Two weeks after the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival had a triumphant opening with They Will be Dust, this year’s Focus Award winner in Tallinn, the Catalan film world ended the major film event on a high note, with Julia de Paz Sorvas’s family drama The Good Daughter taking home three awards, including the top prize.
Chiara Arancibia, a non-professional, won the Best Actress award for her “mesmerizing performance” according to the jury, and the audience voted to make “The Good Daughter” the festival’s top choice, a godsend for distributor Beta Cinema.
“The film is a powerful and emotional drama about a teenage girl dealing with family conflicts. It handles difficult themes with care and the story feels real. The lead’s performance is honest and sensitive, allowing the audience to understand how she feels. The simple cinematography and editing , supporting the story without distracting. Overall, the film depicts family conflict in a realistic and meaningful way,” said the jury, which consisted of director Teona Strugal Mitevska, Debra McGuire’s costume designer of Friends fame. The producers are Nomundur Turmung and Ingo Fleiss, and the cinematographer is Robert Schäfer.
De Paz Sorvas, co-writer of the Series Mania Award-winning show “Querer,” threw himself into Arancibia’s arms and thanked the jury, telling the packed crowd: “I would like to thank my co-writer Mi Amor (Nuría Dunho). We started this film with the desire to restore basic rights, including the rights of children living in violent relationships.”
Family, both literally and figuratively referring to families of filmmakers, producers and crafters, was a very big theme at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (also known as PÖFF), which for the first time combined the festival with the Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event awards in a fun, smooth and well-coordinated ceremony.
Family is also the theme of all the winning films in major competitions, including Turkey’s “LikeLike,” which received the scoop on direction (Ali Vatansaber) and original music (Erdem Helváčoğlu), and Germany’s “The Frog and the Water,” in which actors Aladdin Detlefsen and Kanji Tsuda shared acting awards for playing unlikely brothers of their own choosing.
Beyond the family, the need for unity, humanity, healing and resilience against attack are at the core of many award-winning titles, and the war in Ukraine is all too present in everyone’s hearts and minds.
“In times like this, comedy is part of the psychological survival toolkit,” Norwegian director Starle Steyn Berg, who won the competition’s best screenplay award for Petter Ness’ political satire “No Comment,” said at the awards ceremony Friday night. “When the world is on fire, we must continue doing what we love, with those we love. Everyone, you are a beacon of love,” he told the audience.
“Hercule” deals with PTSD. Danish filmmaker Christian Bonnke, who won both the Fiplessi Award and the Best Film Award at the 1st Film Competition for “Falling,” said in his speech of thanks: “This film deals with the trauma of war. It shows that war does not end. This film started before Ukraine. But today we are in a situation where all countries are spending more and more money on this military conflict, it looks like they are sending more and more people into the war, and the world leaders are completely abandoning it.”Therefore, I would like to dedicate this film to the victims of the war,” he said, ending his emotional speech with “Glory to Ukraine.”
“Glory to Ukraine” was indeed the rallying cry shouted at Tallinn’s Alexela Concert Hall on Friday night, and it sank painfully into the hearts of many Estonians, Lithuanians and Latvians who share memories of the not-so-distant Russian occupation. “My film deals with the war in Ukraine, which affects all of us and our democracy. We must resist and create art that unites people,” insisted Lithuanian director Gabriele Urbonaite, who won the director’s award for “Renovation” at the Baltic Film Competition.
lithuanian rules
Lithuania enters PÖFF with a record 17 titles and returns home with a record nine wins across all festivals and industry awards, with veteran Ur of Renovation, Holy Destructors It confirmed the vitality of a new generation of talent supported by strong producers such as Jana Kim, M Film’s two-time Work in Progress winner who produced the Baltic films “Dice Chin O Mat and Mariya Razgute”. Competition winners “The Visitor” and “Becoming.”
Finland also had a strong showing on Friday night, winning the Doc@PÖFF International Competition’s Best Film Award for “Days of Wonder,” “Pay Day” for Best Short Film in the Rebels with a Cause category, and newcomer Siri Halko’s “The Well,” which won the hefty €20,000 ($23,000) Eurymage Co-Production and Development Award. Award-winning.
Last night was also a celebration of animation, with the presentation of a touching Lifetime Achievement Award to Estonian master Janno Prudma, co-creator of the iconic “Lotte” character and children’s and youth films, through the sub-festival Just Film. “Film literacy in schools is essential and films for children and youth should not be ghettoized, but they are still ignored by the film industry,” said Marge Rieske, Director of Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Events.
Film education and training also gained attention through numerous awards at the Discovery Campus in Tallinn. Two-time Palme d’Or winner Jessica Hausner, one of the program’s star leaders, was presented with the festival’s first honorary award by Tallinn Black Nights Festival Director Tina Locke. “Art is about asking questions, not giving all the answers,” the Austrian director said, quoting French director Julia Ducournau, who was also quoted by director Martin Scorsese himself.
From November 7th to 23rd, Tallinn Black Night, one of the world’s “A-list” film festivals alongside Cannes, Berlin and Venice, screened 252 feature films and 275 short films from 79 countries, including 111 world premieres and 31 international premieres.
On the industry side, nearly 860 accredited guests from around 50 countries have registered to attend the annual event, which brings together content from the Baltics, Northern Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, and more.
“Movies as an art form, not glamor, is our focus,” Locke previously told Variety. “We know that the producers, filmmakers and distributors have finally understood our DNA and sent us a great film to show to a passionate movie audience. Next year will be our big 30th anniversary and we can’t wait to celebrate this with our team and audience,” she said.
Winners of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF)
Official selection tournament
Grand Prix
“The Good Daughter” Julia de Paz Sorvas (Spain)
Best Director Award
Ali Vatansever, “Lifelike” (Türkiye)
Best Actress Award
“Chiara Arancibia”, “Good Daughter” (Spain)
Best Actor Award
Aladdin Detlefsen, Kanji Tsuda (The Frog and the Water, Germany)
Best Screenplay Award
Stolle Stein Berg “No Comment” (Norway)
Best Production Design Award
Chris Richmond, David Hand “Think of England” (UK)
Best original score
Erdem Helvaçoğlu, “Just like the real thing” (Türkiye)
Best Cinematographer
Yutaka Yamazaki “Imaginary Dog and Liar Cat” (Japan)
1st full length competition
Best movie award
“The Fall of Hercules” Christian Bonnke (Denmark)
Best Director Award
Samuel Abrahams “Lady” (UK)
Special Jury Award, Editing Award,
Jan van der Veken “The Ninth Sunday” (Belgium)
Special Jury Award
“Easy Girl” Hille Norden (Germany)
Critics Choice Competition
Best movie award
“China Sea”, Jurgis Maturevicius (Lithuania, Taiwan, Poland, Czech Republic)
Best Director Award
Matthias Schlansky “Summer Story” (Argentina)
Special note
“Ah, what happy days.” Homayun Ghanizadeh (Iran)
Special note
“Mo Papa” Eeva Magi (Estonia)
Rebel with a Cause Contest
Best Picture Award “The Baroness”
Nabil Ben Yadir, Mokhtaria Badaoui (Belgium, Luxembourg, France)
Best Director Award
Logan Graham “Blindsight” (Romania, Türkiye)
Best Short Film “Rebel with a Cause”
“Pay Day” Paivi Hirsiaho (Finland)
Doc@PÖFF Baltic Sea Competition
Best movie award
“Sacred Destroyers” Aistė Žegulytė (Lithuania, France, Latvia)
Special Jury Award
“My Family and Other Clowns” Heilika Pickov, Leena Sarkinen (Estonia)
Doc@PÖFF International Competition
Best movie award
“Days of Wonder” Karin Pennanen (Finland, Denmark, Norway)
Special Jury Award
Raisa Răzmeriśă and her team “Choosing Santa” Raisa Răzmeriśă (Romania, Moldova)
Best Cinematographer
Max Golomidov “Edge of the Night” Vladimir Loginov (Estonia)
baltic film competition
Best movie award
“The Visitor” Vytautas Katukas (Lithuania, Norway, Sweden)
Best Director Award
Gabriele Urbonite “Renovation” (Lithuania, Latvia, Belgium)
Best Baltic Co-Production Producer
Jannat Arshanova “Becoming” Hannat Arshanova (France, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Lithuania, Sweden)
NETPAC (Asian Film Promotion Network) Jury Award
“Muralist” Sengedorj Yanchikhdorj (Mongolia)
International Federation of Film Critics (Fiprecsci) Award
“The Fall of Hercules” Christian Bonnke (Denmark)
PÖFF Audience Award
“The Good Daughter” Julia de Paz Sorvas (Spain)
Just Film Youth and Children Film Festival
Grand Prix
“They call me Danka” Dovil Gashiunite (Lithuania)
Junior Jury Best Work Award
“The Secret of the Songbird” Antoine Renchaud (France)
Children’s Jury Best Work Award
“Leo and Lou” Carlos Solano (Spain)
Youth Jury Best Film Award
“Wheelie”, Isis Mihrimah Cavolet (Netherlands)
ECFA Award
“Mira” Marie Rimkilde (Denmark)
#Young Filmmaker Award Sunflower, Ketrin Koif
Industry Awards, Selection:
Baltic event co-production market
Best project
“The Well” written by Shiri Halko, produced by Silm Films (Finland)
Yurimage Special Collaboration Development Award
“Alice Wants to Live” by Denis Sobolev (presented to the Ukrainian project)
– Producers Network Award given to promising young producers
“No Salvation Coming” (Czech Republic) and “Vesna” (Ukraine, France, Lithuania)
Popularity of the Baltic Sea event co-production market
“The Queen of England Stole My Parents” by Ernestas Jankauskas (Lithuania, Poland)
Screenplay Pool Award
White Ship by Teresa Väli (Estonia)
Screenplay Pool Public Favorite Award: “Apoteos” Christopher Nilsson (Sweden)
european genre forum award
“Little Bird” Faye Jackson (UK)
work in progress
TRT Special Award
“Dice -Ching-O-Mat” by Kristijonas Virgiunas (Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia)
Best international project
“Prince” by Federico Borgia (Argentina, Uruguay)
International Works in Progress Public Favorites
“The Convulsions” David Gutierrez Camp (France, Spain)
Best Baltic Sea Project
“Dice-Ching-O-Mat” Kristijonas Vildziunas (Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia)
Baltic events are ongoing Public favorites
“Lex Julia” by Laura Hypponen (Finland, Estonia, Sweden, Poland)
Best Just Film Project
“Suiza” Maria Fernanda Gonzalez (Peru, Argentina)
Just Film Works in Progress Publication Favorite: “Suiza” (Argentina, Peru)
