After sitting out 2020 and hosting last year’s showing at a later-than-usual date and with a slightly smaller scale, the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the Czech Republic city kicked off this year’s full-throttle 56th edition with a fiery cocktail of pop and politics that carried through to the next day.
Friday night’s opening ceremony neatly set the scene, marrying ebullience and elegy as dancers from the Cabani troupe writhed around literal fireballs onstage before festival president Jiří Bartoška struck more somber tones as he reflected on the recent loss of longtime festival matriarch Eva Zaoralova and on the ever-continuing conflict in Ukraine.
Opening film: Moving towards the poppier end of the spectrum “Superheroes” launched this year’s edition with a dose of operatic Italian emotion.
Paolo Genovese directed the film and Jasmine Trinca led it.“The Best of Youth”) and Alessandro Borghi (“Suburra”The marital drama follows a Milanese couple, in sickness and health. This weaves together two decades of milestones to create a non-linear tapestry. The film jumps backwards and forths in time and uses a heavy hand for a soapy collage that depicts fights and reconciliations. It also lacquer idyllic locations with a pop soundtrack to push emotions along. It is.bombastico.
This was, in all aspects, a huge night. Once the film let out, the thousand-strong crowd gathered outside Karlovy Vary’s main site for a free show that featured Czech band MIG 21, a 60-piece orchestra, 20 choir singers and two rather saucy dancers, and that concluded – as only such a statement could – with a fireworks display. It was obvious that this festival was back.
The pomp was replaced by circumstance on the following day, especially when actor Liev Scheiber took to the stage. Although the “Ray Donovan” star will sit for an hour-long career retrospective in the days to come, on Saturday he wanted to redirect the festival’s spotlight towards more wrenching and immediate concerns. “We value celebrity in our culture,”The actor spoke at a press conference dedicated to the newly launched initiativeBlueCheck Ukraine. “And if that celebrity could be channeled to something useful, that’s a good thing.”
In fact, Schreiber took a reflective tone during his 45-minute press conference. He reflected on his Ukrainian heritage and the role that his star status could play in humanitarian support.
“I’m very tired of seeing in the media anchors and talking heads perpetuating this news cycle of us feeding (the Ukrainian people’s) fear and suffering,”Schreiber stated. “While there is probably a great story (to tell), we’re in it and the time for telling it is not right now.”
“It feels too acute to tell stories,”He continued. “And besides, I’m too tall to play Zelensky.”
Named for that social media seal of authenticity, Schreiber’s BlueCheck initiative instead looks to act as an intermediary, connecting international donors with thoroughly vetted humanitarian aid projects already operating in Ukraine. The idea is to offer targeted support to local organizations that are – intrinsically and by definition — more nimble and reactive than other sprawling global bureaucracies.
“What we need is a moving target,” Schreiber explained. “One minute that might be food, another day that might be shelter, another day that might be medical aid, or trauma care, or mental health. To do this effectively you can’t just find one NGO; right now we have a dozen, and you want to keep that portfolio as diverse as possible in order to invest in what comes up.”
“The most motivated and most effective people on the ground are Ukrainians,”Schreiber stated. “So rather than giving your money to international charities, we want to find a way to get inside, to help the people who are helping themselves.”
With that, America’s star emerged from the spotlight.