Festival Daily – Thursday

Last year, Ester Geislerová sat on the jury of one of the festival's competitive sections. This time, she has brought her very personal film A Pint of Pink to Piešťany.

16:00 | Art | Some cinematic works do not require exaggerated inventiveness in fictional narrative or dramaturgical calculations. Their power lies in the pure, exposed duty to bear witness. The Voice of Hind Rajab it approaches the true story of a six-year-old girl from Gaza with a deep ethical responsibility and extraordinary directorial humility. At the core of the entire film is an authentic emergency call recording – fragile, trembling, and yet overwhelmingly tangible. Sound here is not merely an accompaniment to the visual, but a monument in its own right to human vulnerability. The filmmakers, led by Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania, do not aesthetise the tragedy, nor do they attempt to handle the painful material through cheap sensationalism. Instead, the film creates a space in the cinema for silent yet relentless listening. Through a perceptive and sensitive dosing of the visual accompaniment, the directorial approach gives full weight to every word and every second of silence on the other end of the line. The Voice of Hind Rajab It is a work of extraordinary human and artistic dignity. It offers no easy answers or false consolation, yet it stands as a distinctive act of collective memory. In the festival programme, it represents a cinematic experience that demands not only the viewer's attention, but above all deep empathy and silent respect.

Matej Ambroš

20:00 | Spa | Home Sweet Home director Wojciech Smarzowski's film is the story of Gośka, who cannot believe her luck at finally meeting the „man of her dreams“. However, the family idyll is replaced by a tragedy that reveals not only Grzesiek's violent nature, but also the fact that „seemingly orderly family life“ is merely a mundane illusion. The brutality encountered in Smarzowski's film is extreme, presenting the theme of domestic violence, abuse and the impacts of lifelong trauma in unvarnished realities that may evoke in the viewer the feeling of a festering wound that refuses to heal. Yet, when dealing with themes such as domestic violence against women, the form chosen by Smarzowski, into which he has poured the story of Gośka and her young daughter, is the only one in which these horrors should be presented to the viewer. Directly and without any detours. Only then can even a less empathetic person understand the horrors in which many women and their children currently find themselves, even within their own homes. Home Sweet Home and, also due to the importance of the topic, it is becoming one of the most important films of this year's Cinematik.

Zuzana Kožaková

Actor Robert Aramayo portrays a young man with Tourette's syndrome in the film. This is a neuropsychiatric condition characterised by uncontrolled movements, shouts or other vocal utterances. In some cases, vulgarities or socially inappropriate remarks may also be repeated, which is by no means intentional behaviour. A person with this syndrome simply cannot consciously control them. Tourette's syndrome is a congenital and lifelong condition. It begins to manifest between the fourth and seventh years of life, with the intensity of symptoms being most pronounced during puberty. Despite the fact that this is a relatively well-known diagnosis, the public often perceives it in an overly simplistic way. It is associated mainly with uncontrollable swearing. However, the reality is much more complex, which the film I swear, for this I can't managed to capture it sensitively. The film's narrative tells the true story of activist John Davidson. However, this is not the first time he has made it to the screen. Back in 1989, the BBC broadcast a documentary lasting around half an hour John’s Not Mad, which drew attention to the life of a young man with Tourette's syndrome at a time when very little was known about this diagnosis. It was this very documentary that etched itself into the memory of director and screenwriter Kirk Jones, who decided to bring Davidson's story to the silver screen. Robert Aramayo portrays the main character with extraordinary conviction, especially through his facial expressions, vocal delivery, and gestures. He has his own distinct and unique charm. He sensitively balances comedic moments with difficult, complicated situations. At times he is so convincing that more than one viewer might wonder whether the actor himself also suffers from the syndrome in question. Before filming began, the Yorkshire-born actor diligently studied comprehensive background material on this diagnosis, which ultimately paid off for him, the film, and the viewers alike. With his performance, he brought a minimalist production into the spotlight of the film world. The film's title itself is also aptly chosen. In the original, it is titled I Swear, which conceals an ambiguous meaning – it can mean „I swear“, but also „I curse“ (or "I swear" profanely). The Slovak distribution title leans more towards the semantic level (and at the same time also evokes an apology). The film gradually brings closer to the viewer how a person with Tourette's syndrome experiences everyday life. In many moments it feels almost like an awareness campaign. Although the storytelling pace is at times slower, the final minutes restore the film's original power. I swear, for this I can't reminds us that despite the progress being made in embracing differences, it is still not enough. We still do not understand neurodiversity well enough. Society still has a long way to go. Although the film feels overly didactic at times, given the persistently low awareness of Tourette's syndrome, this does not feel disruptive. The film is an important step in the right direction. See for yourself. You will likely leave the cinema a little more perceptive and empathetic.

Barbora Gvozdjáková

20:30 | Kin | I Swear