When: Monday, September 22 at 6:00 pm

Where: Embassy of the Czech Republic, 251 Cooper Str.

The film "Waltzing Matilda tells the story of a debt collector Karel Jaroš (48), his mother, former choir singer Matilda (80), and Karel’s teenage son Pavel (18). The withdrawn, emotionally torn Karel does not get along with his extroverted and bohemian mother and only thanks to a strong sense of duty does he visit her regularly. Pavel, on the other hand, who comes across as an irresponsible flunky, despises his father’s profession and cannot forget that he abandoned his family as a child. The relationship of all three is disturbed, but an unexpected life situation brings them together. Mathilde develops Alzheimer’s disease, loses her apartment and Karel has to take her in. However, he is unable to take care of her and in a deadlocked situation, it turns out that the only solution is for Pavel to take care of his sick grandmother. However, the illness progresses rapidly and doubts, crises and conflicts arise. The tragicomic story inevitably ends with the question of whether and how our heroes will stand up to this test of life.

The director wrote the script together with his wife Natasha, who drew on real experiences of the family caring for a sick mother.

At the Santa Fe International Film Festival (SFiFF) in New Mexico, United States, the film won the grand prize in October 2024, winning against 27 films and documentaries of American origin. The film also won the Czech Lion for best music by Michal Pavlíček and the Czech Film Critics Award for best male performance by Karel Roden.

The filmmakers wanted to highlight the issue of the increase in Alzheimer's disease patients today and publicly discuss this situation.

In addition to the Czech Republic, the film was also shot in Normandy, France, at the Falaise d'Aval cliff.

The film will be screened in Czech with English subtitles.

Please confirm your attendance by sending an email to miloslava.minnes@mzv.gov.cz.

We look forward to seeing you on Monday, September 22, at our Embassy!