Panelstory or Birth of a Community

In the second half of the 1970s, Czechoslovak cinema entered a phase of revival. Věra Chytilová was able to return to feature filmmaking – shortly after "The Apple Game", she created another critical portrait of unstable human relationships. In "Panelstory", a housing estate served as a microcosm of normalization society, where due to negligence, indifference, and communication barriers, nothing functions properly. The film presents a tapestry of micro-stories representing all generations and various social groups.

Co-screenwriter Eva Kačírková, wife of a construction engineer, had access to numerous non-public information about housing estate construction in Czechoslovakia – and she also appears in one of the film's roles. Filming took place in Prague's Jižní Město district. The image of a community whose members pursue only their individual goals instead of shared socialist ideals proved so pointed and biting that the premiere was initially postponed and the film was then shown in only a limited number of cinemas outside major cities.

International audiences saw "Panelstory" earlier – at the festival in San Remo, Italy, where the film received the Grand Prize in 1980.