The Way Out | Cesta ven
2014, 105 min., in Czech with English subtitles    
Directed by: Petr Václav                

“The Way Out reflects on the topic of marginalization and ethnic discrimination in a non-judgemental style, handling not only the characters’ day-to-day struggles, but also their vices through the sober lens of an insider, as only a field worker who knows them personally could.” ~Martin Kudláč, CINEUROPA        
                        
Synopsis: The gritty atmosphere unveils a young Romani couple Žaneta (Klaudia Dudová) and David (David Ištok) striving to live a “normal life,” providing for their daughter and Žaneta’s sister. To protect his family, David considers a life of crime, as the grim backdrop of unemployment, debt, and poverty weighs down. Žaneta wants a respectable life for her family, her sister to get an education, and an honest job. Trapped in the community’s anti-gypsy prejudice, can Žaneta find the inner strength to break out?     

The film was the first Czech film screened at the prestigious  Cannes Film Festival in the last 16 years.   
                              
Awards: Won  seven 2015 Czech Lion Awards   for best film,
director, screenplay, actress (Klaudia Dudová),cinema-tography (Štěpán Kučera), editing (Florent Mangeot), and sound. Won four Czech Critics´ Awards for best film, director, screenwriter and leading actress.                    

About the Director:     
Cesta ven marks the director’s return to the theme of the Roma community. His debut feature, Marian, drew on his experience in documentary filmmaking and featured Roma non-actors living similar lives to those of their characters. Marian garnered the Silver Leopard at the 1996 Locarno Film Festival. Cesta ven marks the director’s first feature film since 2001’s Parallel Worlds (Paralelní světy) that won the Golden Kingfisher Award at the Plzeň Film Festival. For the past 13 years, he has lived in France and often collaborates with noted French writer Marie Despleschin.    

The screening is also a part of the Mutual Inspirations Festival 2015- Karel Čapek, www.mutualinspirations.org.

Location:
Avalon Theatre
5612 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20015
www.theavalon.org

About the Lions of Czech Film Series:   
This marks the ninth year of collaboration with the Avalon Theatre to present the Lions of Czech Film Series. This film series gives the Washington, DC, community an opportunity to view Czech films that are popular hits in Europe and have received numerous honors and awards at film festivals. Most of the films have received the prestigious Czech Lion Award, the Czech equivalent of an Academy Award. All of the films have limited distribution in the United States. The Lions of Czech Film Series offers an invaluable opportunity to see the best of Czech cinema in the nation’s capital.