Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

IMPORTANT STORIES OF THE FILMS FROM THE PEOPLE NEXT DOOR SECTION

Level 34, director: Zach Breder, USA, 2022, 25 min, International Premiere

Sometimes the story that led to a film being made is as important as the film itself. The director of Level 34, sixteen-year-old Zach Breder from the U. S. state of Georgia, has managed to fulfil a life’s dream at a young age – to write and direct a movie. This in and of itself is an extraordinary feat. But when we add one inexorable fact of Zach’s life – the fact that he has a serious heart conditions that means he must make every day count – we understand why he refused to wait to realize his dream.

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My Sister Liv, director: Alan Hicks, USA, 2022, 70 min, World Premiere

When eight-year-old Tess learned that her mother was pregnant, she was not excited at the prospect of a sibling. But when little Liv was born with the same fiery red hair as her older sister, an unbreakable bond was formed that, sadly, was torn apart too soon. Liv grew into a young woman full of energy and with incredible musical talent, but even as a child she suffered from anxiety and depression until she was driven to a radical solution. Tess was left with a void in her life that she decided to fill by working with teenagers who have the same difficulties as Liv did. Grammy Award-winning director Alan Hicks has shot a touching and important documentary about pain transformed into hope.

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