The 18th edition of the Zurich Film Festival drew to a close this Saturday, after having celebrated welcoming a record number of 137,000 attendees across the fortnight – 20,000 more than the pre-pandemic year of 2019. Out of the 146 films shown, from an array of 49 countries, 38 were world and European premieres, with 41.4% of those having been directed by women.

All three of its international competition strands, where titles were competing for the Golden Eye Award, are set aside for “young, promising” filmmakers on one of their first three features, which must be classified as a world, European or Swiss premiere. After winning the Golden Shell last month at the San Sebastián Film Festival, Laura Mora Ortega added another gong to her trophy cabinet as The Kings of the World [+lee también:
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In the Focus Competition, the festival’s strand for films from Switzerland, Germany and Austria, the Golden Eye went to Stuntwomen [+lee también:
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The Documentary Film Golden Eye was awarded to Sam Now, from US filmmaker Reed Harkness, a story of two filmmaking-obsessed half-brothers, and the search for one of their mothers. The jury, presided over by acclaimed Romanian documentarian Alexander Nanau, said the movie “stood out to all of us as the finest that cinema can do, sending the viewer on a journey of introspection and questioning of human life and human relationships”.

Regarding the festival in its entirety, its artistic director, Christian Jungen, boasted, “Our expectations have been exceeded by far […]. The last few days have shown with impressiveness that after two years of the pandemic, people have a renewed appetite for cinema and the shared viewing experience.” Regarding the local recovery of cinemas after the worst of the pandemic, he said, “Now, we hope that people will continue to go to the cinema on a regular basis after the ZFF is over. Because ultimately, we also want our festival to help keep cinema culture alive.”

A full run-down of the awards is as follows:

Feature Film Competition

Golden Eye
The Kings of the World [+lee también:
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Special Mentions
War Pony - Gina Gammell/Riley Keough (USA)
Until Tomorrow [+lee también:
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Focus Competition

Golden Eye
Stuntwomen [+lee también:
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Special Mention
Thunder [+lee también:
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entrevista: Carmen Jaquier
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Documentary Film Competition

Golden Eye
Sam Now - Reed Harkness (USA)
Special Mentions
The New Greatness Case [+lee también:
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The Killing of a Journalist [+lee también:
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ZFF for Kids

Jury Prize
Lucy Wanted - Till Endemann (Germany)

Audience Award
My Robot Brother - Frederik Meldal Nørgaard (Denmark)

Other awards

Emerging Swiss Talent Award (Critics’ Prize)
Thunder - Carmen Jaquier

Audience Award
Becoming Giulia [+lee también:
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entrevista: Laura Kaehr
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Science Film Award
The Territory [+lee también:
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Zürich Churches Film Prize
Thunder - Carmen Jaquier

Best International Film Music
Robert IJserinkhuijsen