AWARDS
Official Section
Official Section Jury comprised of Mike Hostench (President of the Jury), Olga Shisko, Nastaran Molavi, Kamyar Mohsenin, YUN Suik and Aditya Bhattacharya.
BEST FILM
BLACK DOG
Dir. Guan Hu | China | 2024 | 95’
“In a very eclectic jury, Hu Guan’s majestic Black Dog was an unusually unanimous decision. The best compliment for a film is when a filmmaker (like me) wants to share it with his colleagues. It is indeed very rare when a big budget commercial film is also a visionary and intimate one. Black Dog is imbued in every moment with Hu Guan’s signature and his depiction of a dystopian Chinese town, and both the desolation and humanity of his lead character is visually stunning and heart-touching at the same time.” – Aditya Bhattacharya
BEST DIRECTOR
AFTERGLOWS
Dir. Taichi Kimura | Japan | 2023 | 120’
“Avant-garde artists of the early 20th century, such as Marcel Duchamp or Kazimir Malevich, shouted in their manifestos: “Keep directors away from the movie camera, don’t let them make a mould of reality. Cinema should be a continuation of the entire history of fine art.” “Afterglows,” Taichi Kimura’s debut, is exactly in line with this movement. They are in search of not only “extended” time, but also in search of a cinema that is created by rhythm, colour and light, but also text and sound. It is impressively directed and presents a horrifying but fascinating look into the mind of a man troubled by past tragedy. It’s as if we’re at a new level of cinema. Haptic cinema. The audience is immersed into the mind of the disturbed protagonist of the movie. It’s a journey between reality and fiction, although its narrative and stylistic choices may seem familiar, the director pushes away from the familiar to create a new language. Afterglows takes a step forward, plays between past and present and looks into the future.” – Olga Shisko
BEST SCRIPT
MY FAVORITE CAKE
Dir. Maryam Moghadam & Behash Sanaeeha | Iran | 2024 | 97’
“My Favorite Cake is not merely a story about the courage to cross the red lines. It is also about the obscure object of desire; the desire to break free from all the principles set in a society; the desire embodied in the dance sequence and the shower scene in a witty manner. It focusses on the concepts of the old and the isolated in a world where the elderly reminisce of the good old days; a way to express the vividness and the enthusiasm before confronting their tragic endings. It gives life to the people who are looking for a way to realize their simple dreams despite the dream being labelled as sin, despite not having much time left, despite not having happy ending for the happy times.” – Nastaran Molavi & Kamyar Mohsenin.
SPECIAL MENTION
DESERT OF NAMIBIA
Dir. Yoko Yamanaka | Japan | 2024 | 132’
“Desert of Namibia was the best film I saw at the film festival. It was based on everyday life, but the scenes were deep, painful and beautiful. The 4:3 screen skilfully expresses the characters, while the camera movements capture the character’s anxiety and pain. It is a great film that cannot be expressed in a few words. As a fellow film director, I speak with respect.” – Yun Suik.
Official Panorama Section
Official Panorama Section Jury comprised of Esteban Andueza (President of the Jury), Anastasia Stravinsky, Adriano Calero, Yoko Yamanaka and Batbayar Chogsom.
BEST FILM
TERRESTRIAL VERSES
Dir. Ali Asgari & Alireza Khatami | Iran | 2023 | 77’
This film weaves a rich yet static narrative that delves deeply into the complexities of contemporary Iran, exploring the full spectrum of life from birth to death. One of the exceptional aspects of this movie is us—the viewers and who we are. We are not merely spectators; we are invited to become active participants in this journey, transforming into unwitting witnesses and even overbearing interrogators. This immersive experience forces us to confront the disquieting reality that the reach of power can often eclipse our inherent humanity. The remarkable film “Terrestrial Verses” encourages us to reflect on our own roles within this intricate tapestry of human experience and reveal the tragic panorama of what is happening in “the land of Aryans”. The thing that we must keep doing – don’t let the world crack.
BEST DIRECTOR
BRIDE KIDNAPPING
Dir. Mirlan Abdykalyov | Kirguizistan | 2023 | 80’
This film reminds us of the primal truth that cinema is, at its core, moving images. The eloquent camera work overwhelms us with meticulously calculated and precise shots that, though seemingly effortless, leave us transfixed.
BEST SCRIPT
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG
Dir. Mohammad Rasoulof | Iran | 2024 | 168’
We give the best screenplay prize to The Seed of the Sacred Fig, also written by the director Mohammad Rasoulouf, for the text’s ability to integrate the dramatic reality occurring on the streets of Tehran into a high-quality fictional narrative, even further enhanced by the denunciation that lingers after viewing. Rasoulouf manages to represent, through the protagonist family, the multifaceted complexity of Iranian society and, in a more symbolic narrative progression, an entire nation in decay that urgently cries out (also through film) for the need for change.
SPECIAL MENTION (Actors)
GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS
Dir. Shuchi Talati | India | 2024 | 118’
It’s hard to take your eyes off Preeti Panigrahi. Her performance is meticulous, with attention even to the subtleties of her hand gestures, while still delivering a powerful emotional impact. The director has skilfully captured even the most subtle and delicate shifts in her relationship with her mother.
SPECIAL MENTION (Photography)
THE LAND WHERE THE WINDS STOOD STILL
Dir. Ardak Armikulov | Kazakhstan | 2023 | 108’
The cinematic work of the film supports neatly the main character, and the black and white colouring creates a catching feeling of the tragic historical events back then in Kazakhstan.
Discoveries Section
Discoveries Section Jury comprised of Rosa Vergés (President of the Jury), Laura Mazza, Natalia Díaz, Javier Martín-Domínguez and José Félix Collazos.
BEST FILM
THE NARROW ROAD
Dir. Lam Sum | Hong Kong | 2022 | 113’
For sensitively telling a resonant story that appeals to us all in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic and launching a message of solidarity and empathy especially among the most disadvantaged. With solid performances and brilliant staging.
BEST DIRECTOR
LUCKY APARTMENT
Dir. Kangyu-Garam | South Korea | 2024 | 96’
For dealing delicately with the complexity of relationships and coexistence in South Korea in a seemingly simple and gender-sensitive way.
BEST SCRIPT
ANOTHER DAY OF HOPE
Dir. Taifeng Liu | China | 2023 | 133’
For creating suspense in a moral conflict from different points of view, as a reflection of a fragmented society that loses its values.
SPECIAL MENTION
MADINA
Dir. Aizhana Kassymbek | Kazakhstan | 2023 | 77’
Aestheticizing For bravely exposing, through a film, her own struggle to survive a patriarchal society.
SPECIAL MENTION
WHITE FLAG
Dir. Batbayar Chogsom | Mongólia | 2023 | 96’
For creating an atmospheric and courageous drama in an archaic and closed society.
NETPAC Section
NETPAC Section Jury comprised of Nomuunzul Turmunkh (President of the Jury), Alexis Racionero, Claudia Luque, Sandra Mur and Kei Matsushima.
BEST FILM
HOLLYWOODGATE
Dir. Ibrahim Nash’at | Afghanistan, Germany | 2023 | 90’
For the courage it took to make this documentary, that takes us to live for a year with the Taliban and dares to denounce the evil of war anywhere on the planet.
BEST DIRECTOR
FLY ME TO THE MOON
Dir. Sasha Chuk Tsz-yin | Hong Kong | 2023 | 113’
For its cinematic quality and sense of atmosphere with an elegant and silent aesthetic, both visually and sonically.
BEST SCRIPT
GREEN PLUM SEASON
Dir. Ali Bayat | Iran | 2024 | 95’
For the quality of its dialogues and monologues, as well as a story of family integration with a political background and a beautiful poetic style.
Special Section
Special Section Jury comprised of Sandra Sotelo (President of the Jury), Belén Abad, Alvaro Gonzalez, Jimena Tercero and Louise Wu.
BEST FILM
ADEMOKA’S EDUCATION
Dir. Adilkhan Yerzhanov | Kazakhstan, France | 2022 | 89’
Ademoka’s Education is a film that encompasses the particularity of its protagonist and society, portraying it with surrealism in its frames and intertextuality in its texts, allowing the viewer to go to a world that is as intimate as it is universal. Full of harsh realities and the most beautiful innocence, it achieves an organic balance in which humour, tenderness, and the absurd coexist. Overall, it has all the elements of a film in a special section wonderfully knitted together, the direction, the actors’ performance, musical scoring, cinematography and script.
BEST DIRECTOR
WALTZ FOR THREE
Dir. Arman Zarrinkoob | Iran | 2023 | 81’
We chose Waltz for Three directed by Arman Zarrinkoob for the best screenplay because of its concise and thrilling narrative carried out by minimal dialogue and precise actions. The construction of the space in writing is truly remarkable. The writing allows us to explore a potentially endless discourse about mental disorders, domestic violence, and the truth beyond the surface of human consciousness.
BEST SCRIPT
CELLULOID UNDERGROUND
Dir. Ehsan Khoshbakht | Iran | 2023 | 80’
Special Mention for Celluloid Underground by Ehsan Khoshbakht, for his contribution to the historical and cinematographic memory of Iran by presenting an unusual character who, delving into the lights and shadows of his personal experience, introduces us in an original way his testimony with honesty and courage.
New Perspectives Section
New Perspectives Jury comprised of Martina Garcia Casillas (President of the Jury), Adriana Villayandre Vidal, Alex Cotet Bonamusa , Alicia Crespo Hidalgo, Álvaro Pardo Martorell, Angel Luis Valverde Blanco de Cordova , Ariadna Martínez, Ariel Merindano Claverol, Carla Cortada Rusiñol, Duna Marcet Terraza, Fernanda Antonia Martínez Andaluz, Guillem Beorlegui Rech, Guillem Pérez Coca, Henedina Muñoz Pinto, Hug Banqué Majó, Ignacio Garriga Bravo, Isabella Palmieri, Jiayue Lyu, Jordi Pujadas Pons, Juan David Arboleda Córdoba, Laura Martín, Lola Celma, Lucía Barrasa Vicente, Mar Gálvez Rodríguez, Matthew O’Malley, Nicolás Bellostas, Oscar Garcia Pinazo, Pol Satoca Barberán, Richard Sudario Berrocal, Rubén Anaya Zahinos, Sergi Sun Zhenpeng, Sergio Campos Mulet, Victor Garcia Guerrero, Wang Liao and Xuran Shang.
BEST FILM (Ex aequo)
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG
Dir. Mohammad Rasoulof | Iran | 2024
BEST FILM (Ex aequo)
TIME STILL TURNS THE PAGES
Dir. Nick Cheuk | Hong Kong | 2023
BEST DIRECTOR
GIRLS WILL BE GIRLS
Dir. Shuchi Talati | India | 2024
BEST SCRIPT
A YEAR OF NO SIGNIFICANCE
Dir. Kelvin Tong | Singapur, Malasia | 2023
SPECIAL MENTION
CU LI NEVER CRIES
Dir. Pham Ngoc Lan | Vietnam | 2024
Public’s Award
BEST FILM
12:12 THE DAY
Kim Sung-su | South Korea | 2023
Most voted films by the public
BLACK DOG
Guan Hu | Xina| 2024
TIME STILL TURNS THE PAGES
Dir. Nick Cheuk | Hong Kong | 2023
THE SEED OF THE SACRED FIG
Dir. Mohammad Rasoulof | Iran | 2024
Casa Àsia | Seu Social