One day after the documentary Raději zešílet v divočině (Better Go Mad in the Wild) won the Grand Prix at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, one of its main subjects, František Klišík, was found dead near Prague.

He was 62 years old.

According to Metro.cz, Klišík drowned in a pond in the village of Ohrobec in the early hours of Sunday. Around 8:30 a.m., a local resident noticed an unresponsive man in the water. Emergency services and a coroner were called to the scene.

“There were no signs of foul play,” said police spokesperson Michaela Richterová, adding that the exact cause of death will be determined by an autopsy.

Klišík had reportedly been in Ohrobec to visit a friend and celebrate the film’s success. Witnesses said he was in a positive mood, though it wasn’t clear where he planned to spend the night.

The pond is located across from the village pub.

The documentary, directed by Miro Remo, follows the life of František and his twin brother Ondřej, who spent decades living off the grid in Stögrova Huť, a remote settlement in the Šumava region. The film is based on a book by Aleš Palán, who confirmed Klišík’s death in a Facebook post.

Palán’s book accompanied the documentary and focused on people who chose to live outside mainstream society.

During the 1980s, Klišík briefly lived in Prague, where he met figures from the Czech underground, including philosopher Jan Patočka, writer Egon Bondy, and the band The Plastic People of the Universe. He later became involved in the Movement for Civil Liberties (HOS) and helped establish Civic Forum after the Velvet Revolution in 1989.

He left politics behind and returned to the countryside, where he lived in a rundown farmhouse with his brother, raised animals, worked as a bricklayer, and occasionally hosted small exhibitions and concerts.

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