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Locarno

The Ecumenical Jury in Locarno 2025 awarded its Prize to ‘Solomamma’ by Janicke Askevold from Norway and a Commendation to ‘Le Lac’ by Fabrice Aragno from Switzerland. ‘Le Lac’ also received the First Prize of the Junior Jury. The Golden Leopard went to ‘Tabi to hibi’ (Two Seasons, Two Strangers) by Sho Miyake from Japan. The International Film Critics' Prize (Fipresci) was awarded to ‘Dry Leaf’ by Alexandre Koberidze, a German-Georgian co-production.

The 78th Locarno Film Festival opened on August 6 with Tamara Stepanjan's film “Le pays d'Arto” (In the Land of Arto, France, Armenia 2025) on the Piazza Grande. The Ecumenical Jury, which has been established in 1974, awards its prize to a film in the International Competition that uses artistic creativity to raise viewers' awareness of human, social, and religious values. The prize is worth CHF 10,000, donated by the Reformed Churches and the Catholic Church of Switzerland.

The retrospective, for which the festival has long been renowned, has been entitled “Great Expectations” for 2025 and was dedicated to British post-war cinema from 1945 to 1960. It comprised more than 40 contributions. The Honorary Golden Lion went to Greek-American director Alexander Payne (About Schmidt, 2002; The Descendants, 2011).

Link: Festival-Website

Awards
Directed by:
2025

Solomamma raises important ethical questions about origin, identity and belonging: Who is the author of life? What is the miracle of conception and birth when we think about life in medical-technical paradigms? What is the source and responsibility of a new life and the uncontrollable consequences of such a choice ? Can a «Solomamma» take responsibility for her decisions and respect freedom, her own, her child's and the donor's?

This film questions us about the conditions for living independently while remaining connected to others.

Directed by:
2025

Le Lac shows us a couple who do not shy away from mourning, but struggle with it. Grief has left them speechless, but even without words they experience a deep understanding of each other because they consciously confront their pain. With their sailing boat, they battle the elements and literally face the storm by sailing right into it. Wind and weather bring them to the boundary between life and death.

More about the festival

Director Janicke Askevold from Norway wins the Ecumenical Prize of the Churches at the Locarno Film Festival. Her film centres on a journalist and single mother who wants to get to know the father of her child

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