New Gods

Faith gives people strength and helps them feel safe, whatever the object of that faith is. What the word conveys goes far beyond the religious meaning we probably think of most often in this context. In the New Gods category, we reflect on both the new and the old idols that people look up to today.

Uprostřed tmavé místnosti plné starých kabelů svítí oltář s Madonou a dítětem. Na něj kouká postava s kuklou celá v černém. Červeně jí svítí oči. / In the middle of a dark room full of old cables, an altar with a Madonna and a Child is lit up. A hooded figure in all black looks on. Her eyes glow red.

The prayers of the protagonists of two films – Polish Prayers and The Cathedral – are directed to the Christian God. While in the first of these, Antek begins to reassess his strong Catholic beliefs as the film progresses, in the second Justo is helped by his faith to complete a seemingly unthinkable, almost Sisyphean project.

The next two documentaries tell of how young people lose hope and their illusions. Anhell69 follows a generation of LGBTQ+ people in Medellín, Colombia. All they have is the present, and they drown their feelings of emptiness in drugs and superficial pleasures. In the second film, compulsory military service thwarts the lives of men and women in Israel. This spectacular documentary entitled Innocence uses letters and glimpses into the childhoods of those who died while in the military to provide a picture of a militaristic regime that has no regard for the lives and mental health of its population.

And our new gods? For some they may be medications, as portrayed in the film Happy Pills. Through six stories it illustrates the wide range of reasons why some people try to improve their lives with a myriad of pills. The theme of the film Breaking Social focuses on social systems and human solidarity. It reflects on whether humanity is inherently good and born to cooperate. If so, then why do anomalies constantly appear in the world in the form of riots or individuals who feel that social norms do not apply to them?

Films in category New Gods

Film

ANHELL69

In a city surviving on the drug legacy of Pablo Escobar, an existential chasm emerges among the young queer community, filled with dancing raves. But the monster lurking beneath the surface is waiting for the first rays of morning.

Film

Breaking Social

For as long as we can remember we have been told that we will be fairly rewarded, based on our merits and abilities. But the principle of this capitalist social equality runs up against its limits when money and power come into play.

Film

Happy Pills

A worker from Niger, a student from the US, and a bodybuilder from India. They come from different parts of the world and cope with different life situations, yet they have something in common – they overcome obstacles in their life path with the help of chemistry.

Film

Innocence

According to director Guy Davidi, there is no place for childhood innocence in Israel. The film, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival, reveals the tragic impact of Israeli militarism on the lives of local youth, trained from an early age to defend their homeland.

Film

Polish Prayers

Somewhere in the forests of Poland a brotherhood is forming in the name of Jesus Christ, with the goal of eradicating homosexuality and returning Poland to the Poles. It is headed by Antek, a boy whose rigid value system is upended by love.

Film

The Cathedral

A fool to some, a genius to others. Justo Gallego has been building a cathedral in the Spanish countryside since 1961. Self-building, practically without money, without expertise, and exclusively from salvaged materials.

Other Thematic Categories

Ve skupince lidí ve vesnici v Africe stojí uprostřed žena s dítětem. Má béžové šaty a volně přehozenou oranžovou látku. Dítě drží na sobě a kojí ho. / In a group of people in a village in Africa, a woman and her child stand in the middle. She is wearing a beige dress and a loosely draped orange cloth. She is holding the baby and breastfeeding it.

Competitive Film Category

International Competition

The International Competition traditionally offers the newest and most hotly anticipated films that combine powerful themes with original cinematography.

Za vysokým plotem, nad kterým vede ochranný drát z žiletek, stojí dav mužů s tmavou pletí. Křičí a zvedají ruce nad hlavu. / A crowd of dark-skinned men stand behind a high fence with razor wire running over it. They shout and raise their hands above their heads.

Competitive Film Category

Right to Know

The competitive Right to Know section offers audiences stories about fundamental human rights violations that should not go unnoticed. The category provides space to films about inspiring activists who are battling to improve conditions in their countries.

Investigativní novinářka Pavla Holcová sedí na židli uprostřed tmavé kanceláře. Vedle ní je stůl s papíry a za ní knihovna s šanony. / Investigative journalist Pavla Holcová sits on a chair in the middle of a dark office. Next to her is a desk with papers and behind her a bookcase with binders.

Competitive Film Category

Czech Competition

This year, the Czech Competition has brought together some exceptionally interesting films that focus on the inner struggles of their protagonists.

Zády k nám stojí na terase dvě osoby, které se drží za ruce. Koukají před sebe na rozpixelovanou krajinu. / Two people are standing on the terrace with their backs to us, holding hands. They are looking at the scattered landscape in front of them.

Competitive Film Category

One World Interactive

This is the first year that the One World Interactive category will be a competitive section. Additionally, it is moving to the Lucerna Gallery, where the individual installations have been designed by artists Mia Milgrom and Max van Olffen. Six interactive projects and four 360° films transport us to realities found in the chilling present, the near future, and little-known human experiences.

Ukrajinští vojáci stojí na troskách rozbombardovaného domu. Jeden z nich odnáší pryč malé dítě. / Ukrainian soldiers stand on the ruins of a bombed-out house. One of them is carrying away a small child.

Thematic Film Category

Ukraine

On 24 February 2022, the world changed. Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine and unleashed an open war under the propagandistic label of “a special military operation”. More than a year later, the war is still going on. One World has put together a special category to look at the roots of the situation in Ukraine through the means of five films, and presents raw eyewitness accounts directly from the Ukrainian war front.

Thematic Film Category

New Gods

U kuchyňského stolu sedí hubený bílý muž pouze v trenkách, ve škobku má nohu, kterou mu klečící žena omývá. Na stole jsou svíčky a cigarety, v pozadí svítí televite. Na lednici je nápis Ježíš tě miluje. / A thin white man sits at the kitchen table in only his shorts, his leg in a slipper, which a kneeling woman washes. There are candles and cigarettes on the table, and a TV is on in the background. On the refrigerator is a sign that reads Jesus loves you.

Thematic Film Category

Relationships

There are very few things that can be viewed from as many different angles as interpersonal relationships. The protagonist of the film Too Close experiences the influence surrounding relationships have on her family as she tries to find peace for herself and her children. Not only does she have to deal with the constantly nitpicking villagers, but her ex-husband, who was previously convicted of sexually abusing her daughter, is stealthily sneaking back into her life.

Žena stojí sama zády ke kameře a kouká do dálky na rýžové pole a kopce. / A woman stands alone with her back to the camera, looking into the distance at a green rice field and hills.

Thematic Film Category

Female Power

Women’s rights are human rights. However, even in the twenty-first century, they are suppressed by the social system, traditions, and legislative paragraphs. The protagonists of the films in this category have decided to confront injustice and fight for the rights of the next generation of women, often at the cost of their own safety.

Uprostřed je starý ošuntělý billboard s nápisem ledovec. V pozadí jsou kopce a pláně islandské krajiny. / In the middle is a shabby old billboard with the word glacier on it. In the background are the hills and plains of the Icelandic landscape.

Thematic Film Category

Sustainability

Our planet is under increasing pressure from civilisation, and climate change is one of the biggest issues of our time – unless we start living more sustainably, neither we nor future generations will have a bright future. This is why for many years One World has been bringing together the themes of ecology and sustainability into one larger programming section.

Mladý africký chlapec s čelovkou na hlavě se na laně spouští do hluboké černé díry pro vodu. /A young African boy with a headlamp on his head descends on a rope into a deep black hole for water.

Thematic Film Category

Uprooted

A selection of films from countries in Africa, as well as Latin America and Asia, charts the hardships of local inhabitants. How did many of them find themselves in a situation where they are not free to make decisions for themselves, have internal struggles related to the search for their own identity, and have to witness ongoing exploitation?

Dva chlapci se sklání k rybářské sítí a koukají, co ulovili. Stojí u potoku na zelené louce kousek od lesa. Svítí slunce. / Two boys leaning against a fishing net to see what they have caught. They are standing by a stream in a green meadow near the forest. The sun is shining and the sky is blue.

Thematic Film Category

Docs for Kids

One World also remembers to cater for its youngest audience members. In the Docs for Kids category, it presents films that give children the opportunity to learn about the stories of their peers from around the world.

Tři mladé ženy si fotí tzv selfie. Usmívají se, za nimi svítí neony a billboardy města. / Three young women are taking selfies. They are smiling, with the neon and billboards of the city lit up behind them.

Thematic Film Category

Social Media

What do a recruiter for Islamic State, a teenage Instagram star, and an amateur porn actress have in common? The films in the Social Media category reveal the surprising nuances of the word “influencer”, and the everyday reality of life surrounded by social networks.