The Unseen

This is a documentary about how blind children view the world. All the photographs in this film were taken by blind children, who have also made the music.
This film shows a school for the blind.This is not some tear-jerking depiction of bravery among handicapped children living under horrible conditions, in Eastern Europe brought to us by some commercial TV channel. No, here we have a good laugh at the children's caricatures of TV programmes, and the way they act in front of the camera.
It is fascinating that not a single adult appears in the film - only children, everywhere - though parents are mentioned, as well as teachers. Members of the film team are seen briefly in a photograph, but otherwise there are only children in the film.They describe their lives at school, what makes them happy and what they'd like to do.They talk about their desires and dreams as well as about their daily routines.The film is accompanied by music and song, in the style of a real prime-time entertainment show, enjoyed from the TV couch. Big stars are parodied - ''Ruciano Pavarotti'' treats us to his powerful voice.
The whole point of the film is that the children are taking the pictures. Why? Because they, just like sighted people, want to record the reality around them.''I want to show my parents,'' says one child.'' The pictures help me to remember,'' says another and explains further: if he shows the pictures to someone, they can describe what they see, and their interpretation of them helps him to remember, and he can then begin to tell the story behind the pictures.
A tough kid wearing a cap says, ''I can take any sort of picture and people still stay they're nice.They have to like them.They can't say the pictures are bad because I can't see what I'm photographing.''
Helena Hederberg

Premiärstatus
Nordisk premiär: Orig. titel
Nespatrene: Producent
Katerina Ondrejkova: Manus
Daniela Hornickova: Foto
Miroslav Janek: Talat språk
Czech