The 25th goEast – Festival of Central and Eastern European Film (23-29 April) concluded with a celebratory awards ceremony at the Caligari FilmBühne in Wiesbaden on Tuesday evening, capping off a vibrant edition marked by bold storytelling, political urgency and artistic experimentation. Over the course of a packed week, the festival hosted more than 200 international guests, screened 83 films and undertook a leadership transition as long-standing director Heleen Gerritsen passed the baton to experienced film programmer Rebecca Heiler, who hails from a Slavonic Studies background.

The Golden Lily for Best Film, endowed with €10,000, was awarded to the Georgian-Dutch co-production Holy Electricity [+lee también:
crítica
tráiler
entrevista: Tato Kotetishvili
ficha de la película] by Tato Kotetishvili, with the jury, led by Bosnian director Jasmila Žbanić, explaining its decision in rather an original manner: “We chose a film that leads us into the meander of a city portraying electric characters, like in an aquarium, where the observant can find beauty in every fish.” The other members who signed off on the statement were Oleksiy Radynski, a Kyiv-based filmmaker focused on political documentary; Ola Staszel, the director of the Neiße Film Festival and a Sorbian-German cinema advocate; Louis Beaudemont, a Paris- and Kyiv-based producer of Eastern European experimental films; and Dana Iskakova, an Almaty-born artist researching Central Asian film heritage.

The Award of the City of Wiesbaden for Best Director went to Moonika Siimets for her sci-fi flick The Black Hole [+lee también:
entrevista: Moonika Siimets
ficha de la película], which the jury praised for “turning darkness into humour” and “experimenting with different strands of film narration”, while the Best Documentary Film Award was handed to Everything Needs to Live [+lee también:
crítica
entrevista: Tetyana Dorodnitsyna y And…
ficha de la película], directed by Andrii Lytvynenko and Tetiana Dorodnitsyna, for capturing “the courage of its authors” and portraying “the diversity of acts of kindness that emerge in times of war”. A Special Mention was given to The Song Sustxotin by Khusnora Rozmatova, a stark drama exploring gender violence in Uzbekistan, while the film also garnered the 3sat Broadcast Selection Award, which ensures broadcasting during the 2026 edition of the festival.

The FIPRESCI jury, composed of Dutch critic Hugo Emmerzael, German journalist Jenni Zylka and Cineuropa’s own Serbian writer Marko Stojiljković, gave its Fiction Feature Award to Eighty Plus [+lee también:
crítica
entrevista: Želimir Žilnik
ficha de la película] by veteran helmer Želimir Žilnik for its “subversive take on ageing” and for confronting generational conflict with a bold commentary on social history. As Best Documentary Film, they named A Year in the Life of a Country [+lee también:
entrevista: Tomasz Wolski
ficha de la película] by Tomasz Wolski, praising it for its “rare, creative images” depicting civil resistance in Poland during martial law.

The RhineMain Short Film Award, backed by €2,500, went to Grandmamauntsistercat by Zuza Banasińska, singled out for its bold audiovisual choices and critique of power through found footage. A Special Mention for the same prize was granted to Ludmila’s Apple Pie by Loukia Hadjiyianni, noted for its sincerity and intergenerational warmth.

In the East-West Talent Lab, Daniel Pavlić received the Pitch-the-Doc Award for Dust in the Showcase, a moving father-son reunion story. The Renovabis Research Grant, endowed with €3,500, was awarded to The Story of the Wild Rose by Kristen Aigro and Liis Nimik, while Almira Saifullina earned a Special Mention for Dala, addressing Soviet-era trauma.

Here is a full list of the award winners:

Golden Lily for Best Film
Holy Electricity [+lee también:
crítica
tráiler
entrevista: Tato Kotetishvili
ficha de la película] – Tato Kotetishvili (Georgia/Netherlands)

Award of the City of Wiesbaden for Best Director
Moonika Siimets – The Black Hole [+lee también:
entrevista: Moonika Siimets
ficha de la película] (Estonia)

Special Mention of the International Jury
The Song Sustxotin – Khusnora Rozmatova (Uzbekistan)

goEast Award for Best Documentary Film
Everything Needs to Live [+lee también:
crítica
entrevista: Tetyana Dorodnitsyna y And…
ficha de la película] – Andrii Lytvynenko, Tetiana Dorodnitsyna (Poland/Ukraine)

FIPRESCI Award for Fiction Feature
Eighty Plus [+lee también:
crítica
entrevista: Želimir Žilnik
ficha de la película] – Želimir Žilnik (Serbia/Slovenia)

FIPRESCI Award for Documentary Film
A Year in the Life of a Country [+lee también:
entrevista: Tomasz Wolski
ficha de la película] – Tomasz Wolski (Poland)

RheinMain Short Film Award
Grandmamauntsistercat – Zuza Banasińska (Poland/Netherlands)
Special Mention
Ludmila's Apple Pie – Loukia Hadjiyianni (Georgia)

3sat Broadcast Selection
The Song Sustxotin – Khusnora Rozmatova

East-West Talent Lab

Pitch-the-Doc Award
Dust in the Showcase – Daniel Pavlić (Croatia)

Renovabis Research Grant
The Story of the Wild Rose – Kristen Aigro, Liis Nimik (Estonia/Sweden)

Special Mention at the Project Market Pitch (East-West Talent Lab)
Dala – Almira Saifullina (Kazakhstan)