The International Competition of Feature Films has established itself as the flagship of Art Film Fest’s programme. At the festival’s upcoming 19th edition, held from June 17 to 25 in Trenčianske Teplice and Trenčín, the competition will feature the works of fifteen talented filmmakers from around the world, including Slovakia, vying for the four Blue Angels: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress.
The winners will be selected by a five-member international jury, chaired by legendary Slovak director, screenwriter, cinematographer and designer Juraj Jakubisko, whose filmography encompasses cult classics such as “The Prime of Life” (Kristove roky), “Infidelity, Slovak Style” (Nevera po slovensky), “Lady Winter” (Perinbaba), “Sitting on a Branch, Enjoying Myself” (Sedím na konári a je mi dobre) and "Bathory", the most successful film in Slovakia’s history as an independent country. His lifetime achievement earned him Art Film Fest’s Golden Camera Award in 2002.
Jakubisko will be joined on the jury by film professionals from various corners of the film world.
With his feature debut "Lebanon", Israeli director Samuel Maoz won the Blue Angel for Best Director at last year’s Art Film Fest. Drawing from Maoz’s own experiences as a soldier in the Lebanon War, the film also received the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion for Best Film and the Prix FIPRESCI at the European Film Awards.
Mexican Oscar-winning production designer Eugenio Caballero has worked on numerous world-famous, award-winning projects, films such as "Pan’s Labyrinth", which earned him an Academy Award, and Jim Jarmusch’s "The Limits of Control". He is also a member of the Oscar-selecting Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
Currently Senior Programmer for the Palm Springs International Film Festival, US film curator Alissa Simon has served on international juries at film festivals such as Karlovy Vary, Montreal, San Francisco, Amsterdam and Belgrade. She also writes about films and film festivals for the trade paper Variety.
The jury line-up is rounded off by Croatian cinematographer Živko Zalar, graduate of the Prague Academy of Performing Arts’ Film and TV School (FAMU) and recipient of multiple Croatian Golden Arena awards for best cinematography. After working with numerous distinguished Yugoslavian directors, he moved to Germany in the 1990s, where he has continued to work on dozens of television films and series, as well as international feature film co-productions.
The International Competition of Short Films is among Art Film Fest’s most varied components. The section’s appeal lies in its diverse selection, featuring forty-four new releases from around the world. The winner of the competition’s Blue Angel for Best Short Film is chosen by a three-member international jury.
Juror Mária Ferenčuhová is a lecturer at the Bratislava School of Performing Arts’ Film and Television Faculty, as well as an author of poetry collections and scholarly monographs on film.
Jukka-Pekka Laakso is the festival director and president of the board of directors at the Tampere Film Festival. Laakso has also worked as a film critic and chairman of the National Council for Cinema. He is a member of the European Film Academy.
Italian filmmaker Gaia Meucci has worked in the cinema industry in various capacities, from animation and production to organization and programming of film festivals. In 2009 and 2010 she was the short film programmer of the Edinburgh International Film Festival.
Art Film Fest 2011 – the 19th Trenčianske Teplice/Trenčín International Film Festival is made possible by the financial support of the Audiovisual Fund.
Organizers: ART FILM, n.o., FORZA, a.s.
Co-organizers: The Town of Trenčianske Teplice, Trenčianske Teplice Health Spa
General Sponsors: Omnia Holding SE, AquaCity Poprad
Main Sponsors: Tatra banka, Slovnaft, VUJE, OHL ŽS
Official Transport Provider: Lancia
Logistics Sponsor: DHL
Free student cinepasses provided by: Prvá stavebná sporiteľňa (First Housing-Construction Savings Bank)
Sponsors: TIPOS, Ernst & Young, AVI studio, Penzión Baske, Cinemax, Santovka
Official Suppliers: Pilsner Urquell, HUBERT J.E., Hotel Pax – the festival spa hotel, A Briliant, Philips, Esterle&Esterle, MF team, LampART, Lenovo, Stredná odborná škola polygrafická (Vocational School of Printing)
Main Media Sponsors: Slovenská televízia, televízia JOJ, Rádio FM, Pravda,
Media Sponsors: Central Europe Television, Kino CS, Muzika CS, Doku CS, Rádio Europa 2, Rádio Hit FM, .týždeň, Eurotelevízia, Pardon, OK!, Kinečko, Kam do mesta, Focus, Boomerang Media, SITA, moviemania.sk, BlueSky, Televízia Trenčianske Teplice, Film New Europe, euroAWK, Willmark
Partners: The City of Trenčín, the Trenčín Self-governing Region, the Embassy of Israel in Slovakia, the European Commission Representation in Slovakia, the Embassy of the USA in Bratislava, the Office of the Embassy of Sweden in Bratislava, Sodec Quebec, the Slovak Film Institute, Cinecitta, the Italian Cultural Institute in Bratislava, Omnia, RONA, Celtima SK, jazykovepobyty.sk, Hotel Flóra, versity
