John Skoog’s hybrid documentary Ridge wins CPH:DOX’s main prize, the DOX:AWARD
by Kaleem Aftab
- CPH:DOX has announced its six international competition winners, in the DOX:AWARD, NEW:VISION, F:ACT AWARD, NORDIC:DOX, NEXT:WAVE and Politiken Audience Award sections
The Swedish hybrid documentary Ridge [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by John Skoog has won the 2019 DOX:AWARD at the CPH:DOX festival in Copenhagen. Ridge is a portrait of the Swedish summer, which conjoins documentary footage, visual art and abstract fiction. The jury, consisting of Berlinale programme director Paz Lázaro, filmmaker Soudade Kaadan, director Frederic Tcheng, critic and curator Eric Hynes and Danish producer Katrin Pors, posited, “Every single one of the beautiful and sensual images is imbued with an inner life.” It is the first feature film by Skoog. The jury also gave out a Special Mention to Germany’s Searching Eva [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Pia Hellenthal, Eva Collé
film profile] by Pia Hellenthal.
Mania Akbari and Douglas White won the NEW:VISION Award for A Moon for My Father. The NEW:VISION jury consisted of British artist Ed Atkins, American curator and producer Lauren Boyle and Danish artist Mathias Kryger, who said, “A Moon for My Father is a complex and generous film about bodies.”
Dark Suns, by Julien Elie, which investigates the wave of killings in Mexico, especially those of women, won the F:ACT Award, the jury for which consisted of Hungarian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer Eszter Hajdu, Tunisian producer Lynda Belkhiria and Danish director Søren Steen Jespersen. The jurors also gave a Special Mention to Luke Lorentzen’s Midnight Family.
The NORDIX:DOX Award was snagged by Norway’s The Men’s Room [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Peter Sommer and Jo Vemund Svendsen. The NORDIC:DOX jury, consisting of British festival programmer Laure Bonville, Danish director Andreas Koefoed and Brazilian festival programmer Anna Glogowski, called the film, “A tribute to friendship and male vulnerability.” A Special Mention was delivered to Swedish production Mating [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lina Maria Mannheimer
film profile] by Lina Maria Mannheimer.
The NEXT:WAVE Award went to the Afghan-Dutch-Japanese-German co-production Kabul, City in the Wind [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Aboozar Amini. Sudanese director-producer Marwa Zein, Italian curator Nico Marzano and Danish sound designer Peter Albrechtsen formed the jury and called the film, “An impressive, artistic and breathtaking documentary that goes beyond war and death.” A Special Mention was awarded to the Spanish effort Inland.
The Poltiken Audience Award was won by Sweden’s Push [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Fredrik Gertten
interview: Leilani Farha
film profile], directed by Fredrik Gertten, which explores the skyrocketing housing prizes around the world.
The Eurimages Co-Production Development Award for best pitch and the DR Talent Award were also handed out during the festival. The former went to Peter-Jan de Pue and Vincent Metzinger for Four Brothers (see the news), while the Talent Award went to Kathrine Skibsted, Andrine Moland and Caroline Salic for Secrets Between Lovers.
Here is the complete list of winners at CPH:DOX 2019:
DOX:AWARD
Ridge [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - John Skoog (Sweden)
Special Mention
Searching Eva [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Pia Hellenthal, Eva Collé
film profile] - Pia Hellenthal (Germany)
NEW:VISION
A Moon for My Father - Mania Akbari and Douglas White (Iran)
FACT:AWARD
Dark Suns - Julien Elie (Canada)
Special Mention
Midnight Family - Luke Lorentzen (Mexico)
NORDIC:DOX
The Men’s Room [+see also:
trailer
film profile] - Petter Sommer and Jo Vemund Svendsen (Norway)
Special Mention
Mating [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lina Maria Mannheimer
film profile] - Lina Maria Mannheimer (Sweden)
NEXT:WAVE
Kabul, City in the Wind [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – Aboozar Amini (Afghanistan/Netherlands/Japan/Germany)
Special Mention
Inland [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Juan Palacios (Spain/Denmark)
Politiken Audience Award
Push [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Fredrik Gertten
interview: Leilani Farha
film profile] - Fredrik Gertten (Sweden)
Eurimages Co-Production Development Award
Four Brothers – Peter-Jan de Pue and Vincent Metzinger (Belgium/Germany)
DR Talent Award
Secrets Between Lovers – Kathrine Skibsted, Andrine Moland and Caroline Salic (Denmark)
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