Czech Television is preparing to broadcast a new film titled Lajf, signed by the proven creative duo – director Jiří Strach and screenwriter Marek Epstein. The film follows the fates of five strangers who met online and decided to end their lives together. The story is built on dialogues and the gradual escalation of tension and emotions during their shared journey to the agreed-upon location.
The television adaptation was based on the stage play of the same name, written by Marek Epstein. According to the creators, the film balances on the edge of drama and black comedy.
“We are telling a bittersweet-cynical-hopeful film about a group of five people who don't know each other and are linked by one thing – none of them have the courage to leave the world alone. They talk about the reasons that led them to this, revealing their characters, which are sometimes cruel, sometimes tender,” describes director Jiří Strach.
A significant element of the film is its visual and technical execution. Most of the action takes place in the confined space of a moving car, which placed high demands on cinematographer Martin Šec and the actors themselves. The cramped space of the car serves as a catalyst for emotions and clashes of opinions between characters of different generations and social strata. For the purposes of filming, the crew had to use specific technical solutions to ensure dynamic shots in the limited conditions of the car's interior.
Screenwriter Marek Epstein opens up questions related to ethics and the right to one's own death in the text.
“The debate about the meaning of life will always be a fundamental philosophical, but at the same time very material and physical, question. We wanted to show what relationship people can have to life, and thus to death, and what paradoxes such views can provoke when you cram them into a small space,” explains Marek Epstein, adding that it is a “viable film about death.”
The main roles of the five protagonists will be played by Jan Kolařík, Jiří Mádl, Božidara Turzonovová, Sophia Šporclová, and Ivo Gogál. The project was created in the Brno studio of Czech Television under the leadership of creative producer Jiřina Budíková. The film Lajf promises an intimate acting concert built on the psychological depth of the characters and their contrasting life attitudes.
photo: ČT, Ivo Dvořák