The Impossibility of Being Kafka

Franz Kafka has been a model for many of the key figures in contemporary literature. He was not only one of the most important writers of the 20th century but also the most influential and original. He died a hundred years ago, yet his work sometimes seems to come from the future. He influenced the literature that followed, as well as music, cinema, and other arts.

LEFFEST is organising a series of programmes on Kafka, featuring the most significant adaptations of his books, including those by Orson Welles and Straub and Huillet, alongside the lesser-known but important adaptation of The Castle by Rudolf Noelte. We will also present Kafka Goes to the Cinema, a film and book by Hanns Zischler, who will be present for a lecture, concert, and readings (see Concerts), as well as a meeting with the esteemed director Krystian Lupa, who will conduct a masterclass based on his staging of The Trial, with screenings of excerpts from the production.