Velvet Terrorists

Three men who once attempted to challenge the communist regime in Czechoslovakia through acts deemed as terrorism now reflect on their past, blurring the lines between heroism and criminality in a docu-fiction narrative

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Original title: Zamatoví teroristi
Other titles: Sametoví teroristé (CZ), Baršunasti teroristi (HR), Bársonyos terroristák (HU), Aksamitni terroryści (PL)
Genre: docu-fiction
Length: 87 minutes
Copyright: 2013
Production countries: Slovakia, Czech Republic, Croatia
World sales: kerekesfilm
Distribution: Peter Kerekes s.r.o. (SK), Aerofilms (CZ) a Poool Filmverleih (AT)
Release: July, 2013

Synopsis

Stano, Fero and Vladimír are three men who resisted the communist regime in Czechoslovakia. Three true stories from the normalization era: Stano planned to blow up a speaker’s platform in a stadium on the night before the May Day celebrations. He got five years behind bars. Fero plotted to assassinate President Husák in the hope of unleashing an anti-communist revolution. He, too, ended up in prison. Vladimír engaged in repeated anti-regime activities, most of them involving the destruction of public billboards. He did several stints in jail. Three Slovak directors take a humorous look at the unique courage of these mavericks who managed to rise up from the anonymous and obedient masses. The filmmakers also consider the relevance of their ridiculously naïve terrorist acts – once called serious crimes but today possibly viewed as acts of heroism. An inventive combination of authenticity and staged scenes, Velvet Terrorists hovers between documentary and fiction.

Credits

Director: Peter Kerekes, Ivan Ostrochovský, Pavol Pekarčík
Story: Peter Kerekes, Ivan Ostrochovský, Pavol Pekarčík
DOP: Martin Kollár
Editor: Marek Šulík, Zuzana Cséplő
Sound: Tobiáš Potočný, Peter Lenděl
Music: Marián Čurko
Production: Peter Kerekes s.r.o. (Slovakia)
Co-production: Sentimentalfilm (Slovakia), Partizanfilm (Slovakia), Hypermarket Film (Czech Republic), Nukleus Film (Croatia), Czech Television, Radio and Television Slovakia
Producer: Peter Kerekes, Ivan Ostrochovský, Pavol Pekarčík, Filip Remunda, Siniša Juričić
Cast:
Stanislav Kratochvíl
František Bednár
Vladimír Hučín
Marcela Bednárová
Amanda Nagyová
Iva Škrbelová
Lenka Rzepková

Support

Slovak Audiovisual Fund, Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic, Czech State Cinematography Fund, Croatian Audiovisual Centre

World premiere

48th Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 2013

Festivals

Awards

FEDEORA Award for Best Documentary Film at Karlovy Vary International Film Festival 2013
Tagesspiegel Readers‘ Prize at the 64th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) 2014
FIPRESCI Award at Cinema City Film Festival 2014

Media

CINEUROPA

„While it may seem light at first glance, due to its humoristic approach and emphatic use of music, careful framing and playful editing, Velvet Terrorists actually covers much subject matter, including the communist past, its consequent quasi-capitalist present and even romance.“ Vladan Petković, Cineuropa
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DOX MAGAZINE

“Both a study of masculinity and an examination of revolutionary ideals… a subtle work that deals with weighty themes in a clever and often affecting way.” Laurence Boyce, DOX Magazine
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SCREENDAILY

„Somewhere in between terrorists, rebels, heroes and hopelessly innocent klutzes, the main characters of the film’s three episodes, may be all of that or simply normal people who had the guts to stand by their opinions and paid the full price for it. Each viewer is invited to decide for himself.“ Dan Fainaru, Screendaily
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