Having little knowledge about film festivals prior to viewing Film Spa, the film’s exploration of festival culture broadened my understanding of the social factors surrounding these events and the logistics of organising them.
I understood film festivals as being a series of screenings, but they’re capable of being so much more than that, as film festivals dating back to post-WW2 were quite extravagant. The documentary’s exploration of the first film festival following the second World War in July of 1946, KVIFF (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival), exceeded my expectations of how a film festival can operate.
Hosting an international film festival with large international reception leads to questions surrounding size, which Film Spa explored as there were plans to make the venue(s) bigger each year. I don’t think our festival will require accommodation and swimming pools, but even so, “size is an important element of distinction” (Valck, 2016). The spaces we use, and their size may influence the turn-out for the festival, as using a large space may help create a sense of grandeur and invite larger audiences. Then again, bigger isn’t always better, and using cosier venues might create a warmer atmosphere if that’s the route we wish to take.
While film festivals often exude “a feeling of glamour, celebration, happening and community” (Valck, 2016), it was interesting to learn that these events weren’t always glamorous, being heavily influenced by the political environment of the time. Due to Soviet powers in Czechoslovakia, censorship was a large element of KVIFF, and it wasn’t until the 1960s that the festival program eased its restrictions, even featuring erotic film. I hadn’t really grasped the political influence of film within the Cold War era and was amazed to see how powerful film as a medium was in challenging censorship and totalitarian rhetoric. Czechoslovak filmmakers rebelled in response to the censorship, sparking the Czech New Wave movement, which is recognised for being radical in film form. Of course, being under totalitarian power these films were banned, but the rebellion is very admirable.
As noted in the film, KVIFF offered the public “a chance to see what was going in the world”, and still does today. I was surprised to see the number of international filmmakers that were a part of the festival in its early editions, given the restrictions under the regime. The ability for KVIFF to make a name for itself so early on is incredible, and I’d love to attend at some stage, being a brilliant place for film students and scholars to network. People would attend KVIFF to see films that were otherwise unavailable to them, just as people do today, and perhaps that’s what makes these events so special.
References
Marijke de Valck, “Introduction: What is a film festival? How to study festivals and why you shouldLinks to an external site.” in Marijke de Valck, Brendan Kredell and Skadi Loist (eds), Film Festivals: History, Theory, Method, Practice, Routledge, New York, 2016, pp. 1-11.
Miroslav Janek (director) (2015) Film Spa [documentary], Evolution Films, Czech Republic.