The Olympia Festival in Pyrgos (Greece) was the last festival to add new titles to the ECFA Awards nominations shortlists. Three titles to be precise, chosen by two ECFA juries.
In both fiction categories, films were judged by Petra Slatinsek (Slovenia), Daniel Lundquist (Sweden) and Ifigenia Kalantzi (Greece). Their prize for Best Short went to MELTING HEART CAKE (Benoît Chieux, France), in which Anna ventures on through a glacial forest, haunted by a terrifying bearded giant. “A wonderful animation about unexpected adventures with a strong message and lots of positive energy.”
The ECFA Feature Award went to MY GRANDPA IS AN ALIEN (Croatia). In this film by Drazen Zarkovic & Marina Andree Skop, little Una has 24 hours to find her grandpa, who has been kidnapped by aliens. Luckily she gets help from a grumpy robot. “Science-fiction for a young audience is something we’ve rarely seen in Europe. In this strong story, friendship overcomes all troubles.”
The ECFA Doc Award went to ANBESSA (Mo Scarpelli, Italy). “In a suburban housing area in Addis Ababa the traditional way of life clashes with modern times. A single mother who inherited her deep wisdom from the ancestors educates her only son, Asalif, the best she can. Their poor wooden cottage without running water or electricity is getting more and more in the shadow of big apartment buildings. Someday Asalif will find the world of modern entertainment more attractive than his mother’s old stories. This change of times can be noticed in carefully observed scenes and strong symbols. We can read the anger and insecurity on the protagonists’ faces – this is all about the future of Africa.”
The ECFA Doc Jury were Marta Kraus (Poland), Reinhold Schöffel (Germany) and Jaroslava Hynstova (Czech Republic) (from left to right).