Rotterdam 2025: Exclusive PERLA Poster Premiere

Contributor; Slovakia (@martykudlac)
Rotterdam 2025: Exclusive PERLA Poster Premiere

The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) will include the world premiere of Perla, a drama by Slovak filmmaker Alexandra Makarová. The film is set in 1980s Vienna and Czechoslovakia and follows the story of an exiled artist navigating political and personal challenges.

The film’s logline describes the story as follows:

In 1980s Vienna, a dissident artist’s life is turned upside down when her estranged partner reappears after prison, prompting a perilous journey back to Czechoslovakia that threatens her newfound family.

Perla centers on its titular character, played by Slovak actress Rebeka Polaková. Perla is an exiled artist and single mother living in Vienna with her daughter Julia, a young pianist. When Julia’s father, Andrej, claims to be terminally ill, Perla decides to return to communist Czechoslovakia.

The journey leads to complications as Andrej attempts to re-enter their lives, forcing Perla to confront unresolved issues from her past. The Slovak-born director Alexandra Makarová moved to Vienna following the fall of the Iron Curtain, she studied scriptwriting and directing at the Vienna Film College. Her debut film, Zerschlag mein Herz, addressed the lives of Roma communities in Vienna. With Perla, Makarová shifts her focus to themes of personal freedom.

According to Makarová, the film uses the political setting of the early 1980s as a backdrop, with the central narrative focusing on the emotional dynamics between the characters. The director has stated that the film is dedicated to her grandmother and aims to explore the challenges faced by women in restrictive environments.

The film was developed with a Slovak cast and crew. Makarová has noted that working with this team allowed her to reflect on her own connections to the past. She described the process as an opportunity to examine themes of identity and history.

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