Nightsiren (2023)
Director: Tereza Nvotová Run Time: 109 min. Rating: NR Release Year: 2022
Starring: Eva Mores, Iva Bittová, Jana Oľhová, Juliana Oľhová, Natalia Germani
Country: Slovakia, Czech Republic
Language: Slovak with English subtitles
About the film:
Golden Leopard – Filmmakers of the Present, 2022 Locarno Film Festival
In a remote mountain village, two sisters grow up at the mercy of their abusive mother. A terrible accident happens when the eldest, Šarlota, escapes into the woods, followed by her sister Tamara. Otyla, a Roma woman living on the outskirts of town, is blamed for the girls’ disappearance and accused of witchcraft.
Twenty years later, Šarlota unexpectedly shows up in the village. As she digs into her past, the locals grow suspicious. Only a young and eccentric herbalist, Mira, is willing to befriend her. When the animals in the village start to fall ill, the locals accuse Šarlota of conjuring Otyla’s spirit.
“a richly crafted tale weaving old-world superstitions with modern day gender politics… a canny, emotionally impactful film”
—Alexandra Heller-Nicholas, AWFJ
About the filmmaker:
Tereza Nvotová graduated in direction from film academy FAMU in Prague. Her feature debut Filthy (2017) screened in major festivals around the world including Rotterdam, Karlovy Vary, Cairo, and Santa Barbara, and took home more than 20 awards, including the Czech Film Critics Award for the Best Film of the year. Her sophomore feature Nightsiren (2023) was awarded a Golden Leopard for best film in the Filmmakers of the Present competition section at the 2022 Locarno Film Festival and received the Slovak Academy Award for best music. She has collaborated with various broadcasting companies, most notably HBO who has co-produced her feature debut and two documentary films, including her critically acclaimed documentary The Lust for Power (2017), which caused heated debate about populism and corruption in politics and was shortlisted for a European Film Academy Award. Nvotová has also appeared in front of the camera as a lead in several feature films.
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