It’s a wrap for the 67^th edition of the Cork Film Festival, which unspooled in the so-called Rebel City from 10-20 November. The gathering was brought to a conclusion by the closing ceremony, held at the Everyman Theatre yesterday, 20 November.

This year’s Spirit of the Festival Award went to Ann Oren’s Piaffe [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Ann Oren
scheda film] (Germany), which the jury labelled as “a meaningful engagement with the ethics of street casting and film practice, bolstered by superb performances and sensitive direction. [...] Piaffe, a daring, kinky exploration of blossoming female sexuality, was an obvious candidate. Composed of indelible images, impeccable sound design and erotic charge – as spearheaded by Simone Bucio’s quietly carnal central performance – Piaffe marks an extraordinary debut. We simply cannot wait to see what Oren does next,” the jurors further explained. A Special Mention was given to Lise Akoka and Romane Gueret’s The Worst Ones [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Romane Gueret e Lise Akoka
scheda film] (France).

Next, the Award for Cinematic Documentary was bestowed upon Diem Ha Le’s Children of the Mist (Vietnam). The jury statement read as follows: “The sensitive and respectful eye of the filmmaker builds an intimate portrait of a family, an entryway to a remote community stuck between cultural traditions and modern society. The protagonist’s first love, the teenage rebellion, the disappointments of adulthood… Universal subjects that, in this beautifully crafted first feature, are depicted through characters that are complex and multilayered, like real human beings always are.”

Meanwhile, the Cork International Film Festival Youth Jury Award went to Leonor Will Never Die (Philippines), directed by Martika Ramirez Escobar. The film stars Sheila Francisco as a retired screenwriter who, after falling into a coma, finds that she is the action hero of her unfinished screenplay. The jury decided to reward the picture since, “with its metaverse elements and breaking the fourth wall on a whole other level, it invites you [the viewers] into the filmmaking process and makes you feel like a part of the film”. Finally, Christina Tynkevych’s How Is Katia? [+leggi anche:
recensione
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intervista: Christina Tynkevych
scheda film] (Ukraine) received a Special Mention in the same category.

Here is the list of this year’s award winners:

Spirit of the Festival Award
Piaffe [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Ann Oren
scheda film] – Ann Oren (Germany)
Special Mention
The Worst Ones [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Romane Gueret e Lise Akoka
scheda film] – Lise Akoka and Romane Gueret (France)

Award for Cinematic Documentary
Children of the Mist – Diem Ha Le (Vietnam)

Cork International Film Festival Youth Jury Award
Leonor Will Never Die – Martika Ramirez Escobar (Philippines)
Special Mention
How Is Katia? [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
intervista: Christina Tynkevych
scheda film] – Christina Tynkevych (Ukraine)

Grand Prix Irish Short
Headspace - Aisling Byrne (Ireland)
Special Mention
Tar Anseo/Come Here - Zoe Ní Riordáin (Ireland)

Grand Prix International Short
Raticide - João Niza (Portugal)

Grand Prix Documentary Short
Haulout - Evgenia Arbugaeva and Maxim Arbugaev (UK/Russia)
Special Mention
Forest Coal Pit - Siôn Marshall-Waters (UK)

Best Director of an Irish Short
Adrian Duncan and Feargal Ward – Lowland (Ireland)

Short Film Candidate for the 2023 European Film Awards
Headspace - Aisling Byrne

Best Cork Short Award
Atali’l O Le Crezent/Sons of the Crezent - Brendan Canty (New Zealand)
Special Mention
This Town Still Talks About You - Matthew McGuigan (Ireland)