Festivals
The 58th International Leipzig Festival for Documentary and Animated Films in 2015 started with a new artistic direction. Leena Pasanen, successor of Claas Danielsen, initiated a major change...
Winner of the Grand Prix at Molodist 2015 is the Israeli film "Princess" by Tali Shalom Ezer. The Ecumenical Jury awarded its prize to "Ixcanul" (Volcano) by Jayro Bustamante from Guatemala.
The 64th Film Festival Mannheim-Heidelberg's motto is "Weltkino." (World Cinema) - as open as succinct and more appropriate to the megatopic of the moment...
Yesterday October 17 the juries at the 31st Warsaw Film Festival awarded their prizes. "Boi Neon" (Neon Bull) by Gabriel Mascaro from Brasil won the Warsaw Grand Prix. The Ecumenical Jury awarded a Palestinian film, "The Idol".
As part of a Western retrospective Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in the West" opened the 12th International Film Festival Miskolc. The Ecumenical Jury awarded its prize to "Superwelt" (Superworld) by Austrian director Karl Markovics.
In Venice 2015, the INTERFILM Jury choose the winner of the 5th INTERFILM Award For Promoting Interreligious Dialogue. It decided upon the Iranian Orizzonti entry "Wednesday, May 9", directed by Vahid Jalilvand.
After weeks of uncertainty the 39th World Film Festival started on August 27th. The Ecumenical Jury had to decide for an award winner among 24 films screened in the World Competition section. As winnner of the Ecumenical Prize the jury choose "The Midnight Orchestra", directed by Jerôme Coen Oliver.
Jigeumeun matgo geuttaeneun teullida (Right Now, Wrong Then) by Hong Sang-soo, South Corea, is the winner of the Golden Leopard of the Film Festival Locarno 2015. The Ecumenical Jury awarded a Commendation to the film, giving its main prize to Ma dar behesht (Paradise) by Sina Ataeian Dena from Iran.
"Moskvich, My Love" by director Aram Shahbazyan is the winner of the Ecumenical Jury Prize in Yerevan 2015. The festival dedicated two extensive programmes to the memory of the Armenian genocide 100 years ago. "We Exist" showed films about the Armenian genocide itself, whereas "Never Again" focused on other examples of a holocaust.
In 2015, the International Film Festival celebrated its 50th anniversary. Winner of the Crystal Globe, the festival's top award, is the U.S. independent production "Bob and the Trees" which also got the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury.
"Behaviour" (Conducta), a Cuban film by director Ernesto Daranas, is winner of the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury in Zlín 2015. The Jury also awarded a Commendation to "Mina Walking", an Afghan-Canadian co-production directed by Yosef Baraki.
A French film is winner of the Golden Palm in Cannes 2015: "Dheepan" by Jacques Audiard, telling a story about refugees from the civil war in Sri Lanka. The Ecumenical Jury awarded its Prize to Nanni Moretti's "Mia madre".
After screening 504 films from 55 countries, the 61st International Short Film Days Oberhausen 2015 ended on May 5 with the award ceremony in the Lichtburg Filmpalast. The Ecumenical Jury awarded a film from Spain.
Freedom of expression and the emergence of exceptional women were the central issues of the 46th edition of the festival. In its sidebar programs it offered a focus on Georgia and the Atelier with the Armenian film director Harutyun Khachatryan.
The 29th FIFF (Festival International de Films de Fribourg showed 150 films from 57 countries, among them the 12 long feature films in the International Competition. From these, the Ecumenical Jury chose its winner: "Flapping in the Middle of Nowhere" by Diep Hoang Nguyen, Vietnam.
At the International Children's and Young People's Film Festival in Malmö 2015 the Church of Sweden Youth Film Award was conferred to "X+Y" by British film director Morgan Matthews.
The 65th Berlinale opened on February 5 with Isabelle Coixets "Nobody Wants the Night". 19 films competed for the Golden and the Silver Bears. The International Jury headed by jury president Darren Aronofsky awarded the Golden Bear to "Taxi" by Jafar Panahi.
The 36th Max Ophuels Prize presented 16 entries from Germany, Austria and Switzerland in the competion for long feature films. Awarded for the first time the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury went to "The Drift" (Driften) by Karim Patwa, Switzerland.
On November 16, the festival closed with the Award Ceremony. The Ecumenical Jury awarded its Prize to "Nabat by Elchin Musaoglu from Aserbaijan.
As opening film the 24th Festival of East European Cinema in Cottbus presented "Underdog" (Fehér isten) by Kornél Mundruczó. After the leave of Roland Rust the festival direction has changed to Bernd Buder. He choose twelve films for the competition.
A film from Iceland is the winner of the Nordic Film Days Luebeck 2014: "Life in a Fishbowl" by director Baldwin Z won the prestigious NDR Film Award. The Church Film Prize by the INTERFILM Jury went to "1001 Grams" by Bent Hamer from Norway.
The festival announces latest political films to the crises in Syria and the Ukraine. The opening film tells about another controversial political matter: Edward Snowden and the wiretap practices of the NSA which he made public.
In spite of the difficult situation in the Ukraine the International Film Festival Molodist in Kyiv will take place also this year. It opens on October 25 with „Trois cœur“ by Benoît Jacquot (out of competition).
A film from Estonia is the winner of the Ecumenical Film Prize: "In the Crosswind" (Risttuules), directed by Martti Helde. The jury labeled it a "cinematic requiem" for the victims of the Soviet oppression in Eastern Europe. The Warsaw Grand Prix was given to the Chinese competition entry "The Coffin in the Mountain" by director Xin Yukun.
In 2004 in Miskolc, an industrial city in northern Hungary, the Jameson Cinefest was organised for the first time. An Ecumenical Jury attends the festival since 2011. This year, the jury awarded its Prize to "Bande de filles" (Girlhood), a French film directed by Cécile Sciamma.
The 71st Mostra del Cinema under the direction of Alberto Barbera offered an artistically ambitious programme in both competition sections, Venezia 71 and Orizzonti. The INTERFILM Jury considers both of them and chose as winner of the INTERFILM Award for Promoting Interreligious Dialogue the French entry "Loin des hommes" (Far From Men), directed by David Oelhoffen.
After controversial information in the press about the financial situation of the festival and a delayed publication of its programme, it was held successfully and announced the winners on September 1st. The Ecumenical Jury awarded the Japanese entry "Cape Nostalgia", directed by Izuru Naroshima.
The film festival at the Lago Maggiore in Switzerland, since 2013 headed by artistic director Carlo Chatrian, cherishes especially aesthetic innovations. Consequently, the Golden Leopard went to "From What Is Before" by Lav Diaz from the Philippines. The Ecumenical Jury awarded "The Fool" by Russian director Yuri Bykov.
The Ecumenical Jury 2014 awarded two films, both from Caucasian countries. The Ecumenical Prize went to THE ABODE by Lusine Sargsyan from Armenia, and a Commendation to BLIND DATES by Levan Koguashvili from Georgia, which also won the Silver Apricot by the International Jury.
The Ecumenical Jury awarded with its Prize "Corn Island", which also won the "Crystal Globe", the Grand Prix of the festival. In addition, the Ecumenical Jury awarded a Commendation to "Rocks In My Pockets" which also won the Prize of the FIPRESCI jury.