Karlovy Vary To Host Iranian Cinema Retrospective And Expand Future Frames Program With UTA & Range Media Partnership

Zac Ntim
·2 min read

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) has shared details about its forthcoming 57th edition, which runs from June 30 – July 8.

Among the highlights announced today, the festival will host two large-scale retrospective programs. The first, a celebration of independent Iranian cinema, will feature works by nine Iranian filmmakers who the festival said represent “a spiritual connection to the previous generations of their country’s greats, tackle the current reality with a remarkable sensitivity and great inventiveness.”

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“Together, these nine unique and intensely personal testimonies form a multi-dimensional mosaic that reflects the collective spirit and openness of Iran’s young cinema of today,” the festival added.”

The selection of films will include The Skin (Bahram Ark, Bahman Ark, 2020), K9 (Vahid Vakilifar, 2020), and Dream’s Gate (Negin Ahmad, 2023).

The second retrospective will celebrate the work of Japanese filmmaker Yasuzo Masumura, a little-seen but towering figure of Japan’s New Wave. The screening program will include the festival premiere of the 4K restoration of Masumura’s The Red Angel (1966).

On the industry side, Karlovy Vary has set an expansion of its Future Frames program for emerging European filmmakers. Traditionally, the program sees ten film students and graduates selected to showcase their short and medium-length films to the festival audience. The filmmakers also participate in tailored mentorship programs. This year, the program will be run in collaboration with UTA, Range Media Partners, and global lottery operator, Allwyn.

Participants will receive one-on-one meetings with UTA and Range Media representatives, who will provide feedback on the projects and choose one director who will receive a scholarship — sponsored by Allwyn — to spend a month in Los Angeles. A new creative and networking area, titled the Allwyn Future Frames Lounge, will be erected at the Thermal Hotel festival center. The Future Frames program will run from July 2 — July 5.

Elsewhere, KVIFF will fete Czech actress Daniela Kolářová with its President’s Award alongside a screening of her 1976 comedy Ball Lightning. The festival has also shared the official artwork for this year’s edition. Check it out below.

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