16/07/2023 - Let’s check your pulse and listen to the buzz of your daily existence...

Viktorie Štěpánová invites viewers into a world of sounds and images reflecting fast-paced life in her five-minute movie EO DE ME. The story unfolds calmly to the sound of dripping water before later becoming a hectic depiction of a stroll along city streets. Štěpánová wants viewers to be aware of every detail: footsteps on the pavement, silhouettes of passers-by, and the rhythms of noise. Myriad pictures — textures of the ground, photos of townhouses, colourful daubs looking like spilt tea or coffee on sheets of paper — combine to embody the city’s diversity.

But this Czech production would not be so powerful without music. EO DE ME doesn’t only combine sounds with images, it also uses music to lend a tempo to what we witness. The drum and bass in the soundtrack are reminiscent of blood pulsating through veins… and people dance to it. Moreover, electronic rhythms paired with shots of buildings create a futuristic atmosphere. The film seems to be an ode to a kind of urban life that is always developing, always unfolding in haste. The hurried pace demands greater attention from the audience, who need to follow every step to understand the film’s message. Such effort might cause fatigue in the viewer, but this seems to be intentional.

Diversity in animation techniques is a similarly deliberate choice. Together with sound designer Klarká Ondračková, Štěpánová has combined real photos with paintings; they merge various techniques in a single shot to show how diverse our world can be. They demonstrate how the past is connected to the present by presenting a series of views: from hand-drawn silhouettes and geometric figures, through to photos of old cities and daubs recalling surrealistic light shows from 1960s psychedelic rock-concerts.

Indeed, “psychedelic” seems an appropriate word for describing EO DE ME. Although the images change swiftly, there is always something appealing, almost hypnotic, in this production. We are left yearning for more once it finishes. The sensory impact is much the same as a train journey, where you sit by the window listening to music and watching the trees pass by. You are the protagonist in your own film called “life”.