinema form has potential to resonate on the big screen and elsewhere.’

Party directed by Anna Mastníková received a production grant in the amount of CZK 200,000. The jury explained their decision in the following statement: ‘We appreciate the visual originality, liberating humour and the courage to leave social conventions behind.’

Some of the jurors commented on the overall quality of the competing short animated films. Juror Zuzana Křivková said: ‘So much talent at one place made it a real challenge for us to select projects for support. The level of Czech animation is getting better every year, and this year’s selection proves it.’ Michal Prokeš, creative director an Oneplay, added that ‘The projects that we assessed varied greatly in terms of their content and genre. We really enjoyed the courage, urgency, sometimes also mischievousness and appealing boldness of the creators. This made the discussion on the awarded grants so much harder and more responsible. The high quality of the submitted projects is further proof of the growing prestige and credibility of Anifilm and Czech animated production in general.’

Awarded projects

Lightsiders – director: Jan Drozda, producer: Jan Drozda - CZK 100,000
Party – director: Anna Mastníková, producer: Pure Shore - CZK 200,000
Psychoskop Tannenwald – directors: Agáta Mayerová, Vojtěch Kiss, producer: Agáta Mayerová - CZK 200,000
The Beach – director: Marek Náprstek, producer: Frame Films - CZK 200,000
What a Water Took – director: Ondřej Moravec, producer: Helium Film - CZK 300,000

Other projects in the pitching:
Demon of the Marshes – director: Martin Pertlíček, producer: Maurfilm
The Mermaid Effect – director: Markéta Magidová, producer: Maurfilm
King Pest – director: David Daenemark, producer: Vernes
The Story about First Tree – director: Radek Beran, producer: Animation People
Walk in Nature – director:  Matej Mihályi, producer: DIVIZE animace

The grant recipients were chosen by a jury composed of:

PROJECTS:

Demon of the Marshes

director: Martin Pertlíček
producer: Maurfilm 

This magical puppet odyssey was inspired by the life and work of Josef Váchal. In three acts, it follows an artist who leaves the embrace of civilisation to lose himself in the hazy marshes of Šumava to find inspiration and inner freedom. In grotesque and gentle encounters with surreal creatures – human, animal and demonic – he gradually sheds his possessions, habits and his own ego. Only after surrendering to nature does he find the source of his creation. The film’s expressive artistic style, work with light, and raw sound form a captivating mediation on rootedness, solitude and the birth of art.

The Mermaid Effect

director: Markéta Magidová
producer: Maurfilm

In a colonised film studio deep on the ocean floor, sea creatures work under human rule. Their identity and history were erased from history rewritten by humans. The film’s protagonist is a young mermaid named Oriana, who has a fish’s head and human limbs. The user takes on her role, experiencing bullying and contempt on a film set. After the director crosses all possible lines, the merfolk unite to take over the production and reshoot the film the way they want.

King Pest

director: David Daenemark
producer: Vernes

This film, adapting Edgar Allan Poe’s story King Pest, is director David Daenemark’s most ambitious project yet. It follows the success of his student film Descent into the Maelström - without abandoning unique carved puppets and meticulous animation, this film has a more complex story and more characters. In its grotesque horror vision, it depicts ‘black death’ not as a disease, but as an alcohol addiction. The film is a part of a planned anthology combining the work of Edgar Allan Poe and the director’s distinctive style.

Lightsiders

director: Jan Drozda
producer: Jan Drozda

The central theme of this film is a world that comes to life on the walls of a city after dark. What happens in the dark corners when nobody’s watching? The main driving force behind the entire project is a fresh, vivid and almost childlike imagination that brings an ecosystem of characters and their stories to life. The technology used, combining elements of video mapping and real environments, promises a unique spectacle. The viewers will certainly understand the principles of this technology and its narrative methods quickly and let it surprise them with what the creators can offer in this world ruled only by shadow and light.

What the Water Took

director: Ondřej Moravec
producer: Helium Film

This immersive animated project in mixed reality was inspired by folk songs. The audience find themselves in a symbolic cleansing water landscape where they can meet their past loves and say goodbye to them. A tapestry of voices, movement and animation creates an intimate space for a shared experience and encounter with emotions that can symbolically float away. The project was supported by the Creative Media programme and Czech Audiovisual Fund.

The Story about the First Tree

director: Radek Beran
producer: Animation People

A small film about big things, The Story About the First Tree brings a strong message to the youngest viewers: good things come from love. Petr Stančík’s poetic story about searching for and finding friendship opens the world of imagination to children and uses a playful form to present the mystery of the birth of nature. It’s the first film made using ALFONS, a technology that combines stop-motion animation, CGI and artificial intelligence. The project is co-produced by four European countries.

The Beach

director: Marek Náprstek
producer: Frame Films

In this surreal comedy set on a summer afternoon, we follow a bizarre love triangle on a beach. Bob tries to win over Eva, but she longs for Dan, a fragile wandering soul digging in the sand with a stick. But as a storm approaches, the relationships escalate. It all starts peacefully and innocently, but reality becomes increasingly distorted until the boundaries between reality, dreams and the protagonists themselves disappear.

Walk in Nature

director: Matěj Mihályi
producer: DIVIZE animace

This short sci-fi dramedy explores the desire to connect with nature in a synthetic world. It follows a man living in a post-apocalyptic underground city built after a natural disaster. The city is dependent on artificial vegetation and the protagonist, Jozef, is the first person who dares to venture back to the surface – to virgin nature – since the apocalypse. Once there, he faces an even bigger challenge: he must find out what he’s supposed to do there. The story explores the themes of the influence of technology on humans, their free will and the alienation in their relationship with nature.

Psychoskop Tannenwald

director: Agáta Mayerová, Vojtěch Kiss
producer: Agáta Mayerová

This audiovisual experiment by Agáta Mayerová and Vojtěch Kiss is fascinated with the landscape of the Jizera Mountains, its immaterial horizons and the unexplored terrain of the human spirit. 

Party

director: Anna Mastníková
producer: Pure Shore

This playful and visually daring animated short film for adults combines humour with surrealism. It explores hidden peculiarities and secret joys people hide under the guise of normality, and lets them erupt in a colourful and chaotic celebration of one’s true self.