Jiří Havelka showed that he is not only a brilliant screenwriter and director, for which he was awarded in 2020 even with statues of the Czech Lion, but also a candidate moderator. His predecessor, Václav Kopta, who moderated the “Lions” for the past three years, was worried about how his successor would fare, but they were useless.
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The scenario of the Czech Lions could have Jiří Havelka ready as long as he wanted, but it was useless to him. Due to Russian aggression in Ukraine, less than a week before the gala dinner, he had to dig everything. This was also evident when looking at the first guest on stage. This was none other than the Ambassador of Ukraine to the Czech Republic Yevhen Perebyjnis. And it was he who earned the first standing ovation of the evening.
“It’s not just Putin who started this war. Much of Russia either supports Putin or is silent. There are artists among them, and representatives of Russian cinema are among them. Especially Nikita Michalkov, who is one of Putin’s closest accomplices, and the blood of Ukrainian children is also on his hands, “said Perebyjnis, who said that some of the ceremonial guests were scalded. But Havelka showed a great view, deftly turned the sheet and turned his attention to Czech lions.
Why didn’t he let the Czech Lions talk
The only thing he could blame was the space he gave to both the winners and the winners. He didn’t give up. Although the attention was to be focused on them, it often seemed to interest him more than the winners than the winners themselves. This was also evident during the thank-you speech of Jana Dopitová, who received the “Lion” for the masks of the film Zátopek. She admitted that she was not nervous about the cameras present, but about squeezing her thank-you speech into the one minute she had at her disposal.
Jiří Havelka did not disappoint at his premiere at “Lviv”, but unfortunately he did not excel in any extra way. It was often visible on him that he had run out of speech. Especially when Eva Holubová, who first greeted her family in Ukrainian, came to hand over the editing prize, and then, although he didn’t ask her anything, she began to answer the question of whether they had ever been cut from the film. Havelka couldn’t stop her.
The most embarrassing moment came when Ivan Trojan came to hand over the award. Havelka was so impossible that Trojan was ashamed and wanted to cut him off and read the winner’s name. But Havelka unnecessarily prolonged the scene until the embarrassment in the hall could be cut.
Although Havelka directed the films Owners and the Extraordinary Event brilliantly, this year he was toothless and did not bite at Czech Lions due to his nervousness and softness. The mitigating circumstances for him are perhaps only the circumstances under which he moderated the Czech Lions.
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