The team behind the Berlinale Series Market Selects pick “Monyová,” about the popular 1990s Czech writer Simona Monyová who was murdered by her own husband, will continue to explore the topic of domestic violence in the three-part documentary series “Love Doesn’t Hurt” (“Láska nebolí”).
The show won’t just focus on pain, it was stated, but also on “effort, understanding and change.” It will also feature the perpetrators.
“After Simona’s murder, many people started contacting organizations for victims of domestic violence and asking for help. We thought: Maybe our viewers need more information too? We found out that these organizations also reach out to abusers. It became clear that to truly address the issue of domestic violence, we need to look at them too,” says Barbora Námerová.
Námerová created the project alongside Tomáš Klein and creative producer Klára Follová. Dagmar Sedláčková and Johana Kolářová produce.
Follová agrees: “We need to start with the people committing these acts. I’m not excusing them, but it’s important to help them too. We also want to break another taboo and show that men can be victims of domestic violence. We have brave directors who will publicly talk about their experiences.”
The research took the team four months.
“We got to understand this topic on a very deep level,” admits Námerová, praising researcher Radim Lisa, who ultimately received a screenwriting credit. “Love Doesn’t Hurt” will also include animated sequences by Lukáš Fišárek.
“It was an ethical decision because you don’t want to recreate violence, and these people talk about really difficult things. The animation allows viewers to better understand their situation and feel like they are there with them, especially when someone talks about childhood abuse.”
In “Monyová,” financed by broadcaster TV Nova/Oneplay and directed by Zuzana Kirchnerová – also known for Cannes premiere “Caravan” – its late protagonist finally gets to reclaim her voice.
“The show and this whole initiative are so relevant. Simona was a real star, and since we announced the series, so many women have been approaching me. But the younger generation only knows her as a woman murdered by her husband,” says Kirchnerová.
Although she was a public figure, Monyová kept her personal hell a secret, opening up only in her books.
“We wanted to emphasize that she was famous because of her books, not because of the murder. Her last novels were really all about domestic violence,” notes lead actor Tereza Ramba.
“She was this spectacular woman, but then she started losing weight and getting weaker and weaker. The whole country saw it, but no one knew. She was asking for help in these books.”
The show depicts Monyová’s spectacular success – she became a bestselling author and a household name – and the frustration of her unemployed husband, manifesting itself also as emotional abuse and manipulation.
“Igor Orozovič, who plays the husband, went to see a psychologist who works with abusers. It wasn’t only about the violence. People used to pity this man, not her. They used to call her a bitch – he was the poor guy in her shadow,” says Kirchnerová.
“Back then, she was… too much. Too much for men and too much for women. Even today, some claim she ‘deserved’ it because of her sexy clothes and sports cars. So what?! That doesn’t give you the right to abuse or kill someone. Younger people will be able to connect with her more, because it pisses us off when someone says we want too much or are too rich. We have a right to be too much. To be loud, strange, or simply successful.”
Raising awareness, also by providing information about domestic abuse helplines at the end of each episode, will hopefully turn “Monyová” into something much bigger than a TV show, says Ramba.
“We want to empower women. I have a four-year-old daughter and when she doesn’t like something, she says: ‘Don’t do it.’ It’ so simple, and we really need to spread this message. You can say ‘no’.”
English (US) ·