Grossman Fantastic Film and Wine Festival Gears Up for 14th Edition with Diverse Lineup

Slovenian fans of fantastic film have something to look forward to as of next week! Kicking off on July 10 with an opening night screening of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (accompanied by live music by Ven the band), the 14th edition of the Grossman Fantastic Film and Wine Festival treats movie enthusiasts and wine aficionados to an eclectic bouquet over the course of five days.

Yes, you read that correctly! As the rather wonderful poster on the left-hand side (courtesy of Serbian illustrator and graphic designer Ivica Stevanović) makes clear: Grossman’s unusual dual focus celebrates both fantastic films and the better wines. While the eerily atmospheric Hagazussa - A Heathen’s Curse and The Devil and the Blacksmith (an intoxicating mixture of Faustian legend and Gothic fairy tale) are two of the feature films competing for the Vicious Cat award, local vineyards present their finest bottles to vie for the Wine Champion Vicious Cat award.

Sticking to the film front, we’re happy to report that the rather sumptuous film program of Grossman 2018 also includes international favorites like Issa López’s magical realist Tigers Are Not Afraid, and Five Fingers for Marseilles, a mythical reimagining of western tropes by South-African director Michael Matthews. Additionally, Finish antihero Rendel stops by for some in-your-face thrills, Bodo Kox hopes to charm audiences with his sci-fi romance The Man with the Magic Box, and Siwakorn Jarupongpa continues a strong run of European festivals with Premika, a film centered on a ghost inhabiting a karaoke machine. Moviegoers also have something homegrown to look forward to in the form of Vasja Rovšnik’s Oto (with the director in attendance).

Other guests of the 14th edition include Dominik Hartl, director of Party Hard Die Young, Thomas Aske Berg, one half of the writing-directing team behind Vidar the Vampire, and claymation master Lee Hardcastle as one of this year's judges of the Méliès d'Argent competition, dedicated to finding the best European short.

All in all no less than 25 feature films, 10 documentaries and 29 shorts will grace the screen in Ljutomer. For more information on Grossman 2018’s full lineup, which also boasts retrospectives, a competition for music documentaries, a B-marathon of action, terror, laughs and gore (in partnership with Jinga Films), a zombie walk, and even a program dedicated to children, head on over to the official website.

For an amusing festival promo, be sure to check the video below: