Memoryland comes out on top at the 21st Las Palmas Film Festival
- This co-production between Vietnam and Germany, directed by Kim Quy Bui, received the Golden Lady Harimaguada for its portrayal of the Asian conflict between the spiritual and material
On 30 April, the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria International Film Festival presented the awards for its twenty-first edition, held since 22 April, with the top prize, the Golden Lady Harimaguada, going to Memoryland [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Vietnam/Germany), directed by Kim Quy Bui. The jury of the Official Selection, comprised of Lucile Hadzihalilovic, Rita El Khayat and Tiina Lokk, decided to award this work as it is "a film that questions the survival of the soul of a culture, as well as of its dead, through its funeral rites, in a society that struggles between tradition and modernity, spirituality and materialism".
The second prize, the Silver Lady Harimaguada, went to Father's Day (Rwanda), by Kivu Ruhorahoza; the jury also commended the leading actors (Aline Amike and Mediatrice Kayitesi), who shared the Best Actress Award. A special mention was also given to Ha Le Diem’s Children of the Mist, ; while the co-production between Switzerland, France and Belgium The Line [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ursula Meier
film profile] by Ursula Meier, won the Audience Award. In the short film category, the award went to the work by director Janaina Wagner Curupira e a máquina do destino (Brazil/France), and Neozoon's Biting the Dust (Germany) received a special mention.
Whereas, in the Bande à Part section, the feature film Rewind & Play [+see also:
film review
interview: Alain Gomis
film profile], by Alain Gomis (France/Germany) won. For the jury, made up of Rosa Pérez, Marina Kozul and María Vera, “the film is an extemporaneous portrait of ignorance and oppression, achieving a powerful and disturbing narrative”.
In the Panorama Spain section, the documentary Los caballos mueren al amanecer [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ione Atenea
film profile], by Ione Atenea from Navarre won, with a special mention to the family drama Lullaby [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alauda Ruiz de Azúa
film profile], by the Basque director Alauda Ruiz de Azúa. In the Canarias Cinema section, the Richard Leacock Award for Best Feature Film went to Rendir los machos [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Spain/France), by David Pantaleón; and the Richard Leacock Award for Best Short Film went to Bancalfu (Spain), by Rafael Montezuma. The jury also awarded a special mention to Una flor en vacío by Spanish director Jesús F. Cruz. And the short film Time (L)over (Spain), by Álvaro Pinell, won the Digital 104 Distribution Award.
Finally, the festival once again receives the support of the Association of Women Filmmakers and Audiovisual Media CIMA to award works that help raise awareness and promote social commitment to gender equality. This year, the award is shared between Geographies of Solitude, by Canadian Jacquelyn Mills, and the aforementioned The Line, by Ursula Meier.
As for the industry aspect of the event, the MECAS market, which held its fifth edition between 23 and 26 April (read more), the winners were: the Film-to-Be-Made 2022 award went to Peter Pan (France), by Natacha Samuel and Florent Klockenbring; El exterior, by Canarian Víctor Moreno was the winner of the Almost-Finished Film 2022 award with a prize of €5,000; and the winning project of MECAS Island 2022 was Mi familia isleña, by Cristina Yurena Zerr.
The awards:
Official Section
Golden Lady Harimaguada
Memoryland [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Kim Quy Bui (Vietnam/Germany)
Silver Lady Harimaguada
Father’s Day - Kivu Ruhorahoza (Rwanda)
Best Actress Award
Aline Amike and Mediatrice Kayitesi - Father’s Day
Special Jury Mention
Children of the Mist - Ha Le Diem (Vietnam)
Best Short Film Award
Curupira e a máquina do destino - Janaina Wagner (Brazil/France)
Special Mention Short Film
Biting the Dust – Neozoon (Germany)
Audience Award
The Line [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ursula Meier
film profile] - Ursula Meier (Switzerland/France/Belgium)
Bande à Part Section
Bande à Part Award
Rewind & Play [+see also:
film review
interview: Alain Gomis
film profile] - Alain Gomis (France/Germany)
Panorama Spain
Panorama Spain Award
Los caballos mueren al amanecer [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ione Atenea
film profile] - Ione Atenea
Special Jury Mention
Lullaby [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alauda Ruiz de Azúa
film profile] - Alauda Ruiz de Azúa
Canarias Cinema Section
Richard Leacock Award for Best Feature Film
Rendir los machos [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - David Pantaleón (Spain/France)
Richard Leacock Award for Best Short Film
Bancal - Rafael Montezuma (Spain)
Special Jury Mention
Una flor en el vacío - Jesús F. Cruz (Spain)
Digital 104 Distribution Award
Time (L)over / Time Lover- Álvaro Pinell (Spain)
Cima Award
Geographies of Solitude - Jacquelyn Mills (Canada)
The Line - Ursula Meier
MECAS
Almost-Finished Film Award
Peter Pan - Natacha Samuel and Florent Klockenbring
Production: Gaëlle Jones (France)
Film-to-Be-Made Award
El exterior - Víctor Moreno
Production: Kino Pravda (Spain)
MECAS Island
Mi familia isleña - Cristina Yurena Zerr
(Translated from Spanish by Vicky York)
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