Malkovich, Asia Argento... lucky guests for next Thessalonik Fest

The actor John Malkovich will visit the Festival from the 17th to the 20th of November to receive an Honorary Golden Alexander for the body of his work, on the 18th of November at 21.00 in the Olympion theater. The nominee for two Academy Awards and star of such films as Dangerous Liaisons, The Sheltering Sky, The Glass Menagerie, Beyond the Clouds and In the Line of Fire, Malkovich was and remains a multi-faceted artist. The director of The Dancer Upstairs with Javier Bardem and the producer of art house hits such as Terry Zwigoff’s Ghost World and Art School Confidential and Laurence Dunmore’s The Libertine, Malkovich remains, despite his huge international appeal, true to his independent roots, grounded on the stage of the famous Chicago Steppenwolf Theatre. Malkovich will give a masterclass on the 18th at 11.00 in the John Cassavetes theatre and will also present the film Being John Malkovich and conduct a Q&A with the audience immediately after the screening (18th, 21.00, Olympion). The actor will be accompanied by Russ Smith, his co-producer in the film Juno (Best Film Award in this year’s Rome Film Festival), to be showcased in the Special Screenings section of the 48th TIFF.

Asia Argento will visit the 48th TIFF from the 24th to the 26th of November and attend the Closing Ceremony on Sunday the 25th. The actress, writer and director, daughter of famous horror filmmaker Dario Argento, has been in the film business practically her whole life, as she undertook her first role on the big screen at age 9 in Sergio Citti's Sogni e Bisogni. Since then, Argento has collaborated with directors such as Gus Van Sant, Patrice Chereau, Olivier Assayas, Abel Ferrara, Sophia Coppola and Catherine Breillat, she has published various short stories and a novel and has directed feature films and two documentaries on Dario Argento and on Abel Ferrara. In her latest acting project, La Terza Madre, she collaborates yet once more with her father in his last installment of the Three Mothers supernatural horror trilogy.

Actor Sam Rockwell and director Andrew Dominik will attend the Festival and present their film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, screened in the 24th at 22.30 in the Frida Liappa theatre. A joined press conference during the Festival to be confirmed at a later stage.

Upcoming Mexican actor Diego Luna, who already enjoys an international career, and Mexican producer Pablo Cruz will attend the 48th TIFF from the 19th to the 22nd of November. On the 21st at 10.30 in the John Cassavetes theatre they will make a presentation of their production company, Canana Films, formed in partnership with actor Gael Garcia Bernal. Canana has already produced, amongst other projects, Bernal’s Deficit, Israel Cárdenas’ and Laura Amelia Guzmán’s Cochochi (Discovery Award in this year’s Toronto FF) and Gerardo Naranjo’s Drama/Mex, which participated in the International Competition section of the 47th TIFF.

Canadian producer Robert Lantos (David Kronenberg’s Eastern Promises, Atom Egoyan’s Ararat and István Szabó’s Sunshine) will attend the 48th TIFF to present one of his latest projects, the first Canadian-Greek joint venture, Jeremy Podeswa’s Fugitive Pieces, on the 17th of November at 19.00 in the Olympion theater.

American producer Fred Roos (Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather II and Youth Without Youth, Sophia Coppola’s Lost in Translation) will attend as a member of the International Jury.

We regret to inform you that Wong Kar Wai will not be attending the 48th TIFF, as announced in our press release of October 11. Present in the Opening Ceremony screening of My Blueberry Nights, the actor David Strathairn, who stars in the film, will attend the premiere and introduce it. Due to sudden illness, Haskell Wexler will not be able to participate in the International Jury and offer the already announced masterclass. Michael Fitzgerald, producer of films such as The Pledge by Sean Penn and the upcoming In the Electric Mist by Bertrand Tavernier, has replaced him as a jury member.