Film

Based on a graphic novel fromSudetenland, this remarkably assured feature film debut by Lunak employs black-and-white animation to tell the story of a lonely middle-aged train dispatcher in the backwoods of the Jesenik mountains. Struggling with recurring nightmares from his traumatic experience in World War II, he finds solace in the regularity of the train schedule. But his bad dreams are reinvigorated with the appearance of a mysterious mute and the surrounding tumult of the Velvet Revolution. Using rotoscope to transfer live action footage to a fully animated picture, the film is a visual marvel-and received much praise at its premieres at the Venice and Toronto film festivals.