The 51st edition of Summer Film School (Letní filmová škola, LFŠ) begins today in the southeastern Czech town of Uherské Hradiště, welcoming film fans, critics, and industry professionals from across the country and beyond. Running through July 31, the festival continues its long-standing tradition as one of Czechia’s most important educational and cultural cinema events, presenting more than 190 films across seven days.
Organized by the Association of Czech Film Clubs (AČFK), the festival combines retrospectives, contemporary showcases, and immersive side programming. Its 2025 lineup blends historical depth with international reach, honoring filmmakers such as Tim Burton, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, and Lukas Moodysson while offering world premieres of new Czech and Slovak films.
Global auteurs and African cinema take center stage
This year’s program builds on the festival’s half-century legacy with an increasingly international outlook. Among the major guests is Chadian director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, a prominent figure in contemporary African cinema. His presence supports the Continens Festivalis: Africa section, which presents films from across the continent, including the Berlinale-winning Dahomey by Mati Diop.
One of the festival’s key highlights is a retrospective of Tim Burton, featuring eight of his most influential films, from Edward Scissorhands to Sweeney Todd, as well as early shorts such as 1982’s Vincent (pictured at top). Curated by British film critic Ian Nathan, the tribute explores Burton’s stylistic evolution across genre, tone, and scale.
Additional retrospectives include British duo Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger and a historical dive into the Dogma 95 movement, with screenings of landmark titles such as The Celebration and The Idiots, marking 30 years since the manifesto’s inception.
Another major highlight is Apocalypse Now, part of a section titled The Story of a Film, which presents not only Francis Ford Coppola’s seminal war epic but also Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, a documentary chronicling the film’s tumultuous production.
The festival also reflects on global cinema history through archival programming. The Archive Film Festival Network’s 1975 spotlight revisits a transformative year in film, from early blockbusters to the rise of feminist cinema. Silent-era espionage films will be shown with live musical accompaniment, and a VR section titled Myths and Legends explores digital reinterpretations of folklore and ancient narratives.
Czech and Slovak premieres, tributes, and cultural offerings
While the festival emphasizes international themes, its role as a showcase for Czech and Slovak cinema remains central. The opening night features a screening of Caravan, the feature debut of director Zuzana Kirchnerová. The film, a road movie about a mother and her disabled teenage son, arrives in Uherské Hradiště after screenings in Cannes and Karlovy Vary. Director Kirchnerová and cast members Anna Geislerová and Juliana Brutovská will present the film in person.
Summer Film School will host several other Czech and Slovak premieres, including The Other Side of Summer (Na druhé straně léta), an introspective youth drama by Vojtěch Strakatý, and the puppet-animated Tales from the Magic Garden (Pohádky po babičce).
Duchoň, a biopic of Slovak singer Karol Duchoň, and After Party, Strakatý’s earlier work, are also on the schedule. Viewers will also see the world premiere of the dark comedy Cockroach (Švábi) and the world pre-premiere of Džob, which concludes director Tomáš Vorel’s trilogy that began with The Can (Gympl) and Prague Cans (Vejška).
The closing film, Another Round (Pod parou), is already drawing international attention. This Czech-Slovak remake of the Oscar-winning 2020 Danish film gender-flips the original story, replacing the male teachers with female leads. Directed by Rudolf Biermann, the film is the first international adaptation of the original film to hit the screen, ahead of a long-anticipated U.S. version.
Each year, the AČFK recognizes outstanding contributions to cinema with its annual awards. In 2025, honors go to actors Oldřich Kaiser and Zuzana Kronerová, Austrian filmmaker Ulrich Seidl, Swedish director and novelist Lukas Moodysson, and film club organizer Lenka Šepsová, a physician by training who has supported the Czech film club scene since the 1970s.
Beyond screenings, the festival features concerts, lectures, photography exhibitions, and family-friendly workshops. Musical guests this year range from veteran rocker Michal Prokop with Framus Five to global-fusion act N.O.H.A. and experimental duo DVA. Classical music, folk ensembles, slam poetry, and improvisational theatre also feature in the extensive side program, which unfolds across venues including the Rochus open-air museum and Masaryk Square.
With a reported budget of CZK 30 million and support from national and local institutions—including the Czech Ministry of Culture, the Czech Audiovisual Fund, and the town of Uherské Hradiště—Summer Film School continues to stand as a flagship event in the Czech film festival calendar. Organizers expect to match or exceed last year’s attendance of 4,600 accredited participants and over 3,500 additional ticket buyers.
