HEAD SOUTH BOUND FOR ROTTERDAM AS IFFR 2024 OPENER

Jonathan Ogilvie’s spirited post-punk coming-of-age comedy Head South will open the 53rd International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) on Thursday 25 January 2024, with the festival running until Sunday 4 February.

“With Head South, Jonathan Ogilvie returns to the festival with an unpredictable coming-of-age story that delights in its shifting tone,” said Vanja Kaludjercic, IFFR Festival Director. “Quirkiness and nostalgia become sober and thoughtful, only to turn exuberant and then something else again, in a fitting tribute to post-punk subculture. Ogilvie is the kind of filmmaker we cherish at IFFR: those for whom the art is, above all, an adventure of discovery.”

"I am honoured to have IFFR select Head South as their opening film,” Ogilvie told Screen-Space. “I admire and appreciate the festival's consistent commitment to adventurous filmmakers and the art of cinema." The dramatic comedy, about a private schoolboy who becomes desperately enamoured with all things post-punk in 1979 Christchurch, is a semi-autobiographical work. Ogilvie’s slot in the 2024 edition is his first since his speculative hi-tech thriller Lone Wolf screened in the festival’s Big Screen Competition in 2021.

In her first year as Managing Director of IFFR, Clare Stewart has embraced the role just as the city and the festival team have embraced her. “We are buoyed by the enormous goodwill of [this] vibrant, film-loving city, and hugely grateful to the funders and partners who enable IFFR to remain a fierce defender and champion of independent filmmakers and artists at a time when the world needs diverse stories more than ever.”

“The strength and courage of the Tiger have prevailed as we work to shape the 2024 edition of IFFR. Like film festivals everywhere, we face significant challenges and our focus is on continuing to rebuild resources, consolidate partnerships and diversify audiences,” says Stewart.

In addition to Head South, first-wave titles also announced include the World Premiere of Indian filmmaker Ishan Shukla’s dystopian sci-fi animation Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust (pictured, above), featuring the voices of Golshifteh Farahani and Asia Argento, as well as filmmakers Gaspar Noé, Anurag Kashyap and Lav Diaz; Mário by US auteur Billy Woodberry, a biographical documentary of writer and nationalist leader Mário de Andrade, a central figure in the struggle for pan-African independence; So Unreal, the latest film from genre-expanding U.S. filmmaker Amanda Kramer; Elegies, from Hong Kong cinema legend Ann Hui; and, Egypt’s 2024 Oscars submission Voy! Voy! Voy! (pictured, below) by Omar Hilal.

Other news out of Rotterdam highlights the launch on Friday 26 January of IFFR Pro, the festival’s industry program, which this year will include the opening of the Pro Hub. This meeting space will allow filmmakers and industry professionals to gather for mentoring, meetings, as well as host the IFFR Pro Dialogues programme of panel discussions, covering urgent and enlightening issues facing the industry.  

Also, the 41st edition of IFFR’s co-production market CineMart begins on Sunday 28 January, with Spotlight presentations by project teams returning this year on Monday 29 January. On Tuesday 30, the second edition of the Pro Darkroom presents a curated selection of work-in-progress screenings, and is followed by the IFFR Pro Awards in the evening.

ALL NEWS REGARDING IFFR 2024 WILL BE AVAILABLE VIA THE OFFICIAL 'TIGER ALERT' NEWSLETTER. SUBSCRIBE HERE.

IFFR ANNOUNCES CLARE STEWART AS NEW MANAGING DIRECTOR

International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) has appointed former Sydney Film Festival Director Clare Stewart to the post of Managing Director. Most recently Interim CEO at Sheffield DocFest and previously Director of BFI London Film Festival and BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, she commences in the role at IFFR on 21 June.

In addition to her Sydney Film Festival tenure (2006-2011), Stewart had key roles in the Australian film culture sector as the inaugural Head of Film Programmes at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (2002-2006), Events Manager at the Australian Film Institute (1996-2001) and Programmer/Manager of the Melbourne Cinematheque (1995-2002). She will work alongside fellow Australian expat and former Melbourne International Film Festival Director Michelle Carey, now in her fourth year as a senior Selection Committee member at IFFR. 

Korrie Louwes, Chairperson of the Supervisory Board, said: “Clare has an unparalleled breadth of experience in strategically directing and truly championing festivals, with a track record including some of the foremost celebrations of cinema in the world. In previous roles Clare has channelled her unique combination of creative understanding and business acumen to growing audiences, accelerating commercial success, and raising the profile of those events. It’s a great coup to have her join the IFFR team and bring her multifaceted and insightful leadership to our organisation.”

“IFFR is a world-leading institution that creates meaningful, global impact for independent film and filmmakers,” said Stewart, “and it is also dear to my heart as the first international film festival I attended 25 years ago. It shaped my understanding of the interdependencies between cultural activity and industry development, and the importance of engaging a dedicated local audience while positioning a festival as vital for the international, independent film sector.” 

“Rotterdam is a city renowned for innovation, experimentation and discovery – characteristics that IFFR already champions through its artistic and industry programmes,” observes Stewart, who will relocate the Rotterdam from the position. “This emphasis on bold, new ideas provides a strong cultural base to collaborate with Festival Director Vanja Kaludjercic (pictured, left) on her inspiring vision for building a festival that is both agenda-setting and responsive to change.”

“Her passion for IFFR is undeniable,” said Kaludjercic, “Clare brings a deep understanding of the artistic and commercial sides of a festival from her formidable career to date, which is perfectly suited to the dual leadership dynamic we have between our two roles." 

IFFR has a structure where the pairing of the Managing Director and the Festival Director oversee the commercial and creative elements of the organisation respectively, but working closely in partnership. Stewart previously consulted with the IFFR Board of Directors in 2021 in its first phase of re-evaluation prior to her joining DocFest, with a focus on the IFFR programme structure and content strategy.

Since 2020, Stewart is an elected member of the BAFTA Film Committee, where she has participated on the Learning, Inclusion and Talent Committee, and chaired the film selection for the BAFTA Breakthrough programme. She has served on the World Economic Forum’s Global Advisory Council for the Creative Economies (2014-2016), on competition juries at Sundance, Mumbai, Rio, Dubai, Hong Kong and Macau film festivals and the BAFTA Outstanding British Debut jury.

She is a previous recipient of the Queen's Trust Award for Young Australians and a Women and Hollywood Trailblazer Award in 2017 for her work promoting diversity and gender parity in the film industry.