YOUNG HORIZONS INDUSTRY 2023 Awards
Young Horizons Industry announces its award winners
- A handful of prizes have been given out in the latest edition of the Young Horizons International Film Festival’s prominent industry section
The seventh edition of Young Horizons Industry concluded on Friday after running from 4-6 October. The awards ceremony took place at Kinoteka in Warsaw and was hosted by Maciej Jakubczyk, the department director of Young Horizons (see the interview), and Viola Gabrielli, head of the Young Horizons Industry programme. The pitching and co-production forum, which encompassed live-action films, animations and documentaries, featured 33 projects (see the news) for feature films and series.
The first ORKA Award, valued at 30,000 PLN (€6,550) for in-kind post-production and VFX services, was presented to the Czech live-action feature Princess Goldenhair. Directed by Jan Těšitel and produced by Viktor Krištof for Three Brothers Production, the film tells the tale of Georgie, an unconventional hero who defies his king and embarks on a perilous journey with his steadfast companions, Stephen and Lucky, in search of Princess Goldenhair in a mysterious lake kingdom.
The second ORKA Award, valued at 15,000 PLN (€3,275) and granting ORKA's support for fundraising with a view to co-producing a project with Poland, was presented to another Czech endeavour – the live-action feature Electric Wonder. This project, penned by Barbora Chalupová and produced by Pavla Klimešová for Helium Film, follows Thaddeas, a resourceful orphan who joins forces with inventor Divisch to combat annual lightning-storm fires in a rural village under the queen's directive. They successfully win the trust of sceptical villagers to construct a weather machine, only to uncover that the vicar-turned-mayor is the true arsonist.
The FIXAFILM Award, valued at 30,000 PLN (€6,550) for post-production and VFX services, was awarded to the Polish animated series Pucio. Written by Rafał Skarżycki and produced by Paulina Talarska for EGoFILM, the series centres on Pucio as he embarks on engaging family adventures, exploring various topics such as farm life, recycling, journeys, kitchen experiments and weather. The series encourages children to participate in the excitement. Additionally, the project received one of the No Problemo Music Awards, granting a free music licence for songs from Audio Network's library.
The Audiovisual Technology Center in Wrocław presented an in-kind award worth 45,000 PLN (€9,825) to the Belgian animated feature Big Bang Parade, pitched by director Martyna Koleniec and produced by Annemie Degryse for Lunanime. It is an animation anthology comprising six distinct short films crafted by diverse directors, interwoven within an overarching frame. All of the individual short films and the wider framing narrative showcase distinct graphic styles, effectively spotlighting the unique talents of the directors involved.
The other award-winning projects include the Polish live-action feature Doggy Brawl, written and directed by Andrzej Duda and produced by Wojciech Stuchlik (Under Ski Tower), which received the other No Problemo Music Award. Additionally, the m:brane award, providing direct access to the official selection during m:brane 2024 in Sweden, was bestowed upon the Icelandic live-action film Fabled, written by Guðni Lindal Benediktsson and produced by Arnar Benjamin Kristjansson (Zik Zak Filmworks). The CEE Animation Forum Award, offering direct access to out-of-competition presentations during CEE Animation Forum 2024 in the Czech Republic, was presented to the Polish animated series The Grimmsons, written by Konrad K Mrozik, and produced by Zofia Jaroszuk and Anna Zychowicz (Laniakea Pictures). Animator Natalia Durszewicz was honoured with the Animarkt Stop Motion Forum Award, entitling her to a free accreditation for the event.
Finally, the Audience Award for Best Pitching was granted to the team behind the Norwegian animated series The Huggingtons. This prize includes a free Young Horizons Industry accreditation for the pitching team members.
Here is the list of award winners at the seventh Young Horizons Industry:
ORKA Production Award – Services
Princess Goldenhair (Czech Republic)
Director: Jan Těšitel
Producer: Viktor Krištof (Three Brothers Production)
ORKA Production Award – Fundraising
Electric Wonder (Czech Republic)
Writer: Barbora Chalupová
Producer: Pavla Klimešová (Helium Film)
FIXAFILM Award
Pucio (Poland)
Writer: Rafał Skarżycki
Producer: Paulina Talarska (EGoFILM)
Audiovisual Technology Center in Wrocław Award
Big Bang Parade (Belgium)
Director: Martyna Koleniec
Producer: Annemie Degryse (Lunanime)
No Problemo Music Awards
Doggy Brawl (Poland)
Writer-director: Andrzej Duda
Producer: Wojciech Stuchlik (Under Ski Tower)
Pucio
m:brane Award
Fabled (Iceland)
Writer: Guðni Lindal Benediktsson
Producer: Arnar Benjamin Kristjansson (Zik Zak Filmworks)
CEE Animation Forum Award
The Grimmsons (Poland)
Writer: Konrad K Mrozik
Producers: Zofia Jaroszuk, Anna Zychowicz (Laniakea Pictures)
Animarkt Stop Motion Forum Award
Natalia Durszewicz
Audience Award for Best Pitching
The Huggingtons (Norway)
Director: Lars Hegdal
Producer: Kjersti Greger (Klipp og Lim)
Did you enjoy reading this article? Please subscribe to our newsletter to receive more stories like this directly in your inbox.
