{"id":46320,"date":"2025-07-29T15:00:57","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T13:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iffartfilm.com\/?p=46320"},"modified":"2025-08-01T11:47:11","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T09:47:11","slug":"iff-art-film-kosice-2025-the-team-behind-the-festival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iffartfilm.com\/en\/blog\/news\/2025\/07\/iff-art-film-kosice-2025-the-team-behind-the-festival\/","title":{"rendered":"IFF Art Film Ko\u0161ice 2025: The Team Behind the Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"

About a month ago, the final screenings of the festival lit up the cinemas in Ko\u0161ice. What followed was a period of counting and reflecting. This time is always peculiar for the organizing team\u2014on one hand, the intense stress finally fades, and the first hours and days post-festival are about readjusting to a more regular daily rhythm. On the other hand, there are still countless small and big tasks to wrap up: processing festival materials, preparing official documentation, and\u2014last but not least\u2014agreeing on the dates for the next edition.<\/em><\/p>\n

This year\u2019s festival stood out in many ways. We entered a new decade with a new honorary award\u2014the Milan Lasica Award\u2014and a new Blue Angel, presented by the FIPRESCI jury. For the first time, we also brought a piece of IFF Art Film to Bratislava just days after the festival wrapped up in Ko\u0161ice, screening selected films from the Colours, Flavors and Songs of India section at the Indian Film Festival.<\/em><\/p>\n

When we first saw the festival statistics earlier this week, they weren\u2019t just numbers to us. They represented your experiences, your emotions, your time\u2014and above all, unforgettable films, incredible side events, and guests who helped make this year\u2019s edition truly one-of-a-kind.<\/em><\/p>\n

Among all the data, one figure brought us the most joy: festival attendance rose by 10%. That\u2019s fantastic news for any festival, and it motivates us to think even more ambitiously about next year\u2014so we can keep that momentum going and continue delivering the very best: from cinema, from Ko\u0161ice, from the Ko\u0161ice region, from Slovakia, and from around the world. The same goes for our accompanying program.<\/em><\/p>\n

So what do the numbers say about this edition? We screened films in 7 cinemas, across 17 programming sections\u20143 of which were honorary, 3 competitive, and with a special selection curated by the FIPRESCI jury spanning three sections. In total, we presented 135 films, including 46 shorts and 89 feature-length titles. There were 33 Slovak or Czechoslovak films, and 3 feature films for children. Industry professionals gathered for 13 Art Film Industry events. The screenings were complemented by 54 additional side events.<\/em><\/p>\n

This year, IFF Art Film welcomed participants from 58 countries around the world.<\/em><\/p>\n

As always, there are two key numbers that define who we are. The 31st edition of IFF Art Film Ko\u0161ice was brought to life by more than 150 people\u2014one third of them volunteers. Once again, we received a heartfelt thank-you from project manager Lucia Han\u00fasek in our inboxes:<\/em><\/p>\n

“Dear colleagues and friends, I want to sincerely thank you for your tremendous work, dedication, and energy that you poured into preparing and realizing this year\u2019s IFF ART FILM. Thanks to you, we once again created a remarkable atmosphere in Ko\u0161ice\u2014an atmosphere that connects filmmakers, professionals, enthusiasts, and the general public. Every detail and every hour you invested helped ensure that the festival ran smoothly, with dignity, and an unforgettable spirit. We\u2019ve received a wave of positive feedback, and for that, I thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart. None of this would have been possible without you!”<\/em><\/p>\n

This year, we asked our guests to complete the sentence: \u201cI\u2019ll return to IFF Art Film next year because\u2026\u201d You\u2019ll find their answers\u2014and (almost) the entire festival team\u2014in the video attached.<\/em><\/p>\n