34th Ljubljana International Film Festival - LIFFe

2023 marks the 34th edition of Liffe – the Ljubljana International Film Festival. For a number of years, the festival has featured the finest specimens of world cinema and winners of the most prominent festivals (Cannes, Rotterdam, Berlin, Venice, etc.) while bringing into spotlight the greatest achievements of national cinema. The number of its loyal audiences (between 44,000 and 50,000 visitors each year) has been increasing since the festival’s establishment in 1990. Liffe was founded by Jelka Stergel, its director of 17 years. Since March 2007, Simon Popek, an established film critic and publicist, and director of the film programme at Cankarjev dom, has served as Liffe’s Festival Director.

The festival’s aim is to encourage and promote young and emerging artists, predominantly European filmmakers, and bring them into dialogue with Slovenian audiences. Several awards are presented every year (Kingfisher Award for best young filmmaker; Best Short Film; Audience Award; FIPRESCI Prize). In recent years, applying digital innovation and educational programmes for young audiences have been important components of the festival whose mission remains the education of different age groups.

Liffe takes place at six venues in Ljubljana (Cankarjev dom’s Linhart and Kosovel Halls, Kinodvor, Kino Komuna, the Slovenian Cinematheque and Kino Bežigrad). With venues across Slovenia (Maribox Maribor, Anton Podbevšek Teater Novo mesto and Union Celje Cinema), the festival addresses and remains accessible to audiences outside the Slovenian capital. 

In 1992, the International Association of Film Producers – FIAPF granted a licence to Film Art Fest, which was renamed the International Film Festival in 1996, and in 1998 acquired its current name, Liffe (Ljubljana International Film Festival). This license confirms that the festival has fulfilled all the conditions for its inclusion on the official list of global film festivals. 

Since its beginning, the festival’s producer has been Cankarjev dom, Cultural and Congress Centre Ljubljana, whose programme is co-financed by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia. 

When the rising temperatures are foretelling a hot summer and the holiday season is just round the corner, my work as a selector for the 34th edition of Liffe is well under way – diversified, dynamic, done between Cankarjev dom and various European festivals. This year's cinematic output is topical, compelling, one third of a good hundred films that annually screen at our festival have so far been selected, including the Berlinale Golden Bear winner and a number of Cannes Film Festival winners. This year’s Retrospective is dedicated to Italian political cinema classics. Liffe=Life.

Simon Popek, Liffe Festival Director

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