Songs of Slow Burning Earth takes the top honour at the One World International Human Rights Film Festival
- Olha Zhurba’s doc about how war has changed Ukrainian society has come out on top, while Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir’s The Brink of Dreams scooped the Václav Havel Jury Award
The 27th One World International Human Rights Film Festival, which aims to raise awareness about global human rights issues through film, has rewarded the winners of this year’s edition. The awards ceremony saw the announcement of the winning films, which will continue to be showcased in regional locations until 27 April, as part of the Prague Echoes programme. The festival’s core programme featured 84 documentaries, 11 narrative films, nine immersive films and six shorts for families, with over 22,000 people attending the screenings in Prague.
The International Competition Jury Award for Best Film was awarded to Olha Zhurba’s Songs of Slow Burning Earth [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Olha Zhurba
film profile], an audiovisual mosaic that captures the ongoing transformation of Ukraine amidst the war, providing a powerful insight into the everyday realities faced by its people. Zhurba’s film was praised for its depth and cinematography, which the jury described as “going beyond the heartbeat” to offer an understanding of war's impact on its victims.
Elizabeth Lo’s Mistress Dispeller, about a professional “mistress tamer” hired to disrupt an affair and repair a marriage, received the International Competition Jury Award for Best Director. The jury acknowledged Lo for her clear vision and meticulous attention to detail, and for capturing complex social tensions within the family unit.
The Václav Havel Jury Award for Best Film in the Right to Know section was awarded to The Brink of Dreams [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Nada Riyadh, Ayman El Amir
film profile], directed by Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir. The documentary portrays a group of Egyptian girls using theatre to challenge societal stereotypes and reflects on human rights in the face of patriarchal oppression. In the Czech Competition, the honour went to Marie-Magdalena Kochová’s The Other One [+see also:
film review
film profile]. The movie examines the lives of “glass children”, or siblings of children with disabilities, highlighting the often-overlooked struggles of those who care for them. The Czech jury praised Kochová’s restrained and intimate cinematography, which allowed for an emotional exploration of family dynamics. RAPTURE II – Portal, a virtual reality film by Alisa Berger providing a haunting portrayal of the Russian occupation of Ukraine, won the Jury Award in the Immersive Films Competition. The jury noted its originality in addressing the universal experience of loss and its powerful use of immersive media.
A documentary revealing the mechanisms of state propaganda in a school, Mr. Nobody Against Putin [+see also:
film review
film profile] by David Borenstein and Pavel Talankin, received the Student Jury Award for Best Film in the One World in Schools strand, while the Audience Award for Best Film went to Najiba Noori’s Writing Hawa [+see also:
film review
interview: Najiba Noori, Rasul Noori
film profile], which follows Noori’s mother, Hawa, while also providing a wider commentary on women’s rights and emancipation in Afghanistan after the return of the Taliban.
In a surprising turn of events following the ceremony, the Prague police reported a bomb threat at the Lucerna Palace, where the ceremony took place, leading to a temporary evacuation. However, the threat was later deemed to be a hoax, and the festival concluded without any further incidents.
Here is the full list of winners:
International Competition Jury Award
Best Film
Songs of Slow Burning Earth [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Olha Zhurba
film profile] - Olha Zhurba (Ukraine/Sweden/Denmark/France)
Best Director
Elizabeth Lo - Mistress Dispeller (China/USA)
Václav Havel Jury Award for Best Film
The Brink of Dreams [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Nada Riyadh, Ayman El Amir
film profile] - Nada Riyadh, Ayman El Amir (Denmark/Egypt/France/Qatar/Saudi Arabia)
Czech Competition Jury Award for Best Film
The Other One [+see also:
film review
film profile] - Marie-Magdalena Kochová (Czech Republic/Slovakia)
Immersive Films Competition Jury Award
RAPTURE II – Portal - Alisa Berger (France/Germany)
Regional Jury Award
Democracy Noir - Connie Field (Denmark/Germany/USA)
Student Jury Award
Mr. Nobody Against Putin [+see also:
film review
film profile] - David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin (Denmark/Czech Republic)
Children’s Jury Award
With Grace - Julia Dahr, Dina Mwende (Norway/Kenya)
Audience Award for Best Film
Writing Hawa [+see also:
film review
interview: Najiba Noori, Rasul Noori
film profile] - Najiba Noori (France/Netherlands/Qatar/Afghanistan)
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