Cast & Characters

Andrzej Konopka (Djonny), Noomi Rapace (Rana), Reika Kirishima (Ayka), George Aurimas Cris (Zen), Filippa Koutoupa (Maria), Niki Sereti (Bossa), Ektor Liatsos (TseTse), Rasmi Tsopela (Granny), Eleni Tzangka (Mona), Katerina Rousiaki (Female Soldier #1), Chatzipavlidou Despoina (Female Soldier #2), Eleni Likoudi (Female Soldier #3), Thanasis Barkas (Male Soldier), Stavros Kotas (Tom), Sylwia Gola (Amal), Ditte Berkley (Head Voiceover), Jo Kotroutsou (Guitarist), Lou Vergara Kesada (Drummer) 

Production Notes

Years in the making, “Hot Spot” is a transfixing sci-fi/thriller fever-dream from visionary Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Smoczynska. A rapturous and wholly unique work, the film was scripted by Robert Bolesto five years ago, at a time when ChatGPT was still an unspoken-of beast, informed by a deep unease of what was inevitably to come as consequence of our trust in the digital technologies that we’ve welcomed into our lives. Smoczynska conjures the material with an approach that only she could bring, setting it up as a futuristic cop thriller that’s explosive, gruesome, and gigantic-feeling, then taking things into increasingly dreamier, less linear places as an emotion-ripped experiential manifesto that demands complete submission. Steeped in political commentary yet playful and fierce, extravagantly audacious in its aesthetics and retro-futurist design, pulsing with shape-shifting imagination, poetic surrealism, and garish energies, with eye-melting visuals from cinematographer Jakub Kijowski, who’s shot all of Smoczynska features to date, and the sweatiest of electronic synth scores by returning collaborators Marcin Macuk and Zuzanna Wrońska.

“Hot Spot” is about the fears we feel but cannot name. My goal was to describe the DNA of our present – and to touch upon our current fears, in a world where advanced technology is very close to witchcraft. AI, climate change, war and global unrest they all make us fearful, and they all seem ‘too big for words.’ On the surface, “Hot Spot” is a cop movie set in the dystopia of the future. There is a cop, there is a murder, and there is new technology that puts all reality under constant surveillance… And yet “Hot Spot” isn’t about following the plot. It’s about immersion and dreaming. As you watch “Hot Spot”, don’t use the logic you are used to using. Allow yourself to experience it, to take part in a shared dream. (Agnieszka Smoczynska, Production Notes)

Awards & Nominations

★    Fantasia Film Festival – Ensemble Performance

“Hot Spot” wins Jury Prize for Ensemble Performance at Fantasia Film Festival

Agnieszka Smoczyńska’s “Hot Spot” had its world-premiere at Canada’s Fantasia Film Festival on Friday. Noomi didn’t attend the festival, and there haven’t been any reviews posted so far – but if you believe the festival’s jury, the ensemble of Rapace, Andrzej Konopka and Reika Kirishima is awards worthy. On Saturday, the Cheval Noir Competition bestowed the film with a Jury Prize for Ensemble Performance. The jury was presided over by Youngjoo Suh (Jury President), Catherine Corcoran, Karim Hussain, Bob Murawski and Jennie Punter. “Hot Spot” will release US theaters on August 21, 2026 via Focus Features, and the film has received its official ‘R’ rating from the MPA this week.