Premieres of Kim Ki-duk’s new film and others starring Cassel or Oyelowo at the KVIFF

Audiences at the 50th KVIFF will be the first in the world to see the new film by well-known Korean director Kim Ki-duk Stop. Other world, international or European premieres in the out-of-competition sections will include the latest work of Julien Temple, or films awarded at Sundance film festival.

The KVIFF will hold the international premiere of the raw and extraordinarily atmospheric feature-length debut The Witch, which was first shown at Sundance this year where it garnered a great deal of attention as well as the prize for best director, American Robert Eggers. The feature-film debut of Australian talent Ariel Kleiman, Partisan was also included in the competition at this year’s Sundance, where it took the prize for best cinematography. In addition to introducing Jeremy Chabriel, the film, which has its European premiere at the KVIFF, also features the well-known Vincent Cassel.

Stop, the latest film by Kim Ki-duk, will be shown in its world premiere. It follows a young couple poisoned by radiation during the Fukushima nuclear disaster as they decide whether or not to have an abortion. Another two Korean films are presented as international premieres. A dark and even somewhat enigmatic film by Kim Hee-jung Snow Paths looks at an alcoholic undergoing treatment in an isolated convent. The Treacherous, by director Min Kyu-dong, is visually opulent, epic story of a twisted ruler and his heartless search for the mother of his heir.

The KVIFF Midnight Screenings section will include the world premiere of the feature-length debut The Greedy Tiffany by distinctly talented Czech director Andy Fehu. This unconventional parable about a ne'er-do-well and his pursuit of treasure takes an uncompromising look at where unchecked boorishness can lead. Norwegian Bobbie Peers debuted on the field of feature film with The Disappearing Illusionist, the story of an illusionist who gets involved in a small town’s search for a lost girl who he sees in dreams. The mystery-tinged film starring German star August Diehl in the main role will see its international premiere at the KVIFF.

Another star performer is the boast of HBO’s film Nightingale. David Oyelowo, renowned for his role as Martin Luther King in the Oscar-winning drama Selma, received the Critics’ Choice this year for his portrayal of a silver-tongued hero with a strict mother and attacks of claustrophobia. KVIFF will hold the European premiere of the work of British director Elliott Lester.

The latest piece by well-known British director Julien Temple was selected by Variety critics for the Karlovy Vary programme, where it will have its European premiere. Like many of Temple’s other films, The Ecstasy of Wilko Johnson is about music – specifically legendary rock guitarist Wilko Johnson and his life-affirming response to the news that he has an inoperable pancreatic tumour.

Music coupled with a powerful personal perspective can also be found in the Greek documentary My Friend Larry Gus. In it, Vasilis Katsoupis follows his close, temperamental friend. The playful probe into the soul of an eternal child will be seen by KVIFF audience in its world premiere. The next world premiere among out-of-competition documentaries is also a filmmaker’s profile of someone very close to him. In Through the Eyes of the Photographer, director Matej Mináč who, among other accolades won the Audience Award at the 2011 KVIFF with Nicky's Family, reveals the personal and professional life of his mother, the respected Slovak photographer Zuzana Mináčová, the long-time colleague of the Karlovy Vary IFF.

In addition to the closing film Sleeping with Other People, the Indian hit Umrika and the poker road movie Mississippi Grind, this year’s out-of-competition (namely international) premieres will also include two short films from the Imagina section. In the video to the musical piece A Purpose by psychedelic duo Father Murphy, animator Luca Dipierro deals unconventionally with the act of crucifixion. Vanishing Circuit, the graduate film of Shunsuke Hasegawa, was inspired by the legendary film La Jetée and won the competition in Tokyo’s prestigious Image Forum.