Festival Sections

Films for individual festival sections are selected from the production, which was presented in the period from one season of Finále Plzeň to the next.

The competition films are evaluated by an independent International Expert Juries and a Student Juries of the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen.

During the six days of Festival, you can see about 140 screenings.

Competitive sections

Golden Kingfisher - Feature Live Action or Animated Films Competition

A competition of the most significant Czech and co-production films of the past festival year, which are selected by a professional selection committee. The winner is chosen by an independent international jury. The creators of the winning film receive a financial reward of CZK 25,000 and an award from the Kolektiv Ateliers glass workshop in Nový Bor.

Golden Kingfisher – Documentary Films Competition

Prestigious selection of Czech and co-production documentaries. This section is not only a competition for the best documentary, but above all a diverse display of discovering new themes and cinematic expressions. The authors of the winning film receive a financial reward of CZK 25,000 and an award from the Kolektiv Ateliers glass workshop.

Golden Kingfisher – Feature and Mini-serial TV and Internet Production Competition

This section has two categories – Serial Production and Film and Miniseries. It presents strong and original television and internet projects that deserve also to be shown off the TV screen. The winners are selected by an international jury composed of television and audio-visual professionals.

Golden Kingfisher – Student Short Film Competition

A selection of the most interesting student films that viewers do not normally have the opportunity to see in classic distribution. We want to give them a special attention at the Festival, because it is the student films that most represent the new Czech film production abroad.

Non-competitive sections

In the Nets

A selection of successful Czech feature, documentary and animated films on which the audiences should not miss out.

First Catch

An exclusive selection of Czech films and minority co-productions presented as premieres and avant-premieres.

Czech Traces

The section presents films in which Czech filmmakers have participated in various ways. These include films made as part of co-productions, films shot in the Czech Republic, or films made by Czech professionals in individual film professions.

Women and Film

A newly created section dedicated to prominent female personalities of Czech cinema. In four programme blocks, interesting female filmmakers from different professions will present films of their choice, which were co-created by women who had inspired or influenced them in their work. The section is created in cooperation with Girls in Film.

Manipulation by Power

Section monitoring the influence of political environment on filmmaking in individual decades of the Czech history. Every year is dedicated to a different decade. In 2021, we began with the 1950s. This section is created in cooperation with the non-profit organization Post Bellum.

Special Feature

The section introduces specific themes, presents current trends, or takes the audience to unconventional places, e.g. within site-specific or silent cinema screenings.

German Cinema

A selection of distinctive German feature and short films, often screened with the participation of the filmmakers and film professionals from Germany. The selection of films for this section takes place in close cooperation with the East German Film Festival in Cottbus and the Max Ophüls Festival in Saarbrücken.

ZOOM

A section dedicated to film production from both neighbouring and more distant European regions. This year, it will present interesting selection of Baltic films.