As this year’s European Work in Progress (29 September-1 October) industry event unspooled on its second day in Hamburg, the jury handed out prizes to 14 projects among the 27 promising works in progress. This year’s independent jury consisted of Rémi Bigo (Cannes Critics’ Week), Maren Schmitt (producer of Sound of Falling [+leggi anche:
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This year, EWIP takes place within the framework of Filmfest Hamburg’s Industry Days. The awards ceremony marked the conclusion of the pitch and project portion of the event, with more panels, case studies and further engagements scheduled for the following two days. Many of last year’s award winners have landed at top festivals, including Stephan Komandarev’s Made in EU [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Ion de Sosa
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The 2025 edition’s cumulative prize value (€140,000), over double last year’s amount (€60,000), is courtesy of several new and continuing partnerships, including with OneGate Media and Northern Stars – Hamburg Film Partners (consisting of K13 Studios, D-Facto Motion, Loft Tonstudios, The Post Republic, CineGate, Optical Art, Zeigermann_Audio, Gruvi, mm filmpresse, WayFilm and Zeitkostüm).

The jury presented the €20,000 OneGate Media Prize, this year’s new and only cash award, to Francisco Marise’s Truck Driver. They praised the unconventional road film “for its rich formal choices, its cinematic flair and tender gaze in documenting intimacy, loneliness and testimonies”. The €30,000 Post-production Award by The Post Republic went to Abinash Bikram Shah’s transcontinental co-production Elephants in the Fog, with the jury lauding its “masterful and mature directing” and guaranteeing that the film, expected in 2026, will be “one of the debut highlights of the year”.

The two K13 Studios Awards went to Robiul Alam Robi for Kill Me Like a Dog, about the arrest of a banker in Bangladesh, and Teodora Ana Mihai’s Heysel 85, a historical drama taking place during the crowd crush that killed 39 people at Brussels’ titular stadium during the 1985 European Cup Final. The feature debut by Alisa Kolosova, I Spy with My Little Eye, was rewarded with the D-Facto Studios Award for the creation of an accessible version, while the second D-Facto Studios Award for image/sound post-production went to Down by the River by Enock Carvalho and Matheus Farias.

Dagmar Knöpfel’s Verdandi picked up the Zeikostüm Award for its “desire to give voice to intergenerational traumas and bonds through a period drama”, while an Asian-European co-production, Upamanyu Bhattacharyya’s animated feature Heirloom, snagged the inaugural Zeigermann_Audio Award.

Here is the full list of winners at this year’s EWIP:

OneGate Media Award
Truck Driver – Francisco Marise (Spain/Argentina)
Producers: La Claqueta PC SL, Amania Films, Amateur Cinéma

The Post Republic Award
Elephants in the Fog – Abinash Bikram Shah (Nepal/Germany/Brazil/France/Norway)
Producers: Die Gesellschaft DGS, Les Valseurs Bordeaux, Zischlermann Filmproduktion, Enquadramento, Bubbles Project, Storm Films

K13 Studios Award (prize for Dolby Atmos mixing)
Kill Me Like a Dog – Robiul Alam Robi (Bangladesh/Norway)
Producers: Made in Banialulu, Sunday Film AS

K13 Studios Award (prize for dubbing)
Heysel 85 – Teodora Ana Mihai (Belgium/Netherlands/Germany)
Producers: Leitwolf Filmproduktion, Les Films du Fleuve, Topkapi Films

D-Facto Studios Award (prize for image/sound post-production services)
Down by the River – Enock Carvalho, Matheus Farias (Brazil/Germany/France)
Producers: Gatopardo Filmes, Tama Filmproduktion, Poetik Films

D-Facto Studios Award (prize for an accessible version)
I Spy with My Little Eye – Alisa Kolosova (Georgia/Germany)
Producer: Maverick Film GmbH

Loft Tonstudios Award
Runner – Laura García Alonso (Spain)
Producers: Distinto Films, Elastica Films, Dos Soles Media

CineGate Award
Hidden Hills – Virgil Vernier (France/USA)
Producers: Petit Film, Opening Nights Films, Blossom Street Films

Optical Arts Award
Belén – Francesca Canepa (Peru/Mexico/France)
Producers: Split Films, Piano, Tripode Productions

Zeigermann_Audio Award
Heirloom – Upamanyu Bhattacharyya (India/Germany)
Producers: Odd & Even, Otter, Fabian&Fred, Potocol, NFDC, Pom Pom Animation

mm filmpresse Award
Douglas Gordon by Douglas Gordon – Finlay Pretsell (UK/France)
Producers: Parcel of Rogues Ltd, Grand Ourse Films

Gruvi Award
Guardian of the Island – Sewmehon Yismaw Sendekie (Ethiopia)
Producer: Tamirat Mekonen Film Production

WayFilm Translation Award
I’ll Be Gone in June – Katharina Rivilis (Germany/Switzerland)
Producers: Road Movies GmbH, Wolfskind Films, 8Horses

Zeitkostüm Award
Verdandi – Dagmar Knöpfel (Germany/Faroe Islands)
Producers: Elfenholz Film GmbH, Gretchenfilm GmbH