Winners of 15th Odesa International Film Festival announced
The closing ceremony of the 15th anniversary Odesa International Film Festival took place at the Parkovy Exhibition Center in Kyiv on July 20 where the winners of the festival's main awards were announced.
The 15th anniversary Odesa International Film Festival has come to an end in Kyiv, as it has not been able to take place in Odesa for three years in a row due to Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine. But for the third time in a row, the organizers, saying goodbye to the festival for the year, said: "Next year we will definitely meet in Odesa." We all dream and hope that it will happen.
Traditionally, the names of the festival winners in the European and National competition programs were announced at the ceremony, and the FIPRESCI prize was awarded.
European competition program
First Special Mention - Blueberry Dreams, dir. by Elene Mikaberidze
"The film shows the great respect and loyalty of a man to his land," said Maciek Hamela, a member of the competition jury.
“The extraordinary protagonist and his entire family invite you into their world, where the past, future and present are intertwined, raising very important questions about limits and borders. And against the backdrop of this intimate story, we see the shadow of a global military conflict, which also affects his family.”
Second Special Mention - Sex, dir. by Dag Johan Haugerud
"The film shows a radical openness and reflection on gender identity, desire, love and betrayal," explained the jury's choice Hamela.
“The film intertwines melancholy and humor with beautiful dialogues that leave you spellbound.”
Best European Film - Winner of the Golden Duke - Next to Nothing, dir. by Grzegorz Dębowski
"We were impressed by the impeccable acting and the fact that the director wanted to show us the price we pay for dignity," said jury member Iryna Ostrovska.
“This is the story of a hero from an Eastern European village, which sometimes borders between a detective story and a thriller. It shows what a person has to go through to protect his borders.”
National competition program
FIPRESCI Prize - Perun's Flute, dir. by Yevhen Mazurenko
"Our jury has chosen a chronicle film about Ukrainian soldiers who, in the middle of a protected nature, play death melodies for the enemy on Perun’s flute, protecting the living life of their people," said Oksana Voloshenyuk, a jury member, art historian, chair of the board of the Union of the Ukrainian Film Critics.
The first special award went to Oxygen Station, dir. by Ivan Tymchenko
"The director was able to control the actors, the sound, the image in a wonderful way," said Mike Figgis, a member of the jury, British director.
Second Special Mention - Yasa, dir. by Serhiy Masloboyshchykov
"The film has a meaningful and profound message, and the jury recognizes its importance for the audience and its contribution to the contemporary national discourse," said Sahraa Karimi, a jury member, film director, screenwriter and university lecturer from Afghanistan.
“This is more than a film, it serves as a catalyst for meaningful reflection and search for answers between two generations, two worldviews – the old post-Soviet, opportunistic one and the new, free, rebellious and democratic one, and this confrontation led to tragedy.”
Prize for Best Song or Film Score - Oxygen Station, directed by Ivan Tymchenko, composed by Yuu Miyake
Best Ukrainian feature documentary - Golden Duke Winner - Glyadyelov, dir. Kseniya Kravtsova
"The courage and bravery of the soldiers defending their homeland on the front line of this war is impossible to describe in words. Even the horrors and devastation of war cannot be fully expressed in words. However, through the lens of a skilled photographer, these moments of bravery and the harsh reality of war can be vividly captured. These images not only document the present, but also provide lasting insight for our future generations."
Best Ukrainian Feature Film - Winner of the Golden Duke - Gray Bees, Dmytro Moiseyev
"For the cinematic and authentic realization of the story, in its language close to documentary cinema, telling a delicate personal human drama against the backdrop of war, for the organic combination of drama and humor, depth and lightness, realism and atmosphere as if from outer space, for the natural existence of the film's characters, which left us with the deepest feelings as a great film," said Ukrainian director Alisa Kovalenko, a member of the jury.
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