‘A Prominent Patient’ Sweeps Up Prizes at Czech National Film Awards

A Prominent Patient, a film about 1940s Czech foreign minister Jan Masaryk, on Saturday took home 12 prizes — including for best film and director — at the 24th edition of the Czech Republic’s national film awards, the Czech Lions. 

The drama about Masaryk — who was the son of the first president of Czechoslovakia and served as the country’s foreign minister in exile from 1940-1945 before returning home to work with the multi-party communist-dominated National Front Government until 1948 — earned the best film award for producers Rudolf Biermann and Julius Sevcik.

Sevcik, who also helmed the film, released locally as Masaryk, was named best director.

Prominent Patient also picked up honors for best actor (Karel Roden, who played Masaryk); best supporting actor (Oldrich Kaiser); best screenplay (Petr Kolecko, Alex Koenigsmark and Sevcik); cinematography (Martin Strba); editing (Marek Opatrny); and music (Michal Lorence, Krystof Marek).

There were also awards for best sound, stage design, costume design and makeup.

The best actress prize went to Michalina Olszanska for her role in I, Olga Hepnarova, and Klara Meliskova was tapped as best supporting actress for her part in the same film.

Best feature-length documentary honors went to Miroslav Janek’s Normal Autistic Film, produced by Jan Macola, which chronicles the lives of talented and creative children who are autistic.

HBO Europe’s Wasteland (whose local-language title is Pustina) was named best TV drama series.

Honorary awards for “unique contribution to Czech film” went to the Karlovy Vary Film Festival’s president, Jiri Bartoska, and its former artistic director, Eva Zaoralova, who continues to work for the bohemian spa town event as a consultant.

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