Lukáš Houdek: I am Different (How to Survive Healthy)
About this event
The evening "I am Different" focuses on the mental health of people who live outside the majority norm. It opens up topics of identity, acceptance, safety, and the relationship to one's own body, as well as experiences with prejudice, stigmatization, and isolation.
The evening's guide, journalist Lukáš Houdek, will offer a personal and professional perspective on living as a minority and on how to talk to young people about sensitive topics without sensationalism or simplification. The discussion will touch on the difference between the natural search for identity and a real mental health crisis, and the role of family, school, and society in creating a safe environment. The evening is intended for parents, educators, young people, and everyone who wants to better understand the world of others and be a support system.
Lukáš Houdek is a Czech documentarian, photographer, activist, Romani studies scholar, and journalist. He studied Romani studies at the Faculty of Arts of Charles University. He began photography during study trips to Slovakia and other countries. He has been actively taking photographs since 2005. Since 2014, he has been involved as a coordinator in the HateFree Culture project. In his journalistic and documentary work, Houdek focuses primarily on topics related to physicality and intimacy. For Czech Radio Wave, he prepared the podcast series "Hrana" (Edge) about male body image, which he followed with the series "Kult" (Cult) about the body experience of gay men. In 2025, he published a collection of interviews about pedophilia titled "Mlčení" (Silence).
The "How to Survive Healthy" lecture series is dramaturgically and production-wise supported by the organization FOKUS Turnov, z. s., a non-governmental non-profit organization that has been supporting people with mental illness and mental disabilities on their journey to recovery and a full life in the community for over thirty years. In addition to providing social services, it has long been dedicated to awareness and destigmatization of mental health. By participating in this lecture series, FOKUS aims to open up topics that the public is often reluctant to talk about, contribute to greater understanding and breaking down prejudices, and strengthen open discussion about mental health in society. The subtitle of the series is therefore the motto: A series of lectures about illness, disability, addiction, and living with them.
Admission:
In advance: 180 CZK
At the door: 250 CZK
