Villeneuve retrospective set for Czech film fest

Last Updated: Wednesday, February 16, 2011 | 9:56 AM ET

CBC News

The films of Canadian director Denis Villeneuve will be featured in a retrospective at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival this July. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)

Montreal director Denis Villeneuve will be the toast of a Czech film festival this summer.

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has announced that the Quebec director will be celebrated in a retrospective during its forthcoming edition, which begins on Canada Day and runs through July 9.

"We are thrilled to shine the spotlight on Denis Villeneuve and his unique body of work this year," festival artistic director Karel Och said in a statement.

"Never afraid of shaking conventions, his highly personal approach and strong statements about society have been applauded throughout his career."

The festival, which will also highlight the works of director-screenwriter Samuel Fuller and a collection of young Greek directors, attracts more than 135,000 movie fans each year, according to Canadian film funding agency Telefilm.

Villeneuve's latest work, the searing family drama Incendies, is nominated for a best foreign-language film Oscar this month. Based on the acclaimed play by Wajdi Mouawad, Incendies follows two siblings who travel to the Middle East and delve into their mother's mysterious past after her death.

The film also has 10 nominations for Canada's own Genie Awards, set to take place in March.

Villeneuve's credits include his debut, 1998's Un 32 août sur terre and the Genie Award-winning films Maelstrom, a bleak morality drama, and Polytechnique, a stark, black-and-white look at the Montreal Massacre.

With files from The Canadian Press

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