Award Winners

THE ARC OF SENSES

Our happiest Days by Sol Berruezo Pichon-Riviere, endowed with 500 € by Kontrastfilm

Our happiest days- a film telling the arc between life and death with both sensitivity and humour, in which every single character seizes the possibility of growing beyond its limits. Sensual, relevant and surprising.

BEST FEATURE FILM (2/2)

Marisa En Los Bosques by Antonio Morales, endowed with 1.000 € by Memofilm

The director stages this quickly told plot as a chain of episodes set in the milieu of the urban scene in Madrid. A steady change of film language and style corresponds with the unsteadiness of the protagonist. The references to movies, from the Nouvelle Vague to Magic Realism – including footage from the film library, surely delight cinephiles trying to decode the origins. But the appropriation and stringing of known motifs exceeds far beyond an admiring imitation. Thereby a whole new entity is created – an auteur film, no longer believing in the old meta-narratives, which playfully sketches an artistically autonomous image of contemporary attitudes of life.

THE ARC OF SENSES

Being Ernest by Victoria Fistes, endowed with 750 € by Kontrastfilm

Film is an art, which is supposed to place the eye in the center of the universe. But it wouldn´t be art if it didn´t try to expand its sensory universe. Victoria Fistes did this with a brave reduction to imaginary seeing.

BEST SCENOGRAPHY

Fisherman and the girl by Mamuka Tkeshelashvili, endowed with 500 € by Spektrumfilm

The director has created a world with great attention to detail. He manages to bring lifeless objects to life, more than that, they seem that vivid, for the duration of the movie, you forget about time and space. With bright colors and a keen sense of aesthetics, the world of Fisherman and the girl enchanted us. The scenery of this film is outstanding and extraordinary, which is why we want to honor his film with Best Scenography.

GREATEST RISK

Being Ernest by Victoria Fistes, sponsored by newCut Werbefilme

These days Film is associated with 3D, special effects and Dolby atmosphere. Victoria Fistes showed a completely black screen with typography, pictographs in old fashioned 2D and the voice of a child. The director is brave enough to take risk by using only a few resources and creates a cinematic experience that touches the audience emotionally.

ARC OF SENCES

Lieve by Vincent Groos

The film sensitively tells the story of the home nurse. The director tells the story in atmospheric, precise images and lets us look deep into the soul of his main character. The role of “Lieve” is fantastically cast by Joke Emmers, who plays the role of the nurse in a pure, believable and subtle way. Surrounded by an excellent cast, a believable story emerges that is very well constructed and researched and gives us insights into a world that is special due to the setting and yet still feels familiar. We all know the plight of people in need of care who are alone in old age and are aware of the problem of the nursing shortage. The film shows us the scope of this drama in a highly emotional way, without exposing the suffering of the elderly. Vincent Groos has treated this important topic with great sensitivity and, in our eyes, is the ideal winner for the Arc of Senses. 

SPECIAL MENTION

Mission Lifeline by Markus Weinberg & Luise Baumgarten

The refugee crisis on the edges of Europe is not over, even if there is perhaps less reporting about it at the moment. Mission Lifeline is therefore an important contribution, an appeal to our basic humanistic values ​​in order to keep this drama in focus, also to see it in the larger context of the climate crisis, and to finally bring about political change.

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BEST FEATURE FILM (1/2)

Landrauschen by Lisa Miller, endowed with 1.000 € by Memofilm

Movies tell stories. Most of them are completed but usually life isn´t. During this movie the protagonists trip over those kinds of unevenness and the director makes it to the principle of her story-telling. That makes if possible for her to renew stereotypes of a coming-of-age-story in the genre of a sentimental film at a regional setting with all its obligatory figures and to catch the sound of an unexpected life.

SPECIAL MENTION

I am Burrnesha by Radiana Bozhikova

I am Burrnesha is a film that shows, with strong and fascinating characters, a testimony of a disappearing side of a culture. A portrait documentary that is emotionally moving and educational.

AUDIENCE CHOICE

The old man and the dead von Amir Reza Falaki, endowed with 500 € by Media Atelier

Amir Reza Falaki has developed a special imagery and narrative style with his movie The old man an the dead, which has not only convinced our programmers, he has also captivated our festival audience this year.

BEST VISUAL STORYTELLING

Mona Lisa Selfie by Daniel McKee, endowed with 500 € by Pillefilm

This movie is about pictures. One of the best-known analogue pictures of the world, which is seen by 6 million people every year. And about millions of digitally made pictures of people who want to draw attention to themselves. Doesn't the inflation of images devalue the production of all pictures and in the end also the artistically created picture? Is our narcisstic self only able to experience and feel itself in the reflection of social media like Instagram and co? How can we understand the world surrounding us if we are no longer able to observe its counterpart in art, but instead embed it seamlessly as an effigy into their own mirror world? These and many other important questions are raised by Daniel McKee in only 70 seconds without even holding a camera himself.

BEST ACTING PERFORMANCE

Anna by Dekel Berenson, Actress: Svetlana Alekseevna Barandich

A wonderful milieu study about a single mother in her late 40s. The leading actress Svetlana Barandich embodies the role of the mother of an almost adult daughter looking for a partner, so authentically and with the courage to play “little games” that you follow her character with great interest... The sometimes merciless, brutal images (for example her workplace, the slaughterhouse) or the wonderful images that are almost like a still life, tell a lot without big words and create a very unique atmosphere with plenty of room for your own interpretation.

THE ARC OF SENSES

The Bleak Farm by Christian Zipfel, endowed with 750 € by Spektrumfilm

The Bleak Farm is an impressive document of history that is depicted in densely packed black & white images. The intense storyline draws the viewer into a period long gone with credibility. Every element of filmic narration is carried out with great expertise. The visual appeal as well as the soundscape match the historic reality of the 19th century. From its blunt narration to the surprising end, Der einsame Hof puts up against established cinema practises - in the end, the evil wins.

SPECIAL MENTION

Wherever I may find her by Rachel M. Somerville

An enchanting cinematic experiment that captures the essence of a tender and gentle love story. A strong artistic endeavor that defies the confines of a linear narrative, beautifully conveying the timeless truth that love knows no boundaries of beginning or end.

EMOTIONAL ARC

Fracture by Panagiotis Fafoutis, endowed with 650 € by Media Atelier

Fracture - An atmospherically strong, quiet film that delights with a believable cast and truthful acting and that visually captivates the viewer. A precious and bittersweet look at life.

SPECIAL MENTION

After Dawn by Nicolas Graux After Dawn

After Dawn tells in a very sensitive and sensual way about the love between two young men. We were impressed by the camera, the direction and the acting performance. The film also fulfills an important social task. The more frequently we treat the subject of homosexuality as a society, the less reservations we will experience and the more understanding will be built up.

SPECIAL NARRATIVE

Weavers of Imagination by Sadegh Jafari, endowed with 250 € by luli Productions

The women weaving carpets in this movie are blind. Colors, surfaces, lines and the interplay are only in their imaginary but in the end, they create real magnificent ornaments. The camera watches the lifes of the weavers with a distant view like it´s afraid to appear sentimental or pastoral. This careful gesture turns a simple movie into an occasion – just like the tradition of Iranian movies.

BEST VISUAL STORYTELLING

The Man Who Shot Himself In The Head by Harvard Harboe, endowed with 250 € by Spektrumfilm

A shot misses its target but hits deep. The dysfunctional relation the movie is carried by is depicted by very consisent camera work, packed into almost metaphorical images. Consequently, the movie develops its own visual concept that makes the camera comparable to a voice-over. This way it gains sustainability and credibility, which draw the viewer into the story.

CIVIL EYE AWARD

From Seed to Seed by Katharina Stieffenhofer, endowed with 300 € Vierte Wand & AL-Plus

We award the prize Civil Eye Award to From Seed to Seed, as the film contains the most important topic of human life: The respectful treatment of our earth, the animals and the people. Katharina Stieffenhofer passionate and loving documentation about organic farmers is full of optimism and hope for a better living. In addition to information and knowledge, the film conveys above all great gratitude for those who grow our food.

ARC OF SENCES

Mum, Mum, Mum by Sol Berruezo Pichon-Rviere

GREATEST RISK

Sun Dog by Dorian Jespers

The film takes a look into the emotional world of the young locksmith, who works during the seemingly endless polar night. The film is not content with showing its hero in this situation.It's told as a disturbing collage of sensory impressions. Inner monologues, liturgical music, sound collages and a shady, blurry camera, which sometimes seems to move independently of the action, are woven into a stream of experiences that is reminiscent of a fever dream. The film itself becomes an imprint of the human soul in which both the protagonist and the filmmaker reveal themselves. 

BEST VISUAL STORYTELLING

SQUISH by Xavier Seron, endowed with 300 € by Spektrumfilm

THE ARC OF SENSES

Fisherman and the girl by Mamuka Tkeshelashvili, endowed with 1.000 € by Kontrastfilm

Mamuka Tkeshelashvili tells a story in his film Fisherman and the girl that won our hearts instantly. He manages to tell a story that works without dialogue and relies entirely on its images and the use of music. The film addresses those two senses, a film can address: seeing and hearing. And although you can see that world is not real but costructed, you sink immediatly into the world and the story and get carried away by the emotions. That is why in our opinion the film deserves the prize of The Arc of Senses.

1st RHEINLAND-PFÄLZISCHER FILM & FÖRDERPREIS

Death of the Filmmaker by Cornelius Koch endowed with 2.000 € by the Arc.

Cornelius Koch developed a clever, innovative and funny animation film, dealing with the effects of storytelling. The film is full of surprises and is playing with filmgenres and realities. Visually stunning with excellent szenorgafie with a lot of love for detail.

BEST VISUAL STORYTELLING

Close Enough by Mahdi Hossengholi und Mojtaba Zarghampour, endowed with 500 € by Pille

First-time Filmmakers Mahdi Hossengholi and Mojtaba Zarghampour convince the jury with their Experimental. The 9 minutes plan-sequence and its unexpected
turning point does not only motivate the slight but dramatic camera-movement. It reveals a new perspective and induces a simple but tragic question: do we have to get even closer to see. Or is it close enough to take up action? The filmmakers usage of minimalistic means outputs a maximum drama. Thus the jury honours Close Enough for Best Visual Storytelling!

NEW MEDIA

Kelim 12 by Nils Hillebrand, endowed with 250 € by Prisma.Film

The video installation “Kelium 12” by Nils Hildebrand plays with the effects from the beginning of music videos. The imperfection of the partly used analog world of colors becomes an abstract area of a moving composition with a rhythmic change. The special part is the new interpretation of a technical imperfect original material into a modern and abstract context. Just like the process of Kelium weaving the pattern are developed with a virtual weaving loom.

AUDIENCE AWARD

Nimbostratus by Samuel Ackermann, endowed with 200 € by admissions

Apart from our jury of experts we put immense trust in the audience and gave the viewers the opportunity to vote for themselves. Most gladly did and chose Samuel Ackermann and his team as winners of the audience award for their movie "Nimbostratus". This lovely and bizarre story around a man and his relationship with a rain cloud is not only good for laughs, but also wins you over with its refreshing narration and tasteful imagery.

FRESH VIEW AWARD

Erdenleib von Vincent Ecoradi, Nicholas Dues & Julius Schulze Farwick, endowed with 300 € by Prisma.film

This film creates a unique story world. The single character is quite shocking to see at first - a being who has cut himself off from the world who is living in darkness with his eyes as his only source of light. We don't know his backstory but we might guess how he became this underground recluse. The theme is universal and metaphorical. The implementation is poetic and artistic with stunning and haunting visuals representing both the character's isolation and his never-ending need for light and perhaps humanity.