The 2026 edition of Cinehill (formerly Motovun Film Festival), which took place from 21 to 26 July in Fužine, wrapped on Saturday night with Mexican director Fernando Eimbcke's Berlinale Competition title Flies winning the top award: the Cinehill Propeller.

The jury, comprising Palestinian producer Baher Agbaria, Serbian producer Snežana van Houwelingen, Montenegrin director Marija Perović and Croatian filmmaker Igor Šeregi, gave a special mention to 15 and a Half, which marks the directorial debut of Montenegro's Milivoj Obradović.

Montenegro was Cinehill’s partner country this year, and several films from its small but vibrant industry were screened at the event, including Ivan Marinović's crowd-pleaser Forever Hold Your Peace and Senad Šahmanović's documentary Vud, You Won!, which revolves around Dušan Vukotić who was the only Yugoslav to win an Oscar, thanks to his short animated film Surrogate from 1962.

The festival also included the panel, “A Sovereign Gaze: Two Decades of Montenegrin Cinema”, as well as a talk on "How to Make a Regional Hit", featuring filmmakers, producers and funding bodies representing Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia and Montenegro.

Manuela Martelli's Un Certain Regard entry, The Meltdown, won the FIPRESCI Prize, while Swiss filmmaker Camilla Surdez bagged the CineCorto Award for Best Short Film thanks to L’avant-poste 21. As for the Croatian shorts competition, the CroCorto Award went to Ana Predan's Remember That I Carry You.

This year, the traditional, honorary Cinehill Maverick Prize, awarded to filmmakers who fearlessly push boundaries and cultivate a distinctive cinematic voice, was bestowed upon Swiss-Austrian filmmaker Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front, Conclave). The trophy was handed to Berger by a former recipient of the award, Serbian director Goran Marković.

The 50 Years Award, celebrating veterans of particular significance for regional cinema, was handed to Sarajevo-born actor Zijah Sokolović, who distinguished himself in iconic roles in Yugoslav and, later, in regional cinema, and who most recently starred in Dino Mustafić's opening film in Sarajevo 2025, The Pavilion.

Worth €1,500, the Miniscore Award in the competition for film music composers - who had to create a soundtrack for three-minute excerpts from two animated films - went to Renato Antić.

Last but not least, Israeli director Shai Carmeli-Pollak's The Sea won the Audience Award.

The full list of awards is as follows:

Cinehill Propeller
Flies - Fernando Eimbcke (Mexico)
Special Mention
15 and a Half - Milivoj Obradović (Montenegro)

CineCorto Award
L’avant-poste 21 - Camilla Surdez (Switzerland)

CroCorto Award
Remember That I Carry You - Ana Predan (Croatia)

Other awards

FIPRESCI Prize
The Meltdown - Manuela Martelli (Chile/USA/Spain/Mexico)

Audience Award
The Sea - Shai Carmeli-Pollak (Israel)

Miniscore Award
Renato Antić (Croatia)

Cinehill Maverick Award
Edward Berger

50 Years Award
Zijah Sokolović