59th KVIFF to Welcome Renowned Filmmakers

Traditionally, premieres in KVIFF’s Crystal Globe Competition are introduced by large delegations of the films’ creators. The world premiere of Out of Love will be presented by the film’s star, French actress Camille Cottin, whom audiences will recognize from the series Call My Agent! (2015) or the films Allied (2016, dir. Robert Zemeckis) and House of Gucci (2021, dir. Ridley Scott). Hungarian director Bence Fliegauf, winner of the Silver Bear at the Berlinale, will be on hand for the world premiere of his evocative cinematic vision Jimmy Jaguar. The international premiere of Rebuilding will be presented by Max Walker-Silverman, who returns to Karlovy Vary three years after coming to town with his feature film debut A Love Song, which was shown in the Horizons section in 2022.

The melancholic, touching, and funny The Love That Remains – a story of fading love and the dissolution of a marriage whose successful world premiere was at this year’s Cannes Film Festival – will be personally introduced by Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason. Mexican director Michel Franco returns to Karlovy Vary after just one year to present his provocative love story of a Mexican dancer and a successful American philanthropist, Dreams. The film, which stars Jessica Chastain in the role of the philanthropist, had its world premiere at this year’s Berlinale.

Mstyslav Chernov, winner of a Pulitzer Prize and an Oscar for his 20 Days in Mariupol, will be in town to present his latest documentary, 2000 Metres to Andriivka. Chernov’s radical film again rewrites the definition of war documentary. The historical drama Two Prosecutors, which had its world premiere in the main competition in Cannes, will be introduced by director Sergei Loznitsa in person.

American director, actor, and screenwriter Jay Duplass will accompany the screening of the comedy The Baltimorons. This melancholic yet humorous duet about a newly sober man who forms an unexpected bond with his dentist was an audience favorite at the SXSW festival. Paolo Genovese, known for directing original, intelligent, and exceptionally popular films such as Perfect Strangers and Superheroes, presents his latest undertaking – the romantic comedy Madly. Georgian director Dea Kulumbegashvili will introduce her second feature film, April. This uncompromising drama, which won the Special Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival, tells the story of a gynecologist who illegally helps village women terminate their pregnancies.

Argentinian actor Nahuel Pérez Biscayart was named Best Actor at the 2014 Karlovy Vary festival for his performance in All Yours (dir. David Lambert) and received a César Award for his role in 120 BPM (dir. Robin Campillo). This year, he returns with Kill the Jockey (dir. Luis Ortega). Italian actor Valerio Mastandrea is known to Karlovy Vary audiences thanks to his appearances in Viva la Liberta (2013, dir. Roberto Andò) and Piazza Fontana: The Italian Conspiracy (2012, dir. Marco Tullio Giordana). At this year’s festival, he will present Feeling Better, which he directed and in which he plays the main role.

Director Mark Jenkin, whose previous film Enys Men was a revelation at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, is coming to Karlovy Vary for the world premiere of his short film I Saw the Face of God in the Jet Wash, which is being shown in the festival’s Imagina section.