President Petr Pavel attends Karlovy Vary Film Festival screening of classic Czech film Šeptej

President Petr Pavel and his wife Eva attended a screening of David Ondříček's film Šeptej at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival on 9 July 2026. The event took place in the Municipal Theatre, where the president met theatre representatives, the film’s protagonists and director Ondříček. He also gave a brief interview to festival moderator Marek Eben, saying he would choose a comedy or a Czech classic for relaxation.

The audience was surprised by his presence in the first‑floor box and greeted him with a long applause. Šeptej, a cult Czech film from the 1990s, was shown in the Classics section to mark its 30th anniversary, with restored footage and live music by the group Colorfactory. Pavel has visited the festival before, first in 2023 and subsequently each year, previously praising other Czech and international works such as Real by Oleg Sentsov.