The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) may have lost a keyhead figure due to the death of May of the legendary Czech actor and longtime president of the Fest, Jiří Bartoška. But its leadership and its majority owner, Rockaway Arts, have promised to “preserve the values and the level of quality that its president has built over the years”.
Rockaway recently praised “the strong and stable team led by executive director Kryštof Mucha, saying:” The post of president will not be occupied and will remain devoted to Jiří Bartoška in Memoriam “.
Mucha, who joined the festival team in 1997 and is its executive director since 2004, has also become president of the board of directors of the KVIFF group. The artistic director Karel Osh and the production manager Petr Lontimer remain in the festival management team.
“For many years, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with Jiří Bartoška and see how he thought and where he took the festival,” said Mucha after his promotion. “I believe that, with Karel Och and Petr Lantimer, we will succeed in continuing his inheritance.”
Before the 59th edition of Kviff of this year, THR Cell with Mucha to discuss Bartoška’s inheritance, how the festival’s functions are now divided, his concentration on continuity with new accents, and more.
“M. Bartoška was the largest star in television and cinema in the 80s, then a very important figure for the revolution in 1989 [that led to the fall of communism in Czechoslovakia] And very well linked to people like Miloš Forman and others, ”says Mucha THR. The executive worked in close collaboration with the legendary actor and president of the festival from 2000, 2001 and even once Mucha became executive director in 2004.
“He focused on the positioning of the film festival in terms of Czech environment, to develop and bring sponsors to the festival, the support of the government and the city of Karlovy varies,” he explains. “He was the key person for all this. When he passed, I replaced him, but we said that we will no longer have the position of president of the festival. This is how he directed the film festival, and we estimated that it was the right position for him, because as president, he was such a big figure.”
This is why the festival organized a tribute to Bartoška this year, with the festival opening film We have to supervise! (A conversation with Jiří Bartoška in July 2021)As well as projections of an older film featuring The Legend, and an exhibition of large -scale photographs featuring. “It is a celebration of what this incredible person has achieved,” explains Mucha.
“It is not a single person, it is a team,” adds a lot of their working relationship with OCH and Liinmer. “We think that’s how it should be right now.”
How will Mucha the role at the festival change? “Jiří Bartoška was the one who represented the festival and met the stars and other guests of the festival, but also when the politicians came and important personalities in this country. He was very natural to this and spent time with them,” he noted. “This work will make all the difference for me. Karel and I will do more of these things together. For example, when we have a guest receive a prize, we will be those who give them back. ” Meanwhile, “Petr, as production director, will be with me at events for sponsors. So we will try to share these tasks between us. ”
The fact that Mucha and OCH attend major festivals, like Cannes and Sundance, also has key advantages. “Being there together means that we can make decisions immediately. And it’s great that you can ask the artistic director and the executive director to do these things together. ”
The evolution rather than the revolution is what Mucha sees for Kviff. Such an evolution is a recently unveiled adjustment of the party industry program, which adds a day this year, launching “a sharp accent on the co -production opportunities in Central Europe in a updated showcase format” entitled Kviff Central Stage, and the introduction of a serial incubator.
“Things change very quickly in this industry,” explains Mucha. “We previously had a work program in progress. Nowadays, it’s different because for the moment, each important project already has sales, and people know it. ”
The emphasis on the opportunities for co -production in the countries of Eastern and Central Europe, especially in Germany and Austria, seemed natural. “This is the territory where we think that we are a key player and that we want to focus on this. This is something that could really be beneficial for all of us.”
Television also plays an extended role this year, including the world premiere of the Serbian mini-series Absolut 100 In the Festival’s special projections section.
In addition, the media in central Europe (CME), which have television companies in central and eastern Europe, approached Kviff on a possible wider collaboration in the industry program. “So we talked about cinema and television and decided that it was the perfect time to start something new,” said Mucha.
The result is the new incubator of the pop-up series with five original ideas from the European series. “We are not going to change the focusing of the festival program on television,” said Mucha. “But if there is a quality film coming from television, we would be delighted to detect it. There are no limits for us. So, once again, it is natural. It is something new for the first time, and we hope that it will work and that it will have advantages. If these things work, perfect. We can then develop these things more.”
Overall, Mucha says that the Troika in charge of Kviff is experienced and ready to continue the inheritance of Bartoška while continuing to innovate.
Mucha said, “He was the one who was often standing and took care of the media and the public. We worked together and with him, but more behind him. But we have been an important part of the team for many years. So, if people still feel that the festival will be difficult to organize, I think we will remember too. be positively.
