Karlovy Vary Film Festival 2025: Tribute to Jiří Bartoška and Powerful Messages from Award Winners

The recent passing of Czech acting legend Jiří Bartoška, aged 78, cast a long shadow over the latest edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival. Serving as festival president since 1994 and, alongside the late Eva Zaoralová, a chief architect of its renaissance, Bartoška was the subject of the opening night documentary We’ve Got to Frame It! (a conversation with Jiří Bartoška in July 2021), directed by Milan Kuchynka and Jakub Jurásek. Surprisingly, this year’s festival did not overly emphasize Bartoška’s legacy, possibly because a significant tribute was paid last year.

Bartoška also appeared in the festival’s trailer. Known for its irreverent style, the festival’s trailers often feature past winners playfully mocking or even destroying the Crystal Globe statuette. For the 59th edition, local star Bolek Polívka is seen in a dive bar, offering to share one of his two Crystal Globes with an unseen friend—revealed to be the empty chair honoring Bartoška.

The festival is also famous for its avant-garde interpretative dance performances. This year’s routine featured androgynous women in black, with striking use of white light and industrial techno music. The performance conveyed a Lynchian commentary on the troubled state of today’s world, leaving the interpretation open, as is customary at Karlovy Vary.

Among the special guests were Vicky Krieps and Peter Sarsgaard, both recipients of Crystal Globe awards. Krieps, candid about her unpreparedness, shared heartfelt words on the power of film festivals and cinema to transcend borders and deliver powerful messages without prejudice. She emphasized that movies offer a space to dream, cope, and connect, urging the audience to preserve cinema as a force of love, peace, and forgiveness.

Peter Sarsgaard followed with a thoughtful speech about the collective nature of filmmaking. He highlighted the importance of community support and reflected on current societal divisions in the United States—politics, gender, sexuality, race, and religion. Without naming specific issues, Sarsgaard emphasized that collective action is essential both in art and society. Quoting former Czech president Václav Havel, he reminded the audience that “one half of a room cannot remain forever warm while the other half is cold,” underscoring the need for unity.