On Saturday, August 19th, the festival jury illustrator, artist, filmmaker and musician Dave McKean (UK), animation directors Izabela Plucińska (Germany/Poland) and Natalia Mirzojan (Armenia/Estonia) announced the winners in the Sõprus cinema.
Animist Tallinn Grand Prix
Grand Prix went to the film “The Family Portrait” by Lea Vidakovic (Croatia, France, Serbia, 2023). Animist Tallinn Festival Grand Prize was presented by the City of Tallinn prize of 3000 euros.
Jury comment: “It’s a profound evocation of a specific time and place and the failing fortunes of a family, told in subtle moments, the play of light, and shifting textures.”
Jury Special Prize
Jury decided to give the Special Prize to the film “Eeva” by Morten Tšinakov and Lucija Mrzljak (Estonia, Croatia, 2022).
Jury comment: “A unique dreamlike narrative which precisely captures the trauma of grief and guilt with deeply personal metaphorical scenes and darkly humorous timing.”
Special Mention from Natalia Mirzojan
“Our Uniform” by Yegane Moghaddam (Iran, 2022)
Comment: “I was impressed by the play of textures and the mixing of different techniques, with which the director broached a serious topic, while avoiding pomposity.”
Special Mention from Izabela Plucińska
“Oneluv” by Varya Yakovleva (Russia, 2022)
Comment: “A small apartment and drama described in a sophisticated way. Every line hurts, touches us with its reality. Varia’s film surprises in every shot.”
Special Mention from Dave McKean
“Ice Merchants” by João Gonzalez (Portugal, France, UK, 2022)
Comment: “I loved this beautifully drawn, elegantly animated, utterly unexpected and moving little fable – this ice will melt your heart.”
Yarnspinner’s Favourite
Yarnspinner.com presented special prizes for the best animations with dialogue or narrator’s voice. The main prize of the Yarnspinner, which is 1000 euros, went to film “The Rubbings of Trajectories” by Cheng-Hsu Chung (Taiwan, Germany, 2023).
Jury comment: “Charmingly colourful and poetic whole which you want to watch more than once. Marvelously the text is not underlining the picture, instead it’s hypnotizing with voice and rhythm. The meaning of the words is bearly tangible, the way touch points in the movie are in dynamic movement, offering a wistful recognition that distance and presence are simultaneously possible.”
Yarnspinner’s Special Mention
The prize of 500 euros went to the film “Our Uniform” by Yegane Moghaddam (Iran, 2022).
Jury comment: “A personal and at the same time wide-ranging film whose eye-catchingly clever solution leaves no doubt how to understand what is happening somewhere else with someone else.”