13-23 nov 2025
EN/NL
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Bardo
Program
Bardo

Bardo

Viera Čákanyová
Czech Republic, Slovakia
2025
27 min
Dutch Premiere
Paradocs
Synopsis

Inspired by a Tibetan tradition, darkness therapy involves spending at least seven days alone in a completely dark, preferably soundproof room. Viera Čákanyová undertook this retreat and transformed her radical experience into an intense sensorial adventure. She uses AI to visualize the hypnotic phantom images and visual perceptions of light that her brain produced in the absence of sensory stimulation.

The voice-over comes from audio recordings Čákanyová made during her introspective journey into darkness. This darkness seems to take on various forms, colors, and textures that help her confront a trauma.

She animates the images into a constant flow of visuals, a never-ending metamorphosis in which atoms can slow down to a non-human pace. Everything is but an interlude—between one way of being and another, between action and inaction.

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Credits
27 min
color
DCP
Spoken languages: Slovak
Director
    Viera Čákanyová
    Viera Čákanyová
Production
    Matej Sotník for Somatic Films
    Matej Sotník for Somatic Films
Co-production
    Matej Sotník for guča films
    Matej Sotník for guča films
Cinematography
    Viera Čákanyová
    Viera Čákanyová
Animation
    Viera Čákanyová
    Viera Čákanyová
Editing
    Viera Čákanyová
    Viera Čákanyová
Sound
    Viera Čákanyová
    Viera Čákanyová
Sound Design
    Marek Buranovský
    Marek Buranovský
Music
    Marek Buranovský
    Marek Buranovský
Screenplay
    Viera Čákanyová,
    Klára Tasovská,
    Martin Horyna
    Viera Čákanyová,
    Klára Tasovská,
    Martin Horyna
World Sales
    Disco Sailing Short Film Agency
    Disco Sailing Short Film Agency
Screening copy
    Disco Sailing Short Film Agency
    Disco Sailing Short Film Agency

Stills

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