Art Talent Show

This dryly humorous, Wiseman-esque film about an esteemed Czech art school asks: who gets to decide what art is?

For the wannabe students of Prague’s Academy of Fine Arts – the oldest art college in the Czech Republic, founded in 1799 – the professors hold the future in the palms of their hands. The rigorous entrance exams see hundreds of hopefuls battle it out for a coveted spot; as they are challenged and interrogated, the conversations vary wildly from the nature of scandalous substances, to what distinguishes bisexuality from pansexuality, to the point of art today. The applicants also show off their creations, which range from questionable to sublime, while the selection panel rake them over the coals of subjectivity in deciding what is good and what is ghastly.

Winner of the Grand Prix and a FIPRESCI Award in Karlovy Vary’s Proxima section, Art Talent Show follows the teachers from the painting, graphic design and new media faculties on their quest to discover the next generation of artists. Issues of assessing merit and creativity across a generational divide float to the surface through observational camerawork, allowing candid and sometimes comedic discussions to play out naturally. With optimism and wit, Tomas Bojar and Adéla Komrzý’s vérité-style documentary pries open the inner workings of an establishment outsiders are not usually privy to.