Jan Kaplický will be the honorary chairman of Febiofest

Prague - The most significant guest of the International Festival of Prague Febiofest, as this showcase of film, television, and video is now called, will be the renowned director Alan Parker. At the opening evening in Prague on March 27, he will present his film The Commitments, which is regarded as one of the best musical titles in world cinema. For his contributions to world cinema, he will receive the Kristián award, making him one of the greatest personalities in Anglo-American film. This was announced at today's press conference in Prague by festival director Fero Fenič.
Other opening films will include the Berlin-awarded movie There Will Be Blood (the lead actor Daniel Day-Lewis also won an Oscar) and the intimate drama Far North, which will be presented by director, screenwriter, and producer Asif Kapadia. Parker is known for musical films such as Fame and Pink Floyd: The Wall, the drama Midnight Express, and the musical Evita.
A new feature of the 15th edition will be a competition of 15 new films by young creators from Germany, France, Hungary, Britain, Finland, Estonia, Spain, Belgium, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, North Macedonia, and Slovenia. About 850 candidates applied for membership in the jury, from which the organizers selected 33 representatives from different groups of varying ages, education, occupations, and genders.
"Among them are a worker, a student, an entrepreneur, a laboratory technician, a psychologist, both older and younger, a Pole, a Dutchman, a Slovak, people from various places in the republic," noted Fenič. The honorary role of chairman has been accepted by architect Jan Kaplický, who will present the main award to the winning film at the closing evening on April 4.
Advance sales for Febiofest, whose echoes will take place from April 7 in Liberec, Hradec Králové, Pardubice, České Budějovice, Brno, Ostrava, and Olomouc, will begin on March 19 after noon at the Prague multiplex Village Cinemas Anděl, where program leaflets and brochures will also be available for free. During the festival week, a comprehensive catalog will be added. The Prague section invites audiences to the cinema for 79 crowns, and for video screenings and the Febiofest Junior Fest for 39 CZK. Tickets are not issued for evening and late afternoon screenings in the Municipal Court hall in Prague 2. Admission to films about law and injustice in the courtroom will be free until capacity is reached.
According to Fenič, the budget is 26 million crowns, which will be covered by partners and sponsors. Funding is expected to come from the capital city, whose council will address it only on the day of the opening. This year, the Ministry of Culture also contributed, and the fund for supporting cinematography allocated 2.5 million CZK from an eighty-million amount earmarked for festivals.
Film screenings will traditionally be complemented by the Febiofest Music Festival in the underground garages of the multiplex and on the Small Stage of the courtyard, featuring 48 bands. The scope of the program will be similar to last year, with up to 53 performances taking place daily in 12 multiplex halls. The main program will be complemented by the archival cinema hall Bio Konvikt - Ponrepo.
"Febiofest will present 458 screenings in Prague and another 111 in the regions. It will offer a total of 249 films, of which 227 are feature films and 22 are shorts from 64 countries," added the director.