European Sweep At Zlin Film Festival Awards

by Sandy Mandelberger, North American Editor

Films from Germany, Sweden and Romania dominated the award winners for the 50th edition of the Zlin Film Festival. Awards were announced at the Festival’s Awards Gala on Saturday, June 6th, which was televised live on Czech Television. Live presenters at the show included the now-grown talents of child stars whose films were honored in the Festival’s previous fifty years.

THE CROCODILES by German director and co-writer Christian Ditter was the winner of the Golden Slipper Award in the International Competition for Feature Films for Children category. The film centers on the attempts of a ten-year-old boy to break into his school’s most popular gang and the lessons he learns along the way. Ditter graduated from the Munich Television And Film Academy and has produced short films, music videos, television series and now feature films.

SEBBE, a Swedish-Finnish co-production written and directed by Babak Najah, won the Golden Slipper Award in the International Competition for Feature Films for Youth category. The intensely dramatic film follows the emotional travails of a teenage boy named Sebastian, Sebbe for short, as he grows up much too fast while being bullied at school and dealing with his emotionally unstable mother. Sebastian Hiort af Arnas gives a profound performance as the youngster who keeps his emotions locked inside while he copes with pressures at school and at home. Contrasting scenes of quiet intensity with emotionally complex and strident sequences, the film brings the audience to the conflicted center of a young man who must confront challenges that he is not yet equipped to handle.

An equally intense drama, which also mixes up silent brooding sequences with emotionally volatile ones, is the Romanian prison drama IF I WANT TO WHISTLE, I WHISTLE, directed and co-written by Florin Serban. The film, which is set in a prison for youthful offenders, won the Europe Prize in the International Competition of Feature-Length European Debuts section. The story centers on Silviu, a hulking youth who has less than two weeks left in his four year sentence. When his young brother comes to visit and tells him that their mother has returned after a long absence to take her younger son away, Silviu erupts violently. The emotional tension between Silviu and his wayward mother and the unexpectedly tender relationship with his female hostage create an emotional rollercoaster that twists and turns from emotional neediness to violent desperation. The cast, mainly non-professionals that the director hired on the basis of dramatic workshops held in similar prisons, brings a true authenticity to the proceedings, with lead actor George Pistereanu making a special impression in his role as the prisoner who uses violence to achieve a kind of intimacy.

Here is the complete list of award winners:

Golden Slipper - for Best Feature Film for Children:
MAGICZNE DRZEWO / MAGIC TREE (Andrzej Maleszka, Poland)

Golden Slipper - for Best Feature Film for Youth:
SEBBE (Babak Najafi, Sweden)

The City of Zlín Award - Special Recognition for Feature Film for Children:
VORSTADTKROKODILE / THE CROCODILES (Christian Ditter, Germany)

The Miloš Macourek Award - Special Recognition for Feature Film for Youth:
DEAR LEMON LIMA (Suzi Yoonessi, USA)

Golden Slipper - for Best Animated Film:
LOST AND FOUND (Philip Hunt, UK)

The Hermína Týrlová Award - Award for Young Artists up to the Age of 35:
EL EMPLEO / THE EMPLOYMENT (Santiago Bou Grasso, Argentina)

The Europe Award:
IF I WANT TO WHISTLE, I WHISTLE (Florin Serban, Romania)

Special Jury Award:QU'UN SEUL TIENNE ET LES AUTRES SUIVRONT / SILENT VOICES (Léa Fehner, France)

The Czech Minister of Culture Award:
GALERIANKY / MALL GIRLS (Katarzyna Roslaniec, Poland)

The Don Quixote Award:
KARLA OG JONAS / KARLA AND JONAS (Charlotte Sachs Bostrup, Denmark)

Special FICC Jury Award:
DE INDIAAN / THE INDIAN (Ineke Houtman, Netherlands)

The Ecumenical Jury Award for Children:
DE INDIAAN / THE INDIAN (Ineke Houtman, Netherlands)

The Ecumenical Jury Award for Youth:
SEBBE (Babak Najafi, Sweden)

Main Prize of the Children's Jury - for Best Feature Film for Children:
ECHOES OF THE RAINBOW (Alex Law, Hong Kong, China)

Main Prize of the Children's Jury - for Best Feature Film for Youth:
VORSTADTKROKODILE / THE CROCODILES (Christian Ditter, Germany)

The Golden Apple Audience Award:
STORM (Giacomo Campeotto, Denmark)

The Golden Apple - for Most Successful Animated Film:
HOPPELDIHOP / HIP.HOP.HIPPITYHOP. (Ralf Kukula, Germany)

Lifetime Achievement Award:
Zdenek Sverák

For complete information, visit the Festival’s website: http://www.zlinfest.cz/en
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