The inaugural edition of the Storyland International Film Festival took place in the town of Murska Sobota in the Prekmurje region of Northeast Slovenia from 15-19 September. A total of 54 films were shown to audiences at several locations, with the local theatre serving as the main venue, while a rich accompanying programme – comprising educational, touristic, gastronomic and entertainment activities – was also provided for the guests.

The event came to a conclusion with the awards ceremony on Saturday evening, held in the theatre. The prizes, dubbed the Golden Pumpkins, along with Special Mentions by the juries, were bestowed upon the winners in three categories. The first jury – consisting of Iranian film producer and distributor Elaheh Nobakht, Italian producer Paolo Maria Spina, and Serbian screenwriter and filmmaker Bojan Vuletić – decided on the winner of the fiction feature competition, singling out Ken Loach’s The Old Oak as Best Film. The same jury also gave its Special Mention to Miha Hočevar’s Hidden People.

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The documentary competition was dominated by Viktor Kossakovsky’s Trillion, which the jury (consisting of casting agent and producer Mina Žarković-Mihaylova and film critic John Bleasdale) singled out as the best in the competition, thus awarding it the Golden Pumpkin. The same jury crowned Igor Bezinović’s Fiume o morte! with a Special Mention. Meanwhile, the debut film competition was judged by a jury consisting of filmmaker Andrijana Stojković, producer Joseph Rouschop and film critic Giovanni Battaglia. They awarded Andreea Cristina Borţun’s A River’s Gaze the Golden Pumpkin and Georgi M Unkovski’s DJ Ahmet a Special Mention.

The rest of the award winners – the recipients of the Honorary Indelible Mark Award for their contribution to the art of cinema – were unveiled during the opening ceremony that took place at the same location on 16 September. This year, they were Polish filmmaker Krysztof Zanussi, Slovenian actor Boris Cavazza and, posthumously, Slovenian actress Milena Zupančič. In addition to receiving the prizes, the recipients were added to the festival’s Wall of Fame, which will grow with every subsequent edition, while one of the sponsors also minted special silver coins with which to honour them.

Here is the complete list of award winners:

Golden Pumpkins

Best Fiction Feature
The Old Oak – Ken Loach (UK/France/Belgium)
Special Mention
Hidden People – Miha Hočevar (Slovenia/Iceland/Serbia)

Best Documentary Film
Trillion – Viktor Kossakovsky (Norway/USA)
Special Mention
Fiume o morte! - Igor Bezinović (Croatia/Slovenia/Italy)

Best Debut Feature
A River’s Gaze – Andreea Cristina Borţun (Romania/France/Slovenia)
Special Mention
DJ Ahmet – Georgi M Unkovski (North Macedonia/Czech Republic/Serbia/Croatia)

Indelible Mark Award for Contribution to Cinema
Krzysztof Zanussi (filmmaker)
Boris Cavazza (actor)
Milena Zupančič (actress – posthumously)