Award Winning Films 2021
05.06.2021 // The award ceremony for the eighteenth edition of the CROSSING EUROPE Film Festival Linz took place today in the Ursulinensaal in the Upper Austrian Culture Quarter, the ceremony was hosted by Karin Schmid who led the audience through the evening.
In attendance of various film guests, industry representatives and press from home and abroad, representatives for the various funders and sponsors, as well as politicians – a.o. Margot Nazzal, Director for Culture / Province of Upper Austria, Director for Culture/City of Linz Julius Stieber, gfk-Managing Director Wiltrud Katherina Hackl, Wolfgang Gumpelmaier-Mach (Representative Creative Region Linz & Upper Austria), VdFS-Board Member Thomas Vögel (on behalf of VdFS-Managing Director Gernot Schödl), Marco Zinz (Managing Director The Grand Post – Audio & Picture Post Production), Siniša Vidović (Forafilm) und Dimitrij Gluscevskij (European Film Forum Scanorama, Lithuania, on behalf of the European festival network MIOB-Moving Images Open Borders) – the CROSSING EUROPE AWARDS (money and material prizes valued at 30,500 €) were awarded. Festival Director Christine Dollhofer – at her last festival before her upcoming move to the Vienna Film Fund in November 2021 – drew a preliminary resumee of this "Corona festival edition", which was quite positive despite all the pandemic-related challenges.
€ 5.000,- powered by Linz Kultur
DASATSKISI / BEGINNING
Dea Kulumbegashvili, GE/FR 2020, 125 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Fiction (Helene Christanell, Ágnes Kocsis and Visar Morina) explained their decision with the words: “We have decided to give the award to a film that vibrates and lets us experience real cinema. A film that invites to see and wonder, so complex and multifaceted as life itself. We have chosen a punch of a film.”
| The film is part of this year’s streaming offer „CROSSING EUROPE VOD-Premieren“, 6 June to 6 July, available for the Austrian audience on KINO VOD CLUB. |
CROSSING EUROPE Audience Award - Best Fiction Film
€ 5.000,- powered by Land Oberösterreich Kultur
MILA / APPLES
Christos Nikou, GR/PL/SI 2020, 90 min
| The film will be screened again tomorrow, 6 June at 19:30, Movie 1 | Release in Austria: TBA (distributor: Filmladen) |
€ 5.000,- powered by gfk-Gesellschaft für Kulturpolitik OÖ
ANYÁIM TÖRTÉNETE / HER MOTHERS
Asia Dér, Sári Haragonics, HU 2020, 75 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Documentary (Christa Auderlitzky, Varja Moćnik and Siegfried Ressel) said in their statement: “The award winning film steps into the lives of the two protagonists and their adopted child very gently, but then with great power and thoroughness reveals intimacy in all its beauty and difficulties – and furthermore fits this very particular life into the society we all take part in. In the film the fleeting nuances of everyday build a very strong picture of what freedom (and the lack of it) feels like. The film’s liveliness engages the mind and the emotions of the audience on several levels as the system homophobia in Hungary becomes a horrifically tangible part of our everyday existence.“
€ 3.000,- powered by Moving Images Open Borders (MIOB) with support by CREATIVE EUROPE Media
FELKÉSZÜLÉS MEGHATÁROZATLAN IDEIG TARTÓ EGYÜTTLÉTRE /
PREPARATIONS TO BE TOGETHER FOR AN UNKNOWN PERIOD OF TIME
Lili Horvát, HU 2020
| The film will be presented at our partner festivals (festival network: Moving Images Open Borders – MIOB) in the upcoming months. |
€ 2.000,- powered by Crossing Europe
TOTTUMISKYSYMYS / FORCE OF HABIT
Kirsikka Saari, Elli Toivoniemi, Anna Paavilainen, Alli Haapasalo, Reetta Aalto, Jenni Toivoniemi, Miia Tervo, FI 2019, 79 min
The YOUTH JURY (Berat Can, Anna Maria Fischbauer, Hanna Gaisböck, Paul-Simon Kapfer, Laura Schmidt) said in their statement: “To begin with, we want to congratulate all six films. Every one of them impressed us deeply in one form or another, but there can only be one winner. The film we wish to give the YAAAS! Youth Jury Award to, shows realistic situations that every person, no matter their social standing or age can be confronted with at every time. Its gripping scenes make clear that there is more than just victim and perpetrator, but also those who stand and watch, and also those who turn away. Despite the many scenes that are lined up very close together and show various different situations, through its highly accomplished editing you never get lost in the various stories.”
| The film will be screened again tomorrow, 6 June at 12:00, City 1 |
€ 5.000,- powered by Land Oberösterreich / Kultur
€ 2.000,- Voucher powered by The Grand Post - Audio & Picture Post Production
€ 1.000,- powered by Forafilm
Money Prize € 5.000,-:
2551.01
Norbert Pfaffenbichler, AT 2021, 65 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated: “A piece of art that tells of a dehumanized world through remorseless visuals between nightmare and apocalypse. In the midst of utter desperation, it lets us hope for the profoundly human through the friendship of two individuals.”
Material Prize € 2.000,-:
SCHWEBEN. / SWAYING.
Julia Windischbauer, Elena Wolff, AT/SE 2021, 24 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated: “The two protagonists tell a moving family history both in front of and behind the camera, and deeply impressed us not only by their performance.”
Money Prize € 1.000,-:
ANKOMMEN / ARRIVING
Mohammad Reza Rasouli, AT 2021, 14 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated:
“With its calm approach this film gives insight into social realities. Particularly impressive was the precise form of storytelling and the remarkable performance by the actors.”
CREATIVE REGION MUSIC VIDEO Award
€ 1.500,- powered by CREATIVE REGION Linz & Upper Austria
IMMIGRANT - DACID GO8LIN
Mark Gerstorfer, AT 2019, 3 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated: “Both the video and the music impressed us with its political relevance. With strong images but also a reduced form of execution, the video takes a clear stance.”
In attendance of various film guests, industry representatives and press from home and abroad, representatives for the various funders and sponsors, as well as politicians – a.o. Margot Nazzal, Director for Culture / Province of Upper Austria, Director for Culture/City of Linz Julius Stieber, gfk-Managing Director Wiltrud Katherina Hackl, Wolfgang Gumpelmaier-Mach (Representative Creative Region Linz & Upper Austria), VdFS-Board Member Thomas Vögel (on behalf of VdFS-Managing Director Gernot Schödl), Marco Zinz (Managing Director The Grand Post – Audio & Picture Post Production), Siniša Vidović (Forafilm) und Dimitrij Gluscevskij (European Film Forum Scanorama, Lithuania, on behalf of the European festival network MIOB-Moving Images Open Borders) – the CROSSING EUROPE AWARDS (money and material prizes valued at 30,500 €) were awarded. Festival Director Christine Dollhofer – at her last festival before her upcoming move to the Vienna Film Fund in November 2021 – drew a preliminary resumee of this "Corona festival edition", which was quite positive despite all the pandemic-related challenges.
CROSSING EUROPE Competition - Fiction
CROSSING EUROPE Award - Best Fiction Film€ 5.000,- powered by Linz Kultur
DASATSKISI / BEGINNING
Dea Kulumbegashvili, GE/FR 2020, 125 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Fiction (Helene Christanell, Ágnes Kocsis and Visar Morina) explained their decision with the words: “We have decided to give the award to a film that vibrates and lets us experience real cinema. A film that invites to see and wonder, so complex and multifaceted as life itself. We have chosen a punch of a film.”
| The film is part of this year’s streaming offer „CROSSING EUROPE VOD-Premieren“, 6 June to 6 July, available for the Austrian audience on KINO VOD CLUB. |
CROSSING EUROPE Audience Award - Best Fiction Film
€ 5.000,- powered by Land Oberösterreich Kultur
MILA / APPLES
Christos Nikou, GR/PL/SI 2020, 90 min
| The film will be screened again tomorrow, 6 June at 19:30, Movie 1 | Release in Austria: TBA (distributor: Filmladen) |
CROSSING EUROPE Competition - Documentary
CROSSING EUROPE Social Awareness Award - Best Documentary€ 5.000,- powered by gfk-Gesellschaft für Kulturpolitik OÖ
ANYÁIM TÖRTÉNETE / HER MOTHERS
Asia Dér, Sári Haragonics, HU 2020, 75 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Documentary (Christa Auderlitzky, Varja Moćnik and Siegfried Ressel) said in their statement: “The award winning film steps into the lives of the two protagonists and their adopted child very gently, but then with great power and thoroughness reveals intimacy in all its beauty and difficulties – and furthermore fits this very particular life into the society we all take part in. In the film the fleeting nuances of everyday build a very strong picture of what freedom (and the lack of it) feels like. The film’s liveliness engages the mind and the emotions of the audience on several levels as the system homophobia in Hungary becomes a horrifically tangible part of our everyday existence.“
MIOB New Vision Award
MIOB New Vision Award 2021€ 3.000,- powered by Moving Images Open Borders (MIOB) with support by CREATIVE EUROPE Media
FELKÉSZÜLÉS MEGHATÁROZATLAN IDEIG TARTÓ EGYÜTTLÉTRE /
PREPARATIONS TO BE TOGETHER FOR AN UNKNOWN PERIOD OF TIME
Lili Horvát, HU 2020
| The film will be presented at our partner festivals (festival network: Moving Images Open Borders – MIOB) in the upcoming months. |
YAAAS! Competition
CROSSING EUROPE Award – YAAAS! Youth Jury€ 2.000,- powered by Crossing Europe
TOTTUMISKYSYMYS / FORCE OF HABIT
Kirsikka Saari, Elli Toivoniemi, Anna Paavilainen, Alli Haapasalo, Reetta Aalto, Jenni Toivoniemi, Miia Tervo, FI 2019, 79 min
The YOUTH JURY (Berat Can, Anna Maria Fischbauer, Hanna Gaisböck, Paul-Simon Kapfer, Laura Schmidt) said in their statement: “To begin with, we want to congratulate all six films. Every one of them impressed us deeply in one form or another, but there can only be one winner. The film we wish to give the YAAAS! Youth Jury Award to, shows realistic situations that every person, no matter their social standing or age can be confronted with at every time. Its gripping scenes make clear that there is more than just victim and perpetrator, but also those who stand and watch, and also those who turn away. Despite the many scenes that are lined up very close together and show various different situations, through its highly accomplished editing you never get lost in the various stories.”
| The film will be screened again tomorrow, 6 June at 12:00, City 1 |
CROSSING EUROPE Competition – Local Artist
CROSSING EUROPE Award - Local Artist€ 5.000,- powered by Land Oberösterreich / Kultur
€ 2.000,- Voucher powered by The Grand Post - Audio & Picture Post Production
€ 1.000,- powered by Forafilm
Money Prize € 5.000,-:
2551.01
Norbert Pfaffenbichler, AT 2021, 65 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated: “A piece of art that tells of a dehumanized world through remorseless visuals between nightmare and apocalypse. In the midst of utter desperation, it lets us hope for the profoundly human through the friendship of two individuals.”
Material Prize € 2.000,-:
SCHWEBEN. / SWAYING.
Julia Windischbauer, Elena Wolff, AT/SE 2021, 24 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated: “The two protagonists tell a moving family history both in front of and behind the camera, and deeply impressed us not only by their performance.”
Money Prize € 1.000,-:
ANKOMMEN / ARRIVING
Mohammad Reza Rasouli, AT 2021, 14 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated:
“With its calm approach this film gives insight into social realities. Particularly impressive was the precise form of storytelling and the remarkable performance by the actors.”
CREATIVE REGION MUSIC VIDEO Award
€ 1.500,- powered by CREATIVE REGION Linz & Upper Austria
IMMIGRANT - DACID GO8LIN
Mark Gerstorfer, AT 2019, 3 min
The JURY COMPETITION – Local Artist (Laurien Bachmann, Dinko Draganovic and Alenka Maly) stated: “Both the video and the music impressed us with its political relevance. With strong images but also a reduced form of execution, the video takes a clear stance.”
