Life doesn’t stand still! Just a few days after the ECFA Award 2025 was presented in Berlin, the first titles were written on the shortlist for the next edition, at the PLAY festival in Lisbon. A short time later, nominations also arrived from the Youth Film Festival Antwerp. On to another rock-solid edition!
At the PLAY festival, the ECFA Award went to a Portuguese film. In WE MADE A FILM by Tota Alves, Maria Inês experiences the first breezes of love during a summer vacation. Together with her friends, she strolls through the neighbourhood, dividing her time between beads and a movie shoot.
The ECFA Jury were Anne Schultka (Germany), Jessica Cohen (the Netherlands), directors Ana Sofia Fonseca and António Pedro, and programmer Ricardo Vieira (all three from Portugal).
The Youth Film Festival Antwerp has the laudable habit of presenting no less than three ECFA Awards. All chosen by a busy jury, which this year included Calliope Charalambous (Greece), Hidde de Vries (the Netherlands), Christophe Verbiest (Belgium) and Lauranne Van den Heede (Belgium). They decided on the following awards:
The ECFA Award for Best Film went to LIVING LARGE (by Kristina Dufková, Czech Republic) for its “extraordinary animation, with true characters, great dialogue and a relatable story, that had the audience roaring with laughter. Growing up, falling in love for the first time, insecurity, self-development, bullying, rejection, self-acceptance and body positivity are recognisable themes that children can relate to in this day and age.”
The ECFA Doc Award went to JUST JOOLS (by Ezra Verbiest, Belgium). “This disarming film shows us that dancing is for everyone. The way the adults and children are on equal footing supports the film’s hopeful message. From the very first moment, we fell in love with the brave main character.”
The ECFA Short Award went to SPARROWS (by Rémi Durin, Belgium). “Through beautiful watercolours, we are taken on a journey that appeals to young and old alike. The beautiful music takes us through forests, along streams and over mountains. The universal theme about the circle of life is recognisable and relevant to everyone.”
Another successful title at the Youth Film Festival was HONEY (by Natasha Arty, Denmark), winning both the Audience Award and the Award of the Children’s Jury.