{"id":678105,"date":"2025-07-01T11:30:28","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T08:30:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/karlovy-vary-fest-has-potential-far-beyond-film-industry-majority-owner-rockaways-jan-jirovec\/"},"modified":"2025-07-01T11:30:28","modified_gmt":"2025-07-01T08:30:28","slug":"karlovy-vary-fest-has-potential-far-beyond-film-industry-majority-owner-rockaways-jan-jirovec","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/karlovy-vary-fest-has-potential-far-beyond-film-industry-majority-owner-rockaways-jan-jirovec\/","title":{"rendered":"Karlovy Vary Fest Has \u201cPotential Far Beyond Film Industry\u201d: Majority Owner Rockaway\u2019s Jan Jirovec"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tThe 59th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) unspools July 4-12, with industry attendees and audiences descending on the Czech spa town to enjoy the newest cinematic discoveries and a slew of stars.<\/p>\n

\n\tJan J\u00edrovec is a\u00a0board member of KVIFF Group\u00a0and investment partner at Rockaway Capital, which has been the majority owner of the festival since 2021.<\/p>\n

\n\tTHR<\/em>\u2018s Georg Szalai discussed with him how the film fest, which is expanding into TV series<\/a>, fits into Rockaway\u2019s strategy, the impact of the recent death of long-term festival president Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka, and what lies ahead for KVIFF.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhat do you typically focus on for Rockaway when it comes to the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival? Do you concentrate on longer-term, big-picture vision and strategy planning or also specific issues we may see in this year\u2019s edition? <\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tAt Rockaway, and more specifically Rockaway Arts, our role is primarily strategic. We see the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival not only as a cultural institution but as a platform with long-term potential that reaches far beyond the film industry.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tIn practical terms, Rockaway has actively supported initiatives such as the launch of KVIFF.TV or the push toward stronger European industry engagement, for example.\u202fWe have also been actively involved in consultations regarding selected sponsorship opportunities.\u202f\u00a0<\/p>\n

With the recent death of Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka, I wanted to ask how you think he made the KVIFF such a strong and beloved film festival brand?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWhat made Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka unique was his ability to lead with authenticity. He didn\u2019t build a festival brand in the corporate sense. He and his team created a community, a cultural moment people wanted to return to every year. His charisma, intuition, and deep respect for art \u2013 combined with his ability to pick the right people and let them thrive \u2013 made KVIFF what it is today. That\u2019s why the position of president of the KVIFF will not be filled and remains in memoriam to him.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tDo you expect any change at KVIFF in terms of focus and strategy with executive director Kry\u0161tof Mucha also taking on a similar role as Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka, but with a different title, namely chairman of the board of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Group? It seems that most people feel that while Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka will never be replaceable, a strong and experienced team is in place.<\/strong>\u00a0And Rockaway has promised to \u201cpreserve the values and level of quality that its president built up over the years.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n\tYou\u2019re absolutely right \u2013 Ji\u0159\u00ed Barto\u0161ka is irreplaceable. But the strength of KVIFF has always been the team behind it. Kry\u0161tof Mucha, (artistic director) Karel Och, (head of production) Petr Lintimer and the rest of the leadership have been key to the festival\u2019s success for decades. They know the DNA of the festival inside out, and more importantly, they understand how to keep evolving it without losing what makes it special.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWe don\u2019t expect a radical change. Rather, we see continuity with a fresh perspective \u2013 a team that\u2019s deeply experienced, but still hungry to push boundaries.\"Shape\"\/\u00a0
How much does Rockaway see and treat the film festival as a business beyond its status as a creative and artistic endeavor? And how does it fit into the broader Rockaway focus and strategy?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tKVIFF is first and foremost a cultural project \u2013 and we respect that. But we also believe that cultural initiatives can be run with strategic, long-term thinking. In that sense, KVIFF is a great example of how a creative institution can build a strong brand, attract global partners, and create tangible value for the region and for the Czech Republic as a whole.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At Rockaway Arts, we\u2019re building a portfolio of assets that have cultural relevance, economic sustainability, and international potential. In that light, KVIFF is a perfect fit.\u00a0<\/p>\n

You work across the Rockaway Arts division, which includes the film festival, music festival Colours of Ostrava, and design festival Designblok. Do these events ever cooperate or cross over in any way?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tThey\u2019re different in content and audiences, but yes, there\u2019s synergy. Each of these events is rooted in a strong creative community, and we see value in mutual support. <\/p>\n

\n\tWhether it\u2019s through shared partners, talent exchanges, or even aligned communication strategies, we\u2019re exploring ways they can support each other while staying true to their own identities.\u00a0 The dialogue between music, design, and film is increasingly relevant \u2013 and we believe our role is to help that ecosystem grow organically.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The 59th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (KVIFF) unspools July 4-12, with industry attendees and audiences descending on the Czech spa town to enjoy the newest cinematic discoveries and a slew of stars. Jan J\u00edrovec is a\u00a0board member of KVIFF Group\u00a0and investment partner at Rockaway Capital, which has been the majority owner…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":678106,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Jan-Jirovec-Rockaway-Capital-Rockaway-Capital.jpg?w=1440&h=810&crop=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[124783,142695,157301],"class_list":["post-678105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa","tag-international","tag-karlovy-vary-international-film-festival","tag-kviff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678105","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=678105"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/678105\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/678106"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=678105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=678105"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=678105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}