The Stories wins the Grand Prix at the 41st Love International Film Festival in Mons
- Egyptian filmmaker Abu Bakr Shawky takes top prize, while Beef and A Second Life pick up two awards apiece
The 41st Love International Film Festival in Mons wrapped on Saturday 14 March with the announcement of its victors, spearheaded by Abu Bakr Shawky’s The Stories [+see also:
film review
interview: Abu Bakr Shawky
film profile], which was crowned with the Grand Prize. Unveiled in the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, The Stories paints a portrait of ordinary people’s lives in extraordinary times; specifically the life of an Egyptian family during the second half of the 20th century, as they bear witness to major historical events which resonate with their own emotions and private stories.
Chaired by French-American actor and director Jean-Marc Barr, and further composed of director Emma Benestan, actress Tiphaine Daviot, actor Enrico Roccaforte, director Nicolas Boukhrief and actress-director Marilyne Canto, the international jury presented its Best Screenplay Award to Ingrid Santos Piñol’s Spanish-Mexican film Beef [+see also:
film review
interview: Asaari Bibang
film profile], which follows Lati, a teenage girl from Barcelona who’s also of African origin, who dreams about rapping, a pursuit her mother disapproves of, believing it dangerous and vulgar in equal measures. The young girl subsequently indulges her passion in secret, overcoming external and internal obstacles to her calling. The film also won over the Cineuropa Jury, who likewise presented it with a prize.
The final trophy handed out by the international jury was the Acting Award, bestowed upon Agathe Rousselle. The multitalented performer discovered in Titane [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Julia Ducournau, Vincent Li…
film profile] is returning to the big screen with Laurent Slama’s A Second Life [+see also:
film review
film profile], unveiled in the Tribeca Festival, which plunges us into Paris in the summer of 2024 when the city’s abuzz with Olympic fervour. She plays a young woman on the verge of burnout who takes a step back and retreats into herself whenever she removes her hearing aids, and whose chance encounter with a young Californian jolts her out of her bubble. The film also received the Citizen’s Eye Award.
The audience also had their say, naming as Best Film Per te by Italian director Alessandro Aronadio. The movie tells the poignant story of a son and a father, in which the memory of the latter, who’s barely 40, is beginning to falter due to early-onset Alzheimer’s.
The festival also hosted a Belgian short film competition, which saw Futur antérieur, by Amélie Navarro and Gaëtan D’Agostino, walking away with the Jury Prize, and En voiture Clara by Sara Dufossé scooping the UCC/UPCB Press Jury Prize.
The full list of awards is as follows:
International Competition
Grand Prize
The Stories [+see also:
film review
interview: Abu Bakr Shawky
film profile] - Abu Bakr Shawky (Austria/Egypt/France/Belgium/Sweden)
Screenplay Award
Beef [+see also:
film review
interview: Asaari Bibang
film profile] - Ingride Santos Piñol (Spain/Mexico)
Acting Award
Agathe Rousselle - A Second Life [+see also:
film review
film profile] (France)
Belgian Short Film Competition
Belgian Shorts Jury Prize
Futur antérieur - Amélie Navarro and Gaëtan D’Agostino (Belgium)
UCC/UPCB Press Jury Prize
En voiture Clara - Sara Dufossé (Belgium)
Other awards
Cineuropa Prize
Beef - Ingride Santos Piñol
Audience Award
Per te - Alessandro Aronadio (Italy)
Citizen’s Eye Award
A Second Life - Laurent Slama
(Translated from French)
Did you enjoy reading this article? Please subscribe to our newsletter to receive more stories like this directly in your inbox.
