2023 SFS Guests

Ivan Trojan

Visiting from July 29 to July 31

Ivan Trojan initially wanted to be a professional athlete, but, in the end, he decided to follow his father’s footsteps. He became famous only in the late 1990s (Dejvické Theatre, Cops and Robbers, Loners), but he quickly managed to work his way up among the best contemporary actors and is currently one of the most sought after representatives of modern acting. He has a great feeling for absurdity, subtle irony and self-irony. Ivan Trojan, who has won seven Czech Lion awards, is able to play even the most complex characters.

Lav Diaz

Visiting from July 28 to August 3

Lav Diaz graduated with an economics degree and later worked as a television scriptwriter, musician or a poet. He has been active in film since the late 1990s. He became a godfather of the Philippine New Wave, he is a major representative of slow cinema and one of the most progressive and most awarded art house filmmakers in the world. His black-and-white movies are famous for their extremely long runtimes, lengthy shots and a very specific pace, reflecting the nature of Philippine culture and society. The winner of the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion (for The Woman Who Left) will take us on a several-hours-long journey into the world of human souls and unique film imagery.

Rajko Grlić

Visiting from July 28 to July 30

Rajko Grlić studied film direction at FAMU. He is one of the (former)Yugoslav filmmakers linked to Czech culture (together with Goran Paskaljević, Goran Marković and others). His films focus on the specifics of life in the former Yugoslav countries and, in his tragic comedies and war dramas, Grlić often works with the top Yugoslav actors, such as Miki Manojlović. The Summer Film School selection will offer his reflection on the Yugoslav partisan cult, Schweikian perspective of the Yugoslav army or one fairy-tale variation.

Miloslav Luther

Visiting from July 31 to August 2

After having graduated from FAMU, Miloslav Luther returned back to Slovakia to work for the News Services Bratislava and later for Czechoslovak Television. He made his first live-action film several years later. The Summer Film School will showcase four films that reflect his unique style. Luther’s films are often literary adaptations of Slovak, Czech or world novels. He aptly depicts various historic moments into which he imprints his key topic of fighting with (super)powers.

Fernando Guzzoni

Visiting from July 30 to August 2

Fernando Guzzoni is one of the most distinct personalities of Chilean cinema and a director whose films premiere at the world’s biggest film festivals. He made three feature-length films and won awards in Venice and San Sebastian. Guzzoni’s films explore the dark sides of human souls and Chilean history.

Tibor Bánóczki & Sarolta Szabó

Visiting from August 1 to August 3

Szabó and Bánóczki is a Hungarian directorial duo making animated movies. They both graduated from the Budapest Art School, studied in the UK and then moved to France where they made two short animated films, The Conquerors and Leftover, that were later screened at Sundance. White Plastic Sky is their animated feature debut.

Anna Jadowska

Visiting from July 29 to July 31

Anna Jadowska is one of the most renowned Polish film directors. She studied at Wrocław University and also at Film School in Łódź. In 2009, she directed the war drama General: Zamach na Gibraltarze, however, her remaining films centre around strong female characters and they are also made by women. Some of them will be screened at the Summer Film School.

Riet de Prins

Visiting from July 29 to July 30

Belgian screenwriter and producer Riet De Prins used to work for the Belgian public television which produced over 300 different programmes and was fully responsible for the audiovisual content of the VRTMAX online platform. Right now she is a freelance coordinator of the TV Fiction section at the television and radio festival Prix Europa. Riet de Prins takes keen interest in sustainable filmmaking and follows this approach in her own production.

Monika Masłoń

Visiting from July 30 to August 1

Monika Masłoń is a visual artist and an art teacher. She is a lecturer at Maria Grzegorzewska University and the University of Leipzig where she also received her doctor’s degree. She is the author of the VR film Control Negative, which will be screened in this year’s VR section, and she will also take part in our Expert Programme.