On Saturday, February 14th, ECFA announced the winners of the annual ECFA Awards in three categories. Winner of the Best Feature Award was LIVING LARGE (by Kristina Dufková, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, France), the Documentary Award went to CIRCUSBOY (Julia Lemke & Anna Koch, Germany), and the Short Film Award was taken home by HANNAH & THE CROCODILE (Lore Mechelaere, Belgium). Awards were handed out at the Berlinale in a festive ceremony.
Director Kristina Dufková received ECFA’s Best European Children’s Film Award for LIVING LARGE (Slovakia, the Czech Republic, France), produced by Barletta, Novinski & Novanima. Benjamin Pipetka, a 12-year-old who loves cooking and food, is about to face his biggest challenge yet. On the first day back at school, he sees his crush Clare, and suddenly, his weight becomes a problem he can’t ignore. Can Ben find the confidence to win her heart—and like himself along the way?
Producer Matěj Chlupáček: ‘This film is about acceptance, about how being different is not a weakness but a strength. This is something important in the world of today.’
The ECFA Documentary Award for Best Young Audience Documentary was handed out to CIRCUSBOY (Germany), by Julia Lemke & Anna Koch, produced by Flare Film. Eleven-year-old Santino is a child of the circus. His best friend is his 80-year-old great-grandfather, one of Europe‘s last great circus directors.
Directors Julia Lemke & Anna Koch: ‘We couldn’t have dreamed of a better career for our film. If you think that nobody is waiting for children’s documentaries, then it is great to know that there actually is a platform for it.’
The ECFA Short Film Award for Best European Young Audience Short Film of the year went to HANNAH & THE CROCODILE (Belgium), directed by Lore Mechelaere and produced by Het Peloton. When Fien discovers that her sister Hannah is threatened by a vicious crocodile that is making her skinny and sick, her world is turned upside down. Fien enlists the help of Mum and Dad to join Hannah in defeating the crocodile, so that Hannah will make it to her next birthday.
Director Lore Mechelaere: ‘Impact is the most important achievement of this film, and this ECFA Award contributes to that.’
With this choice, ECFA members are indicating that they are not only looking for quality cinema – the list of nominations for the ECFA Award is the perfect showcase of quality production in Europe – but also for films that take on a social role and give a voice to young people who choose an unusual lifestyle or who are struggling with tough issues. President Pantelis Panteloglou: “The ECFA community consists of organisations that nurture young audiences across Europe and beyond, and their common ground is that we need to take children seriously. This is clearly evident from the choices made in 26 festivals last year, and from the final decision, made by our members for the 15th edition of the ECFA Awards.”
These awards also represent a victory for national support programmes. HANNAH & THE CROCODILE was made as part of Ket & Doc, the Flemish Audiovisual Fund’s development programme for short children’s documentaries, which quickly established a strong national documentary tradition. CIRCUSBOY was produced as the first Documentary within the Outstanding Films for Children funding model, which aims to increase the production of children’s films based on original stories, and is organised by the German Children’s Film Association.
The ECFA Award is the only European children’s film award voted on by professionals, all 170 of them members of ECFA.
Copyright photos: IFF SCHLiNGEL