FOLLOWERS, 18min., Czech Republic
Directed by Michael Semerád
Someone late at night breaks into the luxurious house of an isolated influencer Lucy. The police won't arrive for another fifteen minutes, so she's forced to defend her home by herself. Suddenly, a romantic song starts playing from downstairs. Throughout this home invasion, we gradually go back to what happened before it. Before a flight, reckless Lucy shares a misleading post and unknowingly triggers a wave of hatred on social media during her flight. Lucy tries to get back home to her normal life, but she's confronted with a conspiracy of those who want to take advantage of her vulnerable situation for their own benefit.

Get to know the filmmaker:

1. What motivated you to make this film?

Internet & social media used to be an open platform where you could post
shamelessly anything and open your life to anyone to see. Early days of Twitter used to be like that, where people would share their embarrassing secrets & jokes to a welcoming community.

Nowadays I feel like the internet horde is anxiously waiting to punish even your slightest misstep. A modern-day witch-hunt where the goal is not to punish but to destroy.

2. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to
make this film?

I started playing with the idea of cancel culture film in the fall of 2021. Shooting started a year later. Postproduction ended in the of spring of this year. So, year and a half form the first idea to a finished film.

3. How would you describe your film in two words!?

Social thriller

4. What was the biggest obstacle you faced in completing this film?

Finding the right tone and structure for the script with my co- writer Lukáš
Hanák. We had endless discissions about finding the best way to represent the very tricky theme of the film.

5. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking
about your film in the feedback video?

I felt very special, that I could get such thorough responses to my film from a foreign audience. Now I have a great point of reference of what works and what doesn’t beyond the borders of my language and country.

6. When did you realize that you wanted to make films?

August 2, 2018, after seeing The Lobster by Yorgos Lanthimos. That’s the day I fell in love with cinema. Ever since then I knew I wanted to make a living by making films.

7. What film have you seen the most in your life?

The Wolf of Wall Street

8. What other elements of the festival experience can we and other
festivals implement to satisfy you and help you further your filmmaking
career?

Just stay open to films from all around the world and the keep the feedback videos!

9. You submitted to the festival via FilmFreeway. How has your
experiences been working on the festival platform site?

A very straight forth experience. Easy to understand the festival focus and
categories. So, submitting the film was a breeze.

10. What is your favorite meal?

Pesto Penne Pasta

11. What is next for you? A new film?

I am currently working on two new short films where I am trying to fuse my own psychological experience with a mainstream genre film approach. The first one is called Mirroring, an experimental sci-fi about the way technology can easy you through a panic attack. And the second in called Reimmersion, an art horror about reliving a trauma, so you can finally kill it off.