07/10/2013 - Premiere of a political prize at the Filmfest Hamburg that rewarded Dylan Mohan Gray and Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof

“We had well-frequented screenings, more than 250 guests including directors, actors or producers and an audience that likes to participate in discussions and is not afraid of political topics,” sums up Filmfest Hamburg director Albert Wiederspiel after ten festival days. “The audience followed us on our journey across world cinema. A visual proof of it is that the section Iran Deluxe was the most successful country retrospective ever at our festival.”

At the closing night, the festival director welcomed Isabella Rossellini who was in town to present her big photo book about her mother Ingrid Bergman with personal pictures that have never been published before. The actress handed over the Montblanc script award to writer/director Katrin Gebbe for her acclaimed debut feature Tore tanzt [+see also:
trailer
film profile] in which she shows that the human soul remains a mystery.

A new award that includes a prize money of € 5,000 is dedicated to the political film. The prize was split between Dylan Mohan Gray’s documentary Fire in the Blood about AIDS in developing countries and the battle for affordable medicine and Manuscripts Don’t Burn (photo) by Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof whose passport was recently confiscated. Hamburg-based director Fatih Akin received the award. “He was my assistant director when I shot my second film Im Juli but he was so experienced that I learned from him,” said Fatih Akin who read out a note of the award winner: “I had no idea that I made a political film,” stated Mohammad Rasoulof in his message.

The C.I.C.A.E. award that includes German distribution support in the amount of  € 5,000 from the Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein went to Venus in Fur [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Roman Polanski
film profile] by Roman Polanski while the American independent film Term Short 12 by Destin Daniel Cretton received the newcomer prize. The French comedy The Brats [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Anthony Marciano won the Audience Award.