An actor in his own right, Noah Segan seems to have a knack for assembling a great cast. His second feature film as a director stars John Turturro as the titular small-time crook, surrounded by iconic names such as his personal buddy Steve Buscemi, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Giancarlo Esposito. The rising star among them is Will Price, who recently worked with Luca Guadagnino and in Scarlett Johansson's directing debut. After debuting The Only Living Pickpocket in New York at Sundance, Segan and Price are now at Karlovy Vary, where their old-school crime drama is screening in the Horizons section. At the spa resort's most classic hotel, the two spoke with Lidanoir about making a classic New York film, director-actors and actor films, and being pickpocketed by John Turturro.

The big double anniversary of Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, celebrating 60 editions and 80 years, is also a jubilee for its longtime artistic director Karel Och. Starting out in 2001 as a programmer, he has been with the festival for 25 years, boosting its star power and prestige while aiming to stay true to its traditions. Halfway through the 10-day event, Karel Och found some time for an interview with Lidanoir, talking about the festival's historic consciousness, why there are no initiatives to increase diversity, inviting controversial personalities, and his hopes for the future.

In The Story of Film, Mark Cousins already undertook the mammoth project of capturing over a century of film history in a documentary collage spanning more than 18 hours. Some 15 years later, the Irish filmmaker is ready to deliver the next chapter. Premiering earlier this year at Sundance, The Story of Documentary Film undertakes the equally immense feat of encompassing decades of non-fiction film in one 16-hours-long chronicle. The latter is now screening at Karlovy Vary where Mark Cousins sat down for an interview with Lidanoir, talking his passion for cinema, tackling a project of such scale, and which works changed his own perspective.

First, Visar Morina's harsh drama of a family's social decline and the false promises of economic advancement won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, where it premiered in February in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition. Then, as a little add-on just a few weeks ago, Shame and Money won Best International Feature in Munich's CineMasters Competition. Now his third feature is screening at Karlovy Vary's Horizons section. On site at the busy festival hub, the Kosovan director talks with Lidanoir about how his biographical background is connected to the story, why the festival has a special place in his heart, and how his class experiences changed with fame.

With his first feature film, Ramzi Bashour landed a spot right in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at Sundance's final Park City edition. In Hot Water, the director, screenwriter, and musician born in Saudi Arabia and raised in Lebanon and the US explores the complicated relationship between a young adult son from Indiana and his Lebanese mother. On site at Karlovy Vary where his humorous drama screens in the Horizons section for international festival highlights, Ramzi Bashour spoke with Lidanoir about his personal connection to the story, his own mother's reaction to it, and creating a soundtrack like a mixtape made for long car trips.

William Friedkin, George A. Romero, Tobe Hooper: For the dark side of cinema, Alexandre O. Philippe always had his own fascination. In his canon of film favorites, Vertigo has its own special place, just like the legendary actress who played its mysterious main character. In Kim Novak's Vertigo, which premiered last year at Venice and is now at Karlovy Vary, the Swiss-American filmmaker lets Kim Novak tell her own story and opens up a new perspective on Hitchcock's masterpiece, informed by her personal experience. On site at Karlovy Vary's festival hub, Alexandre O. Philippe opened up to Lidanoir about his passion for genre film, becoming friends with Kim Novak and exploring the story of two cinematic icons.

Partly inspired by the personal experiences of both himself and co-screenwriter Christian Bengtson, Mads Mengel conceived a cinematic feature film debut that secured him Trine Dyrholm for the titular role. So it seems only fitting that the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival invited the Danish director into the renowned Crystal Globe Competition with "The Guest". The intimate drama touches upon the still-taboo subject of mental challenges within a young couple, confronted with an uninvited relative at their family celebration. On site in Karlovy Vary, Mads Mengel spoke with Lidanoir about tackling the sensitive subject, working with Trine Dyrholm, and his own connection to the theme of neurodiversity.

Die doppel- und dreibödigen Ideen aus Sven Amtsbergs zeitgenössischem Schelmenroman "Superbuhei" inspirierten Josef Brandl bereits zu einem gleichnamigen Kurzfilm. Doch dessen sieben Minuten Laufzeit waren nicht genug für die wilde Story um den Langenhagemer Kneipenbesitzer und maximal unzuverlässigen Erzähler Jesse Bronske. Der Ortsnachbar von Scorpions-Frontman Klaus Meine kriegt nun seinen eigenen Kinospielfilm, mit dem es der deutsche Regisseur prompt in den Wettbewerb des Shanghai International Film Festivals schaffte. Vor Ort sprach Brandl mit Lidanoir über die Zusammenarbeit mit dem Buchautor, Meta-Kino und wie sie den echten Klaus Meine mit an Bord kriegten.

As professor of philosophy Louis Godbout is no stranger to the theme of existentialist dread that becomes an unsetteling untercurrent of his third feature. The Parking Spot examines how a small disturbance in everyday life can errode a person's sense of social and self. On site at the Shanghai Internationl Film Festival where his surreal psychological drama has its world premiere in the main competition, the Canadian director-writer sat down for an interview with Lidanoir about the pressure of social self-assertation, fragil masculinity, and the influence of Goya's Dark Paintings on his film.

After numerous short films at renowned international festivals, Yassine El Idrissi takes his first feature straight to the competition of the Shanghai International Film Festival. Inspired by his background as a journalist, Halima combines nuanced character drama and social study into a powerful story of female resilience and structural marginalization. On site in Shanghai, the Moroccan director-writer sat down with Lidanoir to talk about the personal inspiration for the main character, tackling the subject of illegal cannabis trade in Morocco, and his own stance on legalization vs. criminalization.