Terrestrial Verses wins big at the Luxembourg City Film Festival
- The film by Ali Asgari and Alireza Khatami has won the Grand Prix, Reas was crowned Best Documentary, while Viggo Mortensen received an Honorary Award at the country’s main festival
The Luxembourg City Film Festival (LuxFilmFest) has revealed the winners of its 14th edition. The international jury, consisting of director Ira Sachs, actress Nathalie Hertzberg, actor Sebastian Koch, actress Vicky Krieps, producer Marianne Slot, director Damián Szifron and actor Arnaud Valois, honoured Terrestrial Verses by Ali Asgari and Alireza Khatami with the Grand Prix, valued at €10,000. Additionally, Terrestrial Verses was granted the FIPRESCI Award, presented by an international panel of film critics under the auspices of the International Federation of Film Critics.
Terrestrial Verses follows everyday people from all walks of life as they navigate the cultural, religious and institutional constraints imposed on them by various social authorities, from schoolteachers to bureaucrats. The jury stated: “For a film that was made at great personal and political risk, but at the same time, maintains an extraordinary lightness; a film that is a testament to the power of cinema as a form of resistance; a film located in the specifics of a culture, and a country, but which organically brings to the surface questions of power and authority that are deeply universal; and a film, most simply, that is beautifully made and realised on all levels.”
The international jury gave a Special Mention for Performance to actor Kauan Alvarenga, who stars in Carolina Markowicz’s Toll [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], stating that they were “moved by Kauan's strength, both as an actor and a character, and grateful for the originality of this performance, filled with vulnerability and joy in equal measure”. A Special Mention for Direction was given to Luna Carmoon for her film Hoard [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Luna Carmoon
film profile], with the jury explaining: “In this daring and disturbing film, we see an artist willing to go to unexpected places, and we are eager to see what stories she will tell in the future.” Danish-US actor, screenwriter, director and composer Viggo Mortensen received an Honorary Award. The festival commemorated him with a dedicated screening of his most recent film, The Dead Don’t Hurt [+see also:
film review
interview: Viggo Mortensen
film profile], where he shares the screen with leading actress Vicky Krieps.
The documentary jury (consisting of Fanny Barrot, co-general delegate at Clermont-Ferrand; Laure Bonville, programmer at the BFI London Film Festival; Alejandro Díaz Castaño, artistic director of the Gijón International Film Festival; Franck Finance-Madureira, president of the Queer Palm; and Valeria Wagner, programmer at the Zürich Film Festival) granted the Documentary Award, which includes prize money of €5,000, to Reas [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lola Arias
film profile] by Lola Arias, dubbing it “a moving and flamboyant celebration of sisterhood, formally playful, that empowers its protagonists by illuminating the stories they have the courage to share”. Additionally, a Special Mention was given to Ibrahim Nash’at’s Hollywoodgate [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], “an urgent and revealing cinematic work that is chilling and should be seen by all in order to go beyond what is broadcast in traditional media”.
The 2030 Award, presented for the third year running by Luxembourg Aid & Development and accompanied by a cash prize of €7,500, was bestowed upon Tatiana Huezo’s The Echo [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by the jury, comprising author and journalist Laurent Moyse, producer Anne Schroeder, and scriptwriter, director and animator Ibrahim Soumahoro. Gasoline Rainbow by Bill Ross IV and Turner Ross received the Audience Award.
For its 14th edition (29 February-10 March 2024), LuxFilmFest broke a record with almost 20,000 visitors, which represents a 10% increase on 2023. The 15th Luxembourg City Film Festival will take place from 6-16 March 2025.
Here are all of the winners of the 14th Luxembourg City Film Festival:
Grand Prix
Terrestrial Verses - Ali Asgari, Alireza Khatami (Iran)
Special Mention for Direction
Luna Carmoon - Hoard [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Luna Carmoon
film profile] (UK)
Special Mention for Performance
Kauan Alvarenga - Toll [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Brazil/Portugal)
Honorary Award
Viggo Mortensen
Documentary Award
Reas [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lola Arias
film profile] - Lola Arias (Argentina/Switzerland/Germany)
Special Mention
Hollywoodgate [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Ibrahim Nash’at (Germany/USA)
FIPRESCI Award
Terrestrial Verses - Ali Asgari, Alireza Khatami
2030 Award
The Echo [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Tatiana Huezo (Mexico/Germany)
Audience Award
Gasoline Rainbow - Bill Ross IV, Turner Ross (USA)
VR Award
Noire, la vie méconnue de Claudette Colvin - Stéphane Foenkinos, Pierre-Alain Giraud (France)
Special Mention
The Fury - Shirin Neshat (USA)
Youth Jury Prize
5 Seasons of Revolution [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Lina
film profile] - Lina (Germany/Syria/Netherlands/Norway)
School Jury Award
Scrapper [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Charlotte Regan (UK)
Kids’ Jury Award
The House of the Lost on the Cape - Shin’ya Kawatsura (Japan)
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