The 42nd Toronto International Film Festival (Sept 7 – 17, 2017) introduces two Slovak films within its rich programme. Sidebar Contemporary World Cinema features Nina by Juraj Lehotský and Short Cuts premieres a short student film Magic Moments by Martina Buchelová.
A coming-of-age story Nina (dir. Juraj Lehotský) had its world premiere at Karlove Vary IFF where it vied in East of the West Competition. Nina is a twelve-year-old girl and her parents are getting a divorce. Her world is falling apart before her eyes and she feels abandoned and deceived. Her only security in life is competitive swimming.
Juraj Lehotský will introduce the film personally on Sept 10, 2017 in the North-American premiere. Also Lehotský´s previous film, his debut feature Miracle (2013) was screened at Toronto IFF 2013 within the section Discovery.
A short film Magic Moments (dir. Martina Buchelová) is presented at Toronto IFF in the world-premiere. The programmer of the section Jason Anderson writes about the film: „Largely left on their own due to their parents’ jobs in other cities, a sensitive teenager and her kid sister must rely on themselves if they hope to glean anything from the life lessons they encounter, in this warm, wise and often surprising drama.”
Martina Buchelová’s previous works has been screened at many international festivals and in 2015 she was selected for Future Frames 2015: Ten New Filmmakers to Follow, a programme organized by the European Film Promotion and the Karlovy Vary IFF. The main theme of her work is hope. Martina tries to portray ordinary people, trapped in everyday problems of our society. Her aim is to search for viable characters, who do decide to fight to preserve their humanity.
Magic Moments is the first Slovak contender in the Short Cuts programme at Toronto IFF.
