Czech director wins Sony Future Filmmaker Award in Los Angeles

Czech filmmaker Kyle Novak, who currently resides in Los Angeles, has won a prestigious award at the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards for his animated short film Ángulos de la Hora (Hour Angle). “Winning was a huge morale booster for me,” Novak told Aktuálně.cz in a recent interview.

The film, which clinched the top prize in the animation category, tells the story of two strangers who meet at an airport and decide to spend a day and night together before going their separate ways.

The inspiration for Hour Angle came from the works of Russian author Ivan Bunin, particularly his stories In Paris and Sunstroke. Novak wanted to create a film that could be interpreted in various ways depending on the viewer's focus.

“I wanted to make a short film that could be read as an intimate story of strangers finding comfort in each other's presence or as a larger genre film questioning what we prioritize as people,” Novak tells Aktuálně.cz.

The film is presented in Spanish and features Spanish-speaking actors, but could have been in Czech, as Novak initially planned to cast Czech actors for the roles. However, the decision to film in Florida, where Novak lived as a teenager, led him to choose Spanish speakers instead.

Novak’s journey from the Czech Republic to the U.S. began when his parents sent him to stay with his grandparents in the States during his teenage years. “My Czech grandparents had retired to South Florida, which was predominantly Spanish-speaking,” Novak recalled. “Since then, I’ve been divided between continents and cities.”

Currently living in Los Angeles, Novak has also worked as an adjunct instructor at technical colleges, focusing on visual effects and post-production. His journey into filmmaking began with a multimedia project he worked on in Prague and later continued with graduate studies in dramatic writing at Columbia University in New York.

The creation of Ángulos de la Hora involved a significant team effort. “Initially, it was just my friend Brendon and me, but it became clear we needed more help,” Novak said. The project expanded to include a small crew and required extensive work, including rotoscoping over 14,000 frames. “It took us a little over two years of continuous work,” he added.

Reflecting on his award, Novak likened it to receiving much-needed supplies during an exploration. “Creating projects independently today is really tough, and financing is especially difficult. This award is like receiving a shipment of supplies during an expedition—though resources are still scarce, the psychological boost is enough to keep us going.”

Looking ahead, Novak plans to pursue meaningful projects in the Czech Republic. “I hope to start something valuable and meaningful back home. Now, metaphorically speaking, I have a bit more supply to embark on that journey.”