British actor Clive Owen will also receive the KVIFF President’s Award. While the actor is probably best known for his roles in Alfonso Cuarón post-apocalyptic dystopian masterpiece “Children of Men,” Spike Lee’s intense caper “Inside Man,” and the bloody action flick “Shoot ‘Em Up”—he will be furthered honored by the festival with a 20th anniversary screening of Mike Nichols’ “Closer.” The final recipient of the KVIFF President’s Award will be actor Daniel Brühl. From his breakout role in “Good bye Lenin!” to his chilling turn in “Inglorious Basterds,” his SAG-nominated role as Niki Lauder in Ron Howard’s racing film “Rush,” and his work in “All Quiet on the Western Front,” a film he executive produced, Brühl has played urbane villains and unlikable characters with uncommon force. As part of their celebration of Brühl, the festival will screen his directorial debut “Next Door.”
Other renowned guests coming to the festival include director Nicole Holofcener (“You Hurt My Feelings), Michel Franco (“Memory”), Juho Kuosmanen (“Compartment Number 6”), Sergei Loznitsa (“Donbass”), Rúnar Rúnarsson (“When the Light Breaks”), Daniele Luchetti (“Trust”), and Ti West (“MaXXXine”). Franco will also serve as a mentor to participants of this year’s Future Frames program.
In addition to KVIFF’s previously announced Franz Kafka retrospective—where films inspired by the author will screen—director Steven Soderbergh will be in attendance to present two of his films (“Kafka” and “Mr. Kneff”) that are part of the retrospective. Soderbergh originally released “Kafka,” filmed in Prague in 1991. Thirty years later he took the footage from that film, re-tooled it, and re-released it as “Mr. Kneff.” Seeing the two films together, with his insight, will be an incredibly rare experience.
The star of this year’s festival trailer, an annual tradition, wherein a former festival honoree films a short skit will be Benicio Del Toro. He received the KVIFF President’s Award in 2022.
Other potential highlights to this year’s festival include the World Premiere of Mark Cousins’ latest film “A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things,” a Crystal Globe competition stacked with 15 debut features, a plethora of buzzy titles from Cannes: “All We Imagine as Light,” “Grand Tour,” “Viet and Nam”—Berlin and Sundance.
For more information, visit the official site of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
