2025 SK, CZ, PL | Drama | 102 min
Awards: BBest Film Winner at Stockholm FF, Best International Feature Film Winner at Zurich FF
Festivals: Camerimage, Stockholm FF, Venice FF, Warsaw IFF, Zurich FF, Vancouver IFF, Reykjavík IFF
Father is a stark psychological drama centred on a mistake shattering the life of a devoted father, shaking his marriage and isolating him in guilt. When he and his wife come to see that this was not a personal failure, but something rooted deep in the architecture of the human mind, a fragile path toward forgiveness begins to emerge. Even with this understanding, the question remains: can love survive what no heart was built to endure?
Director Tereza Nvotová approaches the story with restraint, allowing unease to build through silence and observation.
The film offers a penetrating look at the cost of emotional repression, questioning traditional notions of strength and responsibility. It is a deeply human portrait of loss, responsibility and vulnerability, presenting grief as a long and uncertain process rather than a journey with clear stages.
Father follows the life of a man after he experiences forgotten baby syndrome, unintentionally leaving his infant daughter in the back seat of his car.
In scene after scene, he is reminded that he will forever be “that guy from Nitra,” and he will never be able to escape the tragedy that resulted from his own negligence. (Memories of army days)
Awards: Best Film Winner, Best Actor & Best Cinematography Feature Film Winner, Best Make-up Winner
Festivals: Camerimage FF, Polish FF, San Sebastián IFF
‘Franz’ is an intimate biographical drama that offers a human portrait of writer Franz Kafka, focusing on the man behind the literary legacy. Rather than following a traditional biopic structure, the film explores Kafka’s inner world, shaped by strained family relationships, insecurity and a persistent sense of alienation. Set in early 20th century Central Europe, the story places Kafka within a period marked by political tension and questions of identity, language and belonging. His struggles with authority, intimacy and self-expression unfold alongside his need to write, portrayed not as a path to recognition but as a fragile means of survival.
Director Agnieszka Holland approaches the subject with psychological depth and restraint, avoiding grand gestures in favour of nuance. The film presents Kafka not as a distant cultural icon, but as a deeply conflicted individual, inviting audiences to reconsider his life through a personal and emotionally grounded lens.
SHORT FILM: BETTER MAN / Lepší člověk | 2025 CZ | Animation | 6:05 | Dir: Eliška Jirásková
An annual Festival of Czech and Slovak Films. Next Film Festival 25-29 March 2026
From Venice to Cannes, the Sydney CZECH & SLOVAK FILM FESTIVAL returns to Dendy Newtown from 25–29 March 2026, presenting a dynamic lineup of award-winning films, gripping dramas, provocative true stories and crowd-pleasing comedies – many screening as Australian premieres.
• Opening the festival on Wednesday 25 March is the Venice-premiered drama FATHER/Otec, starring Milan Ondrík in what he describes as the most challenging role of his career. The emotionally powerful film makes its Australian premiere at the festival. Ondrík also appears in CERNAK/Černák, the gripping continuation of the saga of notorious mafia boss Miki.
• Cinema and literature lovers will be drawn to FRANZ, an evocative biopic of Franz Kafka from Oscar-nominated director Agnieszka Holland. For families, SUGAR CANDY/Cukrkandl delivers mystery, adventure and a fresh on-screen transformation from popular actress Tereza Ramba.
• The festival also tackles urgent social themes. PERLA / Perla explores exile, political persecution and personal sacrifice through the story of a Slovak dissident artist living in Austria. BROKEN VOICES/ Sbormistrconfronts abuse of power in the wake of a notorious choir scandal, delivering a timely and unflinching examination of silence and accountability.
• Fresh from its Cannes World Premiere in the prestigious Un Certain Regard section, CARAVAN/Karavan stars Aňa Geislerová in a moving road movie about a mother and her disabled son travelling through Italy. The festival closes on a high note on Sunday 29 March with DREAM TEAM, a brand-new comedy inspired by a true story from the Sydney Paralympics.
• A curated selection of witty and daring short films, including award-winning works from Prague’s renowned FAMU and Bratislava’s VŠMU film schools, will screen before each feature.
ALL FILMS HAVE ENGLISH SUBTITLES