53rd International Film Festival Rotterdam
25 January – 4 February 2024

Rotterdam, 9 January 2024

International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) presents a Talks programme at its 2024 edition that aims to provide fresh perspectives and profound insights into the world of filmmaking. The special guests confirmed in the lineup include Sandra Hüller (The Zone of Interest), Alexander Kluge (Cosmic Miniatures), Anne Fontaine (Boléro) and Marco Bellocchio (Rapito), as well as the filmmakers celebrated in Focus programmes at the festival and Grimm Vandekerckhove, the recipient of the 2024 Robby Müller Award. 

Several panel discussions will also take place during the RTM Day on Friday 26 January dedicated to local filmmaking at LantarenVenster. A range of industry tailored IFFR Pro Dialogues will take place during the IFFR Pro Days in the Pro Hub, exploring pressing and practical issues facing filmmakers and the industry. 

The festival also confirms its FIPRESCI, KNF, NETPAC and Big Screen Competition juries.

^{Clockwise: Sandra Hüller, Alexander Kluge, Anne Fontaine by Matias Indjic © Unifrance, Marco Bellocchio by Anna Camerlingo}       

Each edition, IFFR presents a Talks programme that aims to inspire – providing fresh perspectives and profound insights into the world of filmmaking. German actress Sandra Hüller will discuss her recent work, including on Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest (IFFR 2024 Limelight) and on the Palme d'Or-winning Anatomy of a Fall for which she won the European Film Award for Best Actress. 

French-Luxembourg filmmaker Anne Fontaine joins to discuss her career leading to her 19th feature Boléro which has its world premiere in the Limelight programme. At 91 years of age, Alexander Kluge is regarded as a trailblazing figure in New German Cinema and the avant-garde. He’ll discuss his latest film Cosmic Miniatures which has its world premiere at IFFR 2024, and his recent explorations into artificial intelligence.  

One of the most prominent directors in Italian cinematic history, Marco Bellocchio comes to IFFR, with his latest examination of Italian history Rapito screening at the festival. US filmmaker Billy Woodberry will discuss his career, including as a pioneering member of the LA Rebellion movement. Woodberry is a member of the Tiger Jury for 2024, and his latest film Mário, a biography of revolutionary pan-African independence figure Mário de Andrade, has its world premiere at the festival. 

Cartoonist, animator and filmmaker Bill Plympton will give a masterclass, sharing his insights as a veteran independent animator whose work has received an Academy Award nomination and a Prix Spécial du Jury at Cannes. His genre-bending new feature Slide screens at the festival.

A Talk will give the spotlight to Grimm Vandekerckhove to explore his approach towards cinematography as he receives the festival’s fifth annual Robby Müller Award, in honour of artists working behind the lens.

^{Billy Woodberry by Joana Linda & Bill Plympton} 

Each of IFFR’s retrospective Focus programmes shine the light on the careers of extraordinary filmmakers and visual artists, as well as special issues and topics in the world of cinema. Each will be the subject of an IFFR Talk. 

Hong Kong filmmaker Scud is celebrated in a Focus programme and Talk, whose tenth and final film Naked Nations – Tribe Hong Kong will world premiere at IFFR, marking the pinnacle of a provocative career. Scottish artist Rachel Maclean’s cute and sinister world will be the subject of a Talk with the artist, whose latest film and installation DUCK has its world premiere at the festival. Italian duo Manetti Bros. will discuss their wildly cinematic genre-defying world, and the radical, avant-garde Colectivo Los Ingrávidos from Tehuacán, Mexico will discuss their oeuvre which comprises more than 500 films over 12 years. 

A panel will gather to reflect on the Focus: Chile in the Heart programme on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the coup against the democratically elected government of Chile, commemorating the phenomenon of the Chilean cinema in exile that developed in its wake.

Check the full Talks programme here.

^{Scud & Rachel Maclean}

During the RTM Day on Friday 26 January, LantarenVenster will be packed with a programme dedicated to local filmmaking talent featuring film, installation, music and more. Three RTM Talks will be hosted. Unsung Heroes will highlight the lesser known roles on film sets; Reclaiming Narratives explores the imprint of coloniality on visual representations and attempts to decolonise them; and Being Both brings together filmmakers and artists working in both the art and film worlds. 

Check the full Talks programme here.

The festival’s professionals’ programme is hosted during the IFFR Pro Days, from Friday 26 January to Wednesday 31 January, during which the Pro Hub is open as the meeting point for filmmakers and professionals at the festival. The Pro Hub hosts the IFFR Pro Dialogues programme of industry panels that invite meaningful and practical reflection on the issues facing the film industry, with speakers including selected filmmakers, festival programmers and special guests.

Across daily panels, a major theme is giving filmmakers the knowledge and tools needed to understand and carve out a space for themselves and their work in the film landscape. 

Scholar, author and industry specialist Nadia Denton will moderate a panel hosted together with ACE Producers on Packing a Punch – producing with impact in fiction film, exploring strategies for creating positive social change via fiction filmmaking. Industry consultant Kathleen McInnis will moderate Beyond the Premiere, exploring strategies for independent films in marketing, distribution and exhibition.

Maya Cade from Black Film Archive will moderate a panel titled Found Feminism on reimagining archives through a feminist lens, and IFFR programmer Stefan Borsos will moderate the Genre Rules! panel on the circulation of genre films on the festival circuit. 

Read the Dialogues lineup here. 

The remaining jury members for IFFR 2024 are announced. The FIPRESCI jury is made of international film journalists from the Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique selected to award the FIPRESCI Award to their standout Tiger Competition title. In 2024 this is: Ela Bittencourt, Darta Cerina, Panagiotis Kotzathanasis, Antonios Lagarias and Ronald Rovers.

The NETPAC Award is awarded to the best Asian feature film by a jury from the Network for the Promotion of Asian Cinema. The jury in 2024 is Elena Larionova Haug, Donsaron Kovitvanitcha and Andreas Ungerböck. 

A jury from the Kring van Nederlandse Filmjournalisten (Circle of Dutch Film Journalists) selects their highlight from the Tiger Short Competition for the KNF award. For 2024 the jury is Ronald Glasbergen, Sebastiaan Khouw and Ard Vijn.

The VPRO Big Screen Award Jury for 2024 is announced, made of those selected from an open public call. Their names are: Samina Khan, Sylvie de Leeuwe, Lisa van der Loos,  Marcos Silva and Paul Wessels.  

Accredited guests can reserve their tickets from Thursday 11 January at 10.00, before the general sale for the public begins at 20.00 on Friday 12 January. 

Click here to see previous press releases. For press inquiries, media and interview requests, please reach out to the IFFR Press team at [email protected].

Applications for press and industry accreditation are still open and should be submitted as soon as possible. 

Click here for the film stills