A new Czech documentary opening in theaters next week offers an intimate portrait of one of the country’s most distinctive contemporary artists. After six years of filming, director Petr Slavík’s Public Space of František Skála (Veřejný prostor Františka Skály) traces the creative life of artist, performer and musician František Skála through his work, collaborations and unconventional approach to making art.
Premiering in Prague on Thursday evening at Kino Lucerna before its nationwide theatrical release on July 30, the 90-minute documentary follows Skála’s artistic practice across sculpture, music and performance. The film has already been presented at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and is scheduled to continue its festival run in the coming weeks.
A portrait of an artist defined by creative independence
Rather than presenting a conventional biographical documentary, Slavík’s film focuses on the creative philosophy that has shaped Skála’s decades-long career. According to the director, the documentary seeks to capture an artist whose work resists categorization and conventional artistic boundaries.
“Franta refuses to be limited by social or artistic conventions, habitual ways of thinking, the properties of materials or rules,” Slavík said during the film’s presentation to journalists in Prague. “In what he creates, and even in the way he lives, he is completely free. That is also what our film is about.”
The documentary is framed around the creation of Vulpes Gott (pictured at top), Skála’s monumental wire sculpture of a dog constructed from approximately 350 kilometers (217 miles) of stainless steel wire. Cameras followed the project from the creation of its model in the village of Želízy, north of Prague, through its transport by boat along the Elbe River to its exhibition opening in Dresden, Germany.
Skála said he originally imagined the sculpture traveling across Europe, ideally by train. More recently, the work was relocated from Zlín to Telč, where it is currently installed beside a pond ahead of the artist’s upcoming exhibition opening there on Aug. 5.
Beyond Vulpes Gott, the documentary revisits a number of Skála’s public artworks spanning more than four decades. These include his first wooden sculpture, created in 1980 for the château park in Veltrusy before later disappearing, along with works such as Špion, Jednorožec, Prastánek, Zub času, Dětský domek, Sluneční vozík at Prague’s Convent of St. Agnes, and Rajské zahrady at Sluňákov.
Following a multidisciplinary career on and off the screen
The film also explores the many creative communities that have defined Skála’s career beyond visual art. Now 70, the artist remains a familiar figure in Czech cultural life through his work with the legendary Divadlo Sklep theater, the Tvrdohlaví artists’ group, the performance collective Tros Sketos, and the orchestra M.T.O. Universal.
Music forms an important part of the documentary as well. Skála performs with his band František Skála & Třaskavá směs, whose song “Temnej” appears in the film, while the brass ensemble Provodovjané also features prominently. The band is expected to release a new album, Zklamal, later this year.
Philosopher Miroslav Petříček contributes the film’s prologue, reflecting on the artistic freedom that characterizes Skála’s work. The artist himself suggests that public sculpture is only one aspect of his creative practice, noting that he is often drawn instead to the spiritual qualities of different materials.
Interwoven throughout the documentary are excerpts from Skála’s personal diaries, alongside observations from friends and longtime collaborators. The result is a portrait that emphasizes process as much as finished works, highlighting an artistic career built on experimentation rather than adherence to a single discipline.
The documentary also represents another significant project for Slavík, an experienced filmmaker whose career includes more than 200 documentaries, television productions, music videos and commercials. His 2023 drama Tancuj Matyldo received the top prize at the Santa Fe International Film Festival in New Mexico in 2024.
Following its theatrical release on July 30, Public Space of František Skála will continue its festival run with screenings at Summer Film School in Uherské Hradiště and festivals in Litomyšl and Slavonice, as well as a special presentation in Telč, where audiences will have an opportunity to see both the documentary and Vulpes Gott in person.
