National Competition: Award Winners

The audience got to vote for their favourite. The Audience Award went to Beyond the Bed of Reeds by Ksenia Onoprienko. It is a warm depiction of childhood friends coming together in a clumsy manner.

The jury decided to give out a Special Mention. The recipient was Martta Tuomaala with her film Am I Calling You at a Bad Time, a “carnival of telecommunication” as the jury called it.

Finnish Film Foundation also sponsored the Moving People and Images Award. Erol Mintaş was consulted by the jury as a diversity advisor on the selection of the award. It was given to Ekaterina Zhuzhleva for her animation things that i was gathering.

The Best Student Film Award was given to Viena Kytöjoki for her documentary Killing Me Softly. It takes place in the military, although in the canteen and with donuts.

The New Wave Award aims to support the professional career of a promising filmmaker at the beginning of their career. It was well earned by Carmen Baltzar for her first film All the Love in My Body.

Institut français de Finlande and Finnish Film Foundation sponsored the Road to Clermont Award, given out this year for the first time. It went to Viljami Penttilä for his film Major Bag Alert.

The National Competition Award went to Yasmin Najjar’s 28 Days Left, which competed in La Cinef student film selection at the Cannes Film Festival this spring. It draws from Najjar’s own experiences in voluntary military service while also handling the darkest sides of war: the plight of Palestine.