26/06/2024 - Karlovy Vary’s industry platform will welcome a diverse variety of 39 projects hailing from countries across Europe, the Middle East and Japan

As the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) gears up for its 2024 edition (see the news), the festival’s KVIFF Eastern Promises industry platform (30 June-3 July) has revealed this year’s selection of 36 film projects and three series, each at various stages of development, production or post-production. The programme kicks off with KVIFF Talents on Sunday 30 June, showcasing Czech and Slovak filmmakers with feature-film treatments and series projects seeking co-production partners. Following this, Monday 1 July will see the presentation of the Works in Development – Feature Launch and Intensive Queer, highlighting projects nurtured through the MIDPOINT Feature Launch programme. Monday afternoon will bring the Works in Progress session, featuring fiction and documentary films from Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the former Soviet Union, the Middle East, and North Africa. On Tuesday 2 July, First Cut+ Works in Progress will present eight feature films in post-production, part of a programme designed to enhance the marketability of projects previously supported by First Cut Lab (see the news).

The projects in the Work in Progress selection delve into topics such as cultural and social identity, personal and familial relationships, historical and political contexts, and gender and identity issues. Notable themes include the exploration of psychological and emotional depth, environmental and existential concerns, and the use of documentary realism. Projects like Rezan Yesilbas’ Amedspor and Suiumkan Sulaimanova’s A Hunter Girl address ethnic tensions and gender norms, while M Siam’s My Father's Scent and Vladimir Tagic’s Yugo Florida break down complex family dynamics. The line-up also includes the upcoming project by Kazakh auteur Adilkhan Yerzhanov, Moor [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], a gripping tale of redemption and responsibility, where ex-soldier Beibars, nicknamed Moor, must navigate a perilous path to settle his vanished brother's debts and protect his family, set against a backdrop of despotism and violence that only love can transcend. Meanwhile, Virtual Girlfriends by Barbora Chalupová, the co-director of the box office-dominating documentary Caught in the Net [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (see the news), offers a timely exploration of intimacy and identity in the digital age, following the life of an OnlyFans content creator and the impact of her online persona on her personal relationships. Furthermore, Martina Buchelová’s Lover, Not a Fighter (see the news) will also be featured.

The Works in Development – Feature Launch selection includes Rozálie Kohoutová's Antonie, which explores the unconventional journey of a father taking paternity leave in a society where this is frowned upon, blending comedy and drama to challenge social norms. Michał Edelman's Anxiety of the Heart delves into the turbulent inner world of a teenager grappling with self-harm and the quest for human connection amidst a coming-of-age romance. Ieva Norvele's The Art of Biting Your Tongue examines intergenerational trauma and manipulation through the lens of a Latvian folk-dance artist returning to her roots.

KVIFF Talents will hold its second edition, aimed at identifying and nurturing creative talents from the Czech Republic and Slovakia. This year-long programme supports the development of original and internationally ambitious audiovisual projects, ranging from features to various innovative formats such as series, animations and podcasts. The selected creators will present their works in progress, offering potential co-production partners a glimpse into projects like the eagerly awaited feature debut by award-winning animator Diana Cam Van Nguyen, the coming-of-age romantic drama Inbetween Worlds; the Ukrainian wartime love story Letters to the Future by Myro Klochko; and the series Casting by Terézia Halamová, revealing the mechanisms of subtle manipulation and exploitation in the porn industry.

The full list of projects set to be presented is as follows:

Works in Progress

A Hunter Girl - Suiumkan Sulaimanova (Kyrgyzstan)
Producers: Suiumkan Sulaimanova, Zhumanazar Koichubekov (Creative Center)

Amedspor - Rezan Yesilbas (Turkey)
Producer: Ahmet Gurata (Rezfilm)

Baltic UXO - Agne Dovydaityte, Alexander Belinski (Lithuania/Germany/Latvia)
Producer: Dagne Vildziunaite (Just a Moment)

In This Darkness I See You - Nadim Tabet (Lebanon/Qatar/France)
Producers: Georges Schoucair, Antoine Waked, Eli Souaiby, Arnaud Domerc (Abbout Productions)

Lover, Not a Fighter - Martina Buchelová (Slovakia/Czech Republic)
Producers: Michaela Kaliská, Erika Paulinská, Julie Marková Žáčková (NINJA Film)

Mommy Blue - Bernadette Mayer (Hungary)
Producers: Genovéva Petrovits, Kristóf Sólyom, Oskó-Szabó Csaba, Zsuzsi Gyurin (Kino Alfa)

Moor [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Adilkhan Yerzhanov (Kazakhstan/France)
Producers: Armanzhan Baitassov, Olga Khlasheva, Yermek Utegenov, Guillaume de Seille (Short Brothers, Arizona Films)

My Father's Scent - M Siam (Egypt/France/Norway/Sweden/Qatar)
Producers: M Siam, Mohamed Hefzy, Guillaume de Seille, Ingrid Lil Hogtun (ArtKhana, Film Clinic, Arizona Films)

Sandbag Dam [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Čejen Černić Čanak
film profile] - Čejen Černić Čanak (Croatia/Lithuania/Serbia/Slovenia/North Macedonia)
Producer: Ankica Jurić Tilić (Kinorama)

Smaragda – I Got Thick Skin and I Can't Jump [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Emilios Avraam (Cyprus)
Producer: Tonia Mishiali (Bark Like A Cat Films)

Virtual Girlfriends - Barbora Chalupová (Czech Republic/Slovakia)
Producer: Pavla Klimešová (Helium Film)

Yugo Florida - Vladimir Tagić (Serbia/Bulgaria/Croatia/Montenegro)
Producer: Marija Stojanovic (Sense Production)

Works in Development – Feature Launch

Antonie - Rozálie Kohoutová (Czech Republic)
Producers: Martina Knoblochová, Martin Hůlovec (Punk Film)

Anxiety of the Heart - Michał Edelman (Poland)
Producer: Patryk Sielecki (Lumisenta Film Foundation)

The Art of Biting Your Tongue - Ieva Norvele (Latvia)
Producer: Aija Berzina (Tasse Film)

Eli and Them - Petr Pylypčuk (Czech Republic)
Producer: Kryštof Burda (Perfilm)

Grammatik - Popo Fan (Germany)
Producer: Julia Cöllen (Fünferfilm)

Horses - Jernej Kastelec (Slovenia)
Producer: Ida Weiss (Bela Film)

Klára Is Here - Dávid Csicskár (Hungary)
Producer: Balázs Zachar (Proton Cinema)

Pushback - Bojan Radanović (Croatia)
Producer: Sabina Krešić (MEHANA)

Sunbruise - Stavros Markoulakis (Greece)
Producer: Ioanna Bolomyti (Atalante Productions)

Works in Development – Intensive Queer

Berlin-Budapest - Viktoria Vay (Germany)
Producer: Gabriele Simon (Flare Film)

Euro Pop Bubble - Grant Gulczynski (UK)
Producer: Harry Silverlock (Crystal Compass)

The Face of a Woman - Lukáš Vízner (Slovakia)
Producer: Ester Víznerová (EMEDI productions)

Girls in Uniform - Justina Jürgensen (Germany)
Producer: Melissa Byrne (NORDPOLARIS)

KVIFF Talents

Casting - Terézia Halamová (Czech Republic)
Producer: Natália Pavlove (Other Stories)

Inbetween Worlds - Diana Cam Van Nguyen (Czech Republic/Slovakia)
Producers: Karolína Davidová (13ka sro), Jakub Viktorín (nutprodukcia)

Into the Endless Unknowns - Veronika Jelšíková, Petr Vlček (Czech Republic)
Producers: Veronika Jelšíková, Petr Vlček

Letters to the Future - Myro Klochko (Czech Republic)
Producers: Marek Čermák, Karolína Fránková (Films & Chips)

Rusalka - Hana Neničková (Czech Republic)
Producer: TBA

Spectrum - Igor Smitka (Czech Republic)
Producers: Klára Mamojková, Wanda Kaprálová (CLAW Films), Matej Sotník (Guča Films)

First Cut+

Blood of My Blood - Rafaela Camelo (Brazil/Chile/France)
Producer: Daniela Marinho (Moveo Filmes), Pinda Producciones

Idyllic [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Aaron Rookus (Netherlands/Belgium/Estonia)
Producers: Layla Meijman, Maarten van der Ven (Studio Ruba)

Mayflies - Emília Goldberg (Hungary/Slovakia)
Producers: Ferenc Pusztai, Linda Pfeiffer (KMH Film)

My Boyfriend the Fascist - Matthias Lintner (Italy)
Producers: Martin Rattini, Daria Akimenko, Matthias Lintner (Helios Sustainable Films)

Numakage Public Swimming Pool - Shingo Ota (Japan)
Producer: Kyoko Takenaka (Hydroblast)

The Origin of the World - Borbála Nagy (Hungary/Germany/France)
Producers: Petra Iványi, Margarita Amineva-Jester, Julie Paratian, Daria Wichmann (Lupa Pictures, Voices Films, Sister Productions, DFFB)

The Silent Treatment - Caroline Strubbe (Belgium/Hungary/Netherlands)
Producers: Tomas Leyers (Minds Meet), Volya Films

Wheels of Forgotten Dreams - Miloš Ljubomirović, Danilo Lazović (Serbia/Bulgaria/Croatia)
Producers: Miloš Ljubomirović, Danilo Lazović (Servia Film)