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The End of the World

A powerful story from a difficult time around 1968.

The End of the World

Drama
Czech Republic, 2024, 100 min.

The End of the World is the original story of Grandpa Igor, the son of Russian noblemen, and his nine-year-old grandson Tonda. It is a powerful story of a difficult time around 1968. It's a narrative full of contrasts, whether it's the relationship between what encompasses Grandpa's rich life and Tonda's immediate childhood, or between the poetry and gentle humour and the dramatic situations of the military occupation. Or, more generally, between the everyday concerns of the individual and the pressures of big history. In Grandfather's Fate, charting much of the trauma of the 20th century, one can see how much an individual's fate is dependent on the movements and changes of history. And how much it is possible to resist them and preserve one's inner strength and integrity. Or sometimes just bare life.

Main staff

Bohdan SLÁMA

director

Bohdan Sláma (1967) graduated from the Czech Technical University and in 1997 finished his studies at the Department of Directing at Prague's FAMU with his graduation film Acacia White (1996). In his feature debut Wild Bees (2001) he continued the poetics of the Czech New Wave of the 1960s and won awards at many international film festivals (including the Rotterdam International Film Festival - Tiger Award, San Francisco International Film Festival - SKYY Award).
He was nominated for an Oscar and a European Film Award for the Czech Republic. The similarly themed film Happiness (2005) won seven Czech Lions and won the San Sebastian Film Festival. Other successful titles were The Rural Teacher (2008), which won two Czech Lions, and Four Suns (2012), with which Sláma competed at Sundance. He has also made several episodes of the series Kancelář Blaník. More recent films include Bába z ledu (2017), which won the Czech Lion in the Best Screenplay and Best Director categories. In the production of LUMINAR Film, Bohdan Sláma made the historical feature film Krajina ve shínu (2020), which caused a great wave of interest at international festivals, won the Czech Film Critics Award for the best film of 2020 and 15 nominations for the Czech Lion, 7 of which he turned into wins.
He heads the directing department at FAMU.

Awards

Czech Lion

2020 - nomination - Shadow Country (Best Director)
2017 - victory - Ice Mother (Best Director, Screenplay)
2012 - nomination - Four Suns (Best Director, Screenplay, Film Critics and Theorists Award for Best Feature Film)
2008 - nomination - County Teacher (Best Director)
2008 - victory - Country Teacher (Best Screenplay)
2005 - victory - Happiness (Best Director, Screenplay)

Czech Film Critics Awards

2020 - nomination - Shadow Counry (Best Director)
2017 - nomination - Ice Mother (Best Director)
2017 - victory - Ice Mother (Best Screenplay)
2012 - nomination - Four Suns (Best Director)
2012 - victory - Four Suns (Best Screenplay)

Sundance Film Festival

2012 - nomination - Four Suns (Grand Jury Prize for Best World Feature)

Tribeca Film Festival

2017 - nomination - Baba of Ice (Best Foreign Feature)
2017 - victory - Baba of Ice (Best Screenplay in a Foreign Film)

San Sebastian Internaional Film Festival

2005 - victory - Happiness (Golden Shell for Best Film)

Ivan ARSENJEV

script

Ivan Arsenev (1961) after studying at the Prague Conservatory - organ - graduated from the Department of Screenwriting and Dramaturgy at FAMU in Prague, where he worked as an assistant professor for seven years. For several years he was a member of the Miloš Havel Foundation's committee for the support of screenwriting. He is the author or co-author of the screenplays for a number of feature films, e.g. Vojtěch, řečený orphan(1990 Z. Tyc), Záhada hlavolamu (1993 P. Kotek), Cesta pustým lesem (1997 I. Vojnár, Czech Lion for artistic achievement 1997, Main Prize - Noordelijk, New Evropean talent, Best Camera Barcelona), Peace to their souls (2004 P. Štingl, Honorary mention FITES)... For the short story The Guardian Angel he won the 2nd prize in the competition for the 100th anniversary of Czech film (1996).
Together with the director and designer Jan Balej they created, among others, the puppet film One Night in a City (2007 Czech Lion, Kristián Critics Award, Best Feature Film - Anifest Třeboň, Grand prix Monsters/RTP Lisbon, Special Jury Prize Animadrid Madrid, Golden Reel for Best Animated Film Tiburon USA, Special Jury Prize - Bilbao Animation Festival, Golden Crystal Globe for Best Animated Feature Film - Tehran, Grand Athena - Athens Festival and awards at the festivals in Sao Paolo, Hiorşima, Melbourne, Tehran, London and Bucharest). Other collaborative works with Jan Balej include the thirteen episodes of the TV evening series Karlik, the Goldfish (2010) and the script of the feature-length puppet film Malá z rybárny (2015).
In addition to screenwriting, Ivan Arsenev has worked as a dramaturge for a number of award-winning feature films and documentaries, such as Meringues, Indian and Little Sister, Foxes, The Year of Cannabis, My Dog Killer (Hivo Tiger Award - Rotterdam 2013, Sun in the Net for Best Slovak Film of the Year 2013, Main Prize Pilsen, Directing Award Vilnius, Andrei Tarkovsky Award, etc. ) Ivan Arsenev's screenplay for the feature film Landscape in Shadow (2020), produced by LUMINAR Film, brought him great success and the Czech Lion.
Dramaturgically, he worked within the framework of the theatre festivals Vlnobití, held at the Theatre Ship Tajemství, which he co-founded. He has also collaborated as a scriptwriter on ANPU Theatre's performances of The Wedding Shirt (1998) and The Bell Jar from Mother of God (2005). As a director and dramaturg, he is involved in the Voices edition of author readings, which since 2014 has been releasing CD recordings of prominent Czech prose writers, poets and translators reading from their work.

Diviš MAREK

camera

Diviš Marek (1964) is one of our most renowned cinematographers. Until 1989 Diviš studied at the MFF UK in Prague, but in 1990 he transferred to FAMU. He graduated in 1997 with Acacia White, directed by Bohdan Sláma. It was probably here that a bond between the two filmmakers was born, which later led to Diviš becoming Sláma's "court" cameraman.
With his distinctive visual style, Diviš is able to conjure up beautifully poetic on the one hand and very raw shots on the other. A beautiful example of this art is the film Happiness, for which Diviš won the Czech Lion for Best Cinematography. For this film he also won the Best Cinematography award at the Stockholm Film Festival. This was followed by ... a bude hůř by Petr Nikolaev, for which he received a nomination for the Czech Lion in the Best Cinematography category, he also received nominations for other films by Bohdan Sláma, Four Suns and Ice Mother. He won the Best Cinematography category for Ondřej Havelka's Hastrman. He also collaborated on another film by Bohdan Sláma, Shadow Country, produced by LUMINAR Film, for which he was also nominated for the Czech Lion in the Best Cinematography category.
In addition to his work for film, Diviš Marek is also a teacher, leading seminars on Cinematography and Dramatic Film Production at FAMU.

Jan VLASÁK

architect

Jan Vlasák (1968) after studies at the Czech Technical University Jan Vlasák collaborated with architect František Vokřál on a film adaptation Horror Story (1993) Josef Vachal. He liked this work so much that he decided to continue working on the film adaptation.
His work can be seen in the films of Dark Blue World (2001) Jan Svěrák Mazany Filip (2003) Václav Marhoul, for which he won the Czech Lion in the category of Best Visual Achievement. Other films he has worked on as an architect include Empties (2007) or Four Suns (2012). For the films Tobruk (2008) Václav Marhoul, Ve stínu (2012) and Three Brothers (2014) again won the Czech Lion for Best Visual Achievement. He also collaborated with Bohdan Sláma on Bába z ledu, which received a nomination for the Czech Lion in the Best Film Set Design category. In this category, he won the Czech Lion for Václav Marhoul's Coloured Birds and David Ondříček's Zátopek. He also created the set design for the series Volha.   

In addition to working on feature films, he designs sets for commercials, TV series and shows.

Photos from the shooting

Cast

Miroslav KROBOT

Character: Grandfather

His grandfather, Igor's brother, was originally a Russian nobleman, an amateur painter, a man of refinement and esprit, with a colourful, often dramatic life story reflecting the history of the 20th century.

Miroslav Krobot (1951) ranks among the most prominent figures of the Czech theatre and film scene. In 1996, he became the artistic director of Dejvice Theatre and is currently one of the personalities who fundamentally set trends in the Czech theatre environment.

He has won numerous awards for his film and theatre roles and has collaborated with many Czech and foreign filmmakers. He played the lead role in the legendary Béla Tarr's film The Man from London, which won the Palme d'Or at Cannes. He starred in the Polish director Agnieszka Holland's miniseries The Burning Bush and in her latest film Over the Bones of the Dead. In more recent films, he can be seen in The Man with the Rabbit Ears, The Big Premiere and If It Burned Better;

Awards

Czech Lion

2022 - nomination - If It Were Burning Instead (Best Supporting Actor)
2021 - nomination - The Man with Hare Ears (Best Actor)
2019 - nomination - The Ruin of Dejvice Theatre (Best TV Series)
2017 - nomination - Quartet (Best Direction, Screenplay)
2014 - nomination - The Hole in Hanušovice (Best Direction, Screenplay)
2013 - nomination - Revival (Best Actor)
2012 - nomination - District Championship - The Last Match of Pepík Hnátek (Best Actor)
2011 - nomination - The House (Best Actor)
2005 - victory - Ordinary Madness (Best Supporting Actor)

Czech Film Critics' Awards
2012 - nomination - District Championship - The Last Match of Pepík Hnátek (Best Leading Actor)
2011 - nomination - Alois Nebel (Best Leading Actor)

Vojtěch VEVERKA

Character: Tonda (child)
Tonda is a small, bespectacled boy, suffering from bronchitis. So when his parents and older brother Jirka set off on a trip to visit Uncle Igor in Paris in the summer of 1968, he's out of luck. He has to stay at the cottage, in the fresh air, under the watchful eye of his grandfather. Which he regrets. Shortly after the family leaves, a dark night of August 21st comes. Some succumb to hysteria, others write rebellious slogans. Tonda is afraid there will be a war and his grandfather, who knows very well what occupation means, has his hands full trying to calm him down. Grandpa understands that the time he will be able to spend with his beloved grandson is limited. He is afraid of the loneliness that awaits him, yet he tries to strengthen Tonda and, despite the troubled times, instill something good in him and enrich his soul. He teaches him French, refined table manners, and above all, not to give up.

František SLÁDEK

Character: Tonda (older)
A few years later, Tonda has grown into a long-haired teenager. Grandpa had a stroke and is in the hospital. But at night, he rambles, cursing Stalin, so they decide to transfer him to Bohnice. There, his mother and Tonda find him in the pavilion for elderly men, in a depressing environment with barred windows. Grandpa's stubbornness and nobility unexpectedly spill over into moments when he is clearly out of touch with reality. His mother wouldn't be able to care for him at home, so with tears in her eyes, she leaves him there. One day, the abandoned Tonda, wandering the streets, goes alone to see his grandfather. They talk, Tonda cuts his grandfather's hair, and eventually, he secretly takes him away and drives him by bus to the cottage. Time stops here. From the bleak autumn, it's suddenly the sunny summer of 1968 again, before the occupation. Grandpa meets all his friends and is happy. The family is also complete, preparing lunch, and everything is as it should be, natural, cheerful, and friendly...

Magdaléna BOROVÁ

Character: Tonda's mother
She is a loving mother and wife, but after some time, her husband leaves her. She is alone in raising two teenage sons and also takes care of her father. She has several jobs to support them. She does whatever she can.

Magdalena Borová (born 1981) was born in Frýdlant, Czech Republic, but grew up in Liberec. During her studies at the gymnasium, she was involved in the theater group "Stopa". After graduating, she moved to Prague and began studying at DAMU (Academy of Performing Arts). During her studies, she performed as a guest in several theaters, such as Studio Dva and Činoherní klub. In 2004, she won the Alfred Radok Award for Talent of the Year for her acting performances. Since 2004, she has been a member of the Drama Ensemble of the National Theater. She collaborates with radio, television, and film. She has played roles such as psychologist Blažková in the television series "Zrádci" by Viktor Tauš and Maria Weberová, one of the main roles in Bohdan Sláma's film "Shadow Country", for which she won the Czech Film Critics' Award and the Czech Lion Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 2020.

Czech Lion

2020 - Shadow Country - victory

Czech Film Critics' Awards

2020 - Shadow Country - victory

Zuzana MAURÉRY

Character: Innkeeper Blaženka
Blaženka is a kind woman, secretly in love with the grandfather. She lives with her eccentric husband, who enjoys taxidermy. The grandfather hopes Blaženka will leave her husband and go with him to Prague, but she ultimately backs down; she's too old for such things and lacks the courage.

Zuzana Mauréry graduated from the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava under the guidance of Martin Huba in 1990. For 9 years, she was the protagonist of the Radošinské naivné divadlo ensemble and also appeared in most theaters in Bratislava - as Pierette in "8 Women" (directed by Roman Polák), Gertrude in "Hamlet," the Hungarian Woman in "The Secretaries," or Milena Jesenská in the award-winning ballet performance "Light in Darkness" about Franz Kafka at SND.

After 2000, she began to focus mainly on musicals as a significant actor (but also singer). For her role as Rony in Gombár's "Hair" (in the Bratislava production), she won the prestigious Literary Fund Award.

After a two-year engagement at the Raimund Theater in Vienna, where she appeared almost daily on stage as Lady Montague and Nurse in the musical "Romeo & Juliet," she subsequently portrayed the main character of Maria Theresa in the satirical comedy "The Habsburgs" in Vienna's Museumquartier. In addition to her theater work, Zuzana Mauréry has a number of entertainment programs, television productions, and films to her credit both at home and abroad. In Czech cinema, we have seen her in films such as "The Teacher," "The Man with Hare Ears," "Report on the Protection of a Dead Man," "Mothers," "The Servant," and "Her Body."

Awards

Czech Lion

2021 - nomination - The Man with Hare Ears (Best Supporting Actress)
2016 - nomination - The Teacher (Best Actress)
2013 - nomination - Colette (Best Supporting Actress)

Czech Film Critics' Awards

2016 - nomination - The Teacher (Best Actress)

Michal ISTENÍK

Character: Erban
Erban is a kind, cheerful guy with a radio always hanging from a strap around his body. He has a wife and son, as well as a cottage with a small glassmaking house.

Michal Isteník (1983) comes from Nový Strašecí in the Rakovník district, where he spent his childhood and adolescence. He grew up in a football family and made his way to SK Kladno, where he even played in the first league.
He stumbled into theater during his high school studies when a classmate persuaded him to participate in the school drama club, promising him that there would be more girls there. Acting eventually appealed to him so much that he applied twice to the Prague DAMU (Academy of Performing Arts), but did not pass the entrance exams. Luck finally smiled on him the third time when he was accepted at the JAMU (Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts) in Brno, which became his new home.
Not only as an actor but also as an author and director, he is active in the Buranteatr association focused on experimental theater. In the field of drama, Michal Isteník is considered a prominent and talented actor, as evidenced by awards such as the Alfred Radok Award for Talent of the Year in 2011 or the Czech theater "Oscar," the Thalia Award, in 2014.
In the realm of feature films, he made his debut in the drama "Thieves of Green Horses" (2016), which revolves around moldavite miners. In 2020, he appeared in the sequel to the wine series "3Bobule." Two years later, he starred in the film "If It Were Burning Instead."
He regularly appears in various Czech television series. Some of the most notable ones include the Czech version of the successful British sitcom "The Office" (2014), the web series "Pěstírna" (2017), the comedy "Trpaslík" (2017), or the drama "Živé terče" (2019). His most successful role in this area was as bartender Eda in the politically incorrect comedy series "MOST!" (2019) by the screenwriting duo Kolečko & Prušinovský.

Photos from the movie