Prague, early 20th century. Franz Kafka (Idan Weiss) is torn between the authority of his demanding father (Ivan Trojan), the routine of the insurance office and the quiet longing for artistic development. While his texts find their first readers, the journey of a young man begins, who longs for normality but encounters the contradictions of life, writes literary history in the process and repeatedly falls head over heels in love. Driven by love, fantasy and the desire for respect, supported by his friend and publisher Max Brod (Sebastian Schwarz), a portrait of one of the most fascinating thinkers of modern times unfolds that is as touching as it is bizarre. A film like Kafka's work itself: surprising, poetic, unforgettable...
In her biopic 'Franz K.' (2025), master director Agnieszka Holland retraces the life of writer Franz Kafka (born July 3, 1883 in Prague, Austria-Hungary, died June 3, 1924 in Kierling, Austria) from his birth to his death. One of the most important contemporary filmmakers, the Oscar-nominated Holland (including 'Green Border', 'Hitlerjunge Salomon') takes a unique look at Kafka's life in 'Franz K.'. The result is a captivating kaleidoscope about the world-famous writer, inspired by his life, his work and his imagination - about a man who was far ahead of his time in a fascinating way. With 'Franz K.', Holland succeeds in creating an original approach to Kafka the man, embedded in a narrative that spans a century. She finds sensual, surrealistic images that bring us closer to Kafka as a person and make his inner self tangible. She captures the monotony and confinement of his everyday life as well as the complexity of his character and the multilingualism of his time. Idan Weiss as Franz Kafka embodies the torn writer with remarkable intensity. With Peter Kurth (among others 'Babylon Berlin', 'Zwei zu Eins', 'Herbert', 'Gold') as the domineering father Hermann, Katharina Stark ('Deutsches Haus', European Shooting Star 2025) as the headstrong sister Ottla,Carol Schuler ('Tatort Zürich') as fiancée Felice Bauer and Sebastian Schwarz ('Ich bin dein Mensch', 'Ballon') as friend and publisher Max Brod are joined by a top-class ensemble. Marek Epstein was responsible for the screenplay and Tomasz Naumiuk was in charge of the visual design. 'Franz K.' is a Czech-German-Polish production by 'Marlene Film Produktion', 'X Filme Creative Pool' and 'Metro Films' in co-production with 'Barrandov Studio', 'Czech Anglo Productions', 'TVP', 'Czech Televion', 'ZDF/ARTE' and 'CANAL+' with the support of 'Eurimages', the 'Czech Audiovisual Fund', 'Polish Film Institute', 'Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg', 'Deutscher Filmförderfonds', 'Prague Audiovisual Fund' and 'Creative Europe MEDIA'.
