Thank you. Hallo, herzlichen guten Abend und willkommen bei der offiziellen Award Ceremony des Linz International Short Film Festivals 2022 heute Abend. Herzlich willkommen. Thank you very much. Very warm welcome to the award ceremony of the Linz ISFF 2022. I am Michaela Schausberger and I will take you through this award ceremony this evening. It is an international festival. That's why we're going to hold it in English, if that's fine for you. I think you're used already to these English introductions, so we're going to continue in English. I hope that's fine with you. Is it? Yes. Okay, thank you very much. This festival was held from the 4th till the 8th of October. We have watched many great films. We had many great discussions as well. I've heard from everyone that the quality of the films was really high and I also thought so. So very special thanks as well to Ashkan and Parisa for this well-programmed film festival. Linz is Film Festival. Thank you very much and big applause. 64 films were in competition and we will give awards in 10 categories. We're going to continue now with a few speeches and I would like to invite our representative of the mayor of the city of Linz, Klaus Luger. Her name is Beate Gotthard-Sleitner. Please come on stage. short film festival and I hope you had a great time the last four days and five days. We've seen more than 60 films, you had a lot of panels and discussions. I hope you had a great time at the night lines. There is one tonight I think. I hope you enjoyed it. I do not know if you tasted Linzer Torte yet. You should at least the next time when you come. Yes, you did. So I told you at the opening, we are so proud to have you here in Linz. It's always a nice event, this festival, which brings so much more to the town, which inspires our home, our city. And I'm proud to be, to bring on the greetings from the Mayor, Bürgermeister Klaus Luger, to you and yeah I really look forward for a representation of the winners. Thank you to the members of the jury, I'm sure it wasn't always that easy to make a decision as you already said, wonderful short films this time and thank you again to the festival directors for the organization, for being here. And I really hope that you're coming again next year, that we'll meet again next year for the sixth short film festival. And I've one big wish for next year, because that was what I took with me from the opening, that everybody who wants to come is able to come to the festival because as I heard there were some people who couldn't come because of the situation in their homelands like Ukraine or Iran so I hope next year this will be possible and so let's all work together in the next year for a peaceful world for for a world full of solidarity for a peaceful world for a world full of equality for human rights for women rights for a world that's a better place to be I'll do my best and I hope to see you next year and have a nice evening. Thank you for coming. Thank you for being here. Thank you very much for this very beautiful speech. And now we would like to continue with Pia Wiesauer, Direktion Kultur und Gesellschaft des Landes Oberösterreich, die Referatsleitung der Kulturförderung. She is the Directorate of Culture and Society of Upper Austria, Head of Department for Cultural Promotion. Pia Wiesauer, please come on stage. Good evening from Me Too. Next year I will submit my own film called Short People Problems. And this will be the opening. No, I think it's fine. You can hear me, right? Yeah. I am very happy to be here tonight because in my personal field of work, it's very often that we get to see arts projects and cultural events from the perspective of our desks and as concepts and ideas on paper. So to be here at an evening like this and see things come to life is always a very special occasion. In this case, it's very special to me personally, because I very vividly remember being the one myself who processed the first application for funding for Linz International Short Film Festival. Parisa is nothing. I very much remember our first meeting. So now, a couple of years later, to see how it has grown and how it's truly come to life and established itself as an event in the up austrian film scene is truly a special moment for me as well and i'm very glad to be here today and have been a little tiny short piece of that but but obviously the the big huge thank you belongs to the team of lynn's short film festival who have managed once again not just in up austria but this being an international festival to bring people together from all over the world who connect via their passion for this amazing art form that is filmmaking um it's been said before, and I agree with it, there's a lot of things in this world today that make us feel disconnected and feel like they're trying to get us apart. So seeing an evening like this where people come together truly is a beacon of hope for me personally, not just for arts, but also just for humankind on the whole. So... not just for arts, but also just for humankind on the whole. So with this being said, another huge thank you to the team and also to all the amazing artists that are here today. Whatever happens tonight, you're all winners in my heart. And congratulations on your amazing works. Thank you. works. Thank you. Thank you very much Pia Vizor for your beautiful words as well. We would like to continue now with a special thanks to all the sponsors because probably you all know a festival cannot be held and not be created without any money and any sponsors. So that's why we're gonna name them right now. And yeah, we start with the partners. And what's the word for Fördergeberinnen in English? Money giving people and institutions. Funding. Thank you. money giving people and institutions. Funding. Thank you. This is all in German. I'm sorry. I'm not going to translate it now into English. You will get it. Bundesministerium für Kunst, Kultur, öffentlichen Dienst und Sport. Do we have to clap after all these sponsors? Are are we gonna do that? I'm gonna do it in categories, okay? So first category, sorry, category and then I'm gonna invite you to give some applause, okay? So first category. Bundesministerium für Kunst, Kultur, öffentlichen Dienst und Sport, So, big applause. Don't you have any list of that? Okay, so you just listen to my voice and be inspired by all these sponsors. Now, we also have some sponsors who really gave some money as well, which the winners of this evening will get then afterwards. So here comes ADA, Austrian Directors Association, Ambient Recording, Close Film Verein, Dedo Light, Gecko Cam, Silverstack, Teltec and VDFS. Big applause. That's right. Okay, all the media partners that we had. Creative Austria, Dorf TV, EPD Film, InfoScreen, Kolik Film, Dot Film Magazine, Radio Fro, Ray Film Magazine, Subtext Tourismus Linz. Bravo! Ah ja, here we are. The program partners, Crossing Europe Film Festival Linz and Unified Filmmakers. And all the cooperation and hosting partners. I'm sorry. I just have to translate it right now. For U-Cart. City Kino. Dom Hotel. Kapo. Kupf Oberösterreich. Festival Scope Pro. Festival of Nations. Zeitbasierte und interaktive Medienkunst Bachelor Studium. Zeitbasierte Medien Master's degree. Okay, and now it's the last category of the sponsors. We all drank and ate from them. So it's Brot Süchtig, Freistetter, Front Food, Macava and Pedercola. Thank you very much. Now I would like to invite the festival directors on stage. Well, just one of the directors is actually coming up on stage. Ashkan Nematian, he's always in the backstage and he's gonna stay there this evening as well. Thank you very much, Ashkan. But a very big and warm welcome to Parisa Gashemi. I tried. Thank you very much and welcome to stage. Thank you very much. Thank you for this joyful moderating and thanks for your really beautiful words. It's like so warm hearted, everything that you are saying. I want at the very first moment thanks to our team also. I name the one who are here to come to us once. Would you come also? Yeah, you should. So, Ashkan Nehematian. One by one. I just want to say some words about everyone. Because you always just see me, I always come here and talk about every film. And they are really engaging people. They are working voluntarily. Voluntary is true? I don't know. Ashkan, we do many things together. We cannot say which one do more. We really do everything together. And I want to say also a really big thank you to Clara. For that you're... Yeah, Schultes. Sorry. Forgot your... Yeah, shoulders. Sorry. Yeah, she's like... I cannot say how much she's working. She's doing all of our cooperation, contacting all the time. She's writing emails and talking with everyone and to manage everything she's like every day she's working like like a full job I would say she's working for this festival and I want a really big applause for her and Angelika Stutz you may know her the festival guests may know her way better because you are always in contact with her for everything that the guests need if they want to take a train because you are always in contact with her for everything that the guests need. Like if they want to take a train or a ticket. I think she also wrote so many emails with every filmmaker when they want to come here. She should manage many things with them. And I want to thank you very much and big applause. Yeah. And so there are, of course, some other people who are not here now with us. Our graphic designer, Marian Baradaran, she is also living in Iran. We are working online together. And at this moment, because of Internet in Iran, we had some hard moments. So she couldn't access Internet to send some files for us. It was a bit difficult, but she managed it. And I was really thankful. And we had Patricia who was showing, screening the film. She is unfortunately not here now. And Majd who was at the bar and you all maybe visit him also. Yeah. Is there some other? Yeah, Shafiq was also helping us at the bar and many other production things. And Magdalena, who was also working in our production team she also got sick and is not here. So I just want also to say a big thank you to the whole audience and the filmmakers who came here. Without you there is no festival so I'm really really thankful for all the film that you are sending to us and that you come here to being with us and that you are take part really in every film screening and every session. It is really important for us that we always come together and you were really hardworking and be there for every film screening and workshop, masterclass. I'm also really thankful of you. I don't know. Yeah, thank you. And so, yeah, applause for every filmmakers and guests. Yeah, I think that was it. And we go, we can start. Yeah, thank you. I will stay here. Thank you. So I would invite the jury also. Yeah. Giulia Grandinetti. Marina Richter. Thank you very much for being here, for having chosen some of the winners. I would like to say a few words about Marina first, and then about Julia, and the third jury member as well, Hany Tavasoli. But we'll start with Marina. No, it's nothing. Marina Richter is a Serbian-born, Vienna-based film critic. She's a member of Serbian Fibresci, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists and the European Film Academy, and the founder and editor-in-chief of Ubiquarian, an online outlet specialized in short films and documentaries. Here you are. big applause again. And some words about Giulia Grandinetti. She's a director, producer and dancer. She has a degree in literature and philosophy, performing arts and sciences. Her latest short film, Tria, made in 2022, is that correct? Yeah. Premiered on the 79th edition of the Venice Film Festival. Her short film, Guinea Pig, also won the Best Directing and Best Editing awards in Linz ESFF 2021. Big applause. And some words about the third jury member, actually. Hanyet Tavasoli is an Iranian actress and woman rights activist. She has received various awards and she has acted in more than 40 feature films and as well in many theatres and series. Hania is courageous enough to be a board member and spokesperson for 800 female filmmakers who are campaigning against sexual harassment and violence in Iranian cinema. She cannot be here with us because of the situation in Iran because most public figures and celebrities have travel bans. That's why she cannot be here, but big applause for Hanyer Tavasoli. I just want to add something about the jury process. So you know that Hanyer was also watching all the films and was also, we had an online session with the three jury and they decided together like she was part of the process but she couldn't make to I would just to add maybe okay I will be like this I don't know if not you use mine okay I want just to add that it wasn't easy it really is a responsibility all the time to give some awards or nomination you have seen that the selection was so variety and great selection so really my invitation is just to you know to enjoy the festival for the experience to be here the award it's something for the career for the self-esteem sometimes for some money but it's not this is the point you know that so i really hope that you can accept our decision because we were totally free different person and we really try to work together and to respect the opinion about ourselves okay The participating films will be awarded in the categories Best Fiction, Documentary, Animation, as well as Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Acting, Best Editing, Sound and Best Austrian Film. And we're going to start now with the first category, Denominations for Best Editing. I would love to read out the names. I'm very sorry. For sure, I won't spell it correct. I'm very sorry. Please help me out. Natalia Jastrzebska for My Fat Arse and I, directed by......Elizaveta Bishmark. You can tell me. Yeah, okay, I'm sorry. Thank you. Next nomination, Lukas Jancic for Love Dead, directed by Diana Kam Van Nguyen. Is that how I'm correct? Is that album correctly? Zen Driessen for Pressed, directed by Zen Driessen. And Carlos Hernandez for Silent Club, directed by Irene Alvalel- Mejado. I'm a bit emotional. I don't know. Usually I'm this part like you, so I don't know. For the power of a journey full of rhythm and symbolism delicate issues such uh that at absence of one body of a healthy weight the theme is full of ironic and universal references ranging from the scenario close the world for yodoroski to cross from the world from japanese cartoons and the first video games of the world from Japanese cartoons and the first video games of the 90s. The music and the style of animated drawings allow the editing to emerge and be distinguished in an interesting rhythm and game. The editing is not simply interesting but also at the service of the emotional state of the protagonist, who, as the title announces, does not experience these adventures alone, but in the company of her beloved fat ass. The best editing goes to my fat hairs and I. okay thank you i actually want to wave a big hello uh to my friend natalia yes chemska which whom we spent a lot a lot of nights and days with watermelons and uh yeah there was a lot of nights and days with watermelons. And yeah, there was a lot of watermelons eaten during the process. And it was a long process, but it's the first time that we got a nomination in editing. And I think it's a good time that it happened. Thank you. Thank you you the jury after what but the certificate we give to you and unfortunately in the very first one there is it was special special mention just here but it's you are the winner but it's actually i'm i i you to every time i get like uh an award like a physical award there is some kind of like you know correction for some, it's karma. Thank you very much and congratulations. We continue with the next category. I'm sorry, I can't pronounce it right. I don't know why. The category is called Best Animation. And we got four nominees. My Fat Arse and I, directed by... Oh, no! Oh, I'm sorry. Now you have to come on stage. And please, pronounce your name again, please. But actually there is another funny story. Come here. Because one time I was in a festival and we were talking with my friend, like a new mate friend of the festival, Audrey. And she was asking me which film I'm at the festival with. And I was like, my favorite is Arsene Die. And she was like, oh, okay. And I was like, alright, okay okay french people have their like persona and stuff but then at some point we were talking again with some other people and they were like asking me again i was like my fat arson die and then suddenly she just bursted laughing and it appeared that she heard the uh name of this uh film like my father has to die and she was like and she was like okay i'm not speaking to that weirdo but like yeah so it's the second again thank you so i i continue with the nominations and then... Thank you. It was just the nomination right now. Oh, I'm sorry. No, no, it's all right. You always tell good stories. No, no, no, no, no. I just write out the nominations. I'm sorry. Ah, yeah. To pronounce your name again. Yeah, Elizabeth. To pronounce your name again. Yeah, Elizabeth. Okay, second nomination, Night, directed by Ahmad Saleh. Third nomination, Poise, yeah, directed by Luis Suarez. And fourth nomination, The World Within, directed by Zandrin Stoyanov and Charles Fink. Thank you. Thank you. And here is one speciality, because we got two winners in this category. Please, jury, give your statements. Yeah, yeah your statements. So, I will start with the first one. This is an example of how the choice to create an animated film is not just a technical choice, but a change to deliver a new look at the world. A film that plays not only with the fascinating and unique imagination, but also with the expansion of the time, with a powerful use of sound, of what in real life often escapes us and which is stained contains a lot of what we are. A visual language that adopts a metaphor, skillfully represented, of transparency as an invitation to see inside things, to pause in a time suspended between acting and not acting, in the perception that each of our choice can move us towards new consequence. The first winner is Poise. Thank you. Well, this is a cliche, but I was not really expecting this. I saw a lot of very, very good animation movies that these ones and a lot of others, they're not even here. But thank you, thank you, really. Should I sit? Should I sit? Oh. Yeah. Thank you. Thank you. Award is also sponsored by Clostream, our association which organized the festival. And the second winner, starting from the title, is a film that knows how to deliver a dialogue between the inside and outside, from the sensitive use of the concept of color and the representation and the contrast that the protagonist has between a world in black and white and one rich in color and possibilities. Reasoning on which of these two worlds is the one belonging to reality. reasoning on which of these two words is the one belonging to reality. Is what an artist creates pure imagination, or it is perhaps right within his reality? A touching film, creative communication, and creative animation capable of making the world of drawing and sketching with the more elaborated world of painting, reminding us how much ours with color is powerful, and and necessary. The second award is The World Within. Jean-Charles Fink and Sandrine Stoyanov. I'm going to keep going in English because I don't really speak German, just pretending. So we're the directors of the film The World Within. We want to say that we're very happy and very pleased that it's been awarded. We would have loved to be with you to receive the award in person on stage. Unfortunately, we are stuck in Paris and we can't come. So thanks a lot to the festival, to the audience. Thanks a lot and happy festival. Vielen Dank an das Festival, an die Publikation. Vielen Dank und glückliches Festival. Vielen Dank und guten Abschluss des Festivals. Cheers! Prost! Prost! Prost! We continue with the next category, Best Sound Design. And the nominees here for are... Markus Sils and David Black for Night, directed by Ahmad Saleh. Sene Driessen and Wouter Souverain for Pressed. Sorry? Wouter Souverain. Thank you. Wouter Souverain for Pressed, directed by Zenne Driessen, and Jakob Rydiger and Aka Jakob for Up and Down, The Wheel Goes Round, directed by Christopher Aaron. To remind us that sound is a physical experience. The various sounds orchestrated in the film are performed live, masterfully following the movements of the body and objects in the film. To be absent or out of focus are the bodies of human beings themselves, as if to bring out everything that is inside or around the bodies of human beings themselves, as if to bring out everything that is inside or around the bodies, a complete and moving sound that remind us how everyday noise and sound can already be beginning of music. And our insight to the music and the live soundtrack, this film give us an example of how cinema needs sound to become expressive and orchestrates music and effects, environments, visual joints, levels, reverbs and especially spatiality. The best sound goes to Prest. Thank you. Unfortunately, they can't be here this evening as well, so we're going to see some video message. The The The The The The The The The Hello, my name is Sennin. My name is Wouter. And we made a movie. He is actually the composer, I am the director. Thank you, we are honored to receive the award for best sound design. And actually Woortig gets all the credits for it. And Senna gets all the credits for the ideas. It was very hard work for a movie. We worked for three years on it. So too bad we couldn't make it to Austria to the festival. So yeah this video we try to make a part of it. Thank you. Thank you. Breast. I did. Breast. Again. Next. No. Now. Yes, thank you. Next category. Best cinematography. I forgot to call all the sponsors before, but now I'm going to start. This prize is sponsored by Close Film Verein. And the nominees for Best Cinematography are Jovi Verhoeven for Heading South, directed by Yuan Yuan. Tobias Scavenius for In the Soil, directed by Kasper Rudolf, Emil Scheltsen. Thank you very much. And Nidai Bushal for Junko, directed by Misho Limbu. I just want to correct, the sponsor is Teltec. I'm sorry. Okay, so this is me, first time at the microphone. The longing and sadness about the physical absence of a loved one are emotions usually bathed in dark, pressing colors, which serve to underline the heavy burden of unexpected relationship timeout. When the main protagonist of the film faces her sudden destiny, she gets wrapped in the soft palette of red and orange instead, embracing the warmness of red and orange instead, embracing the warmness of her mother's household. For his ability to turn the moving images into a living painting and to chase the drab away, we, the jury, award Best Cinematography to Niraipusal for his work on Junko by the Nepalese director Mincho Limbu. Unfortunately, they could not be here tonight and we don't have any video message either. Probably we're gonna just give some very warm applause again. Thank you. Especially since they even bought the tickets but they were denied the visa to come here. Oh no. Best screenplay is the next category. And we got four nominees here as well. We start with Kasper Rudolf Emil Jelsen for In the Soil. And he also directed this film. Thank you. Giorgio Vasili, sorry, yeah, you will get it. Giorgio Vasili, Memoir of a Veering Storm, also directed by her. Joanna Kotzuch and Katerina Molakova for Once There Was a Sea, directed by Joanna Kotzuch. And Paula D'Angelo Schmidt, The Hollows of the Moon, and also directed by Paula Vangelo-Schmidt. In the customer-oriented professions, women get often confronted with rude, disrespectful and clearly sexist behavior. We follow the main protagonist's slow transformation from a silent witness of her own humiliation to a woman who had enough and who finds the strength to show her form of resistance. Special mention for best screenplay goes to Paula D'Angelo Schmitz, The Holes of the Moon. Thank you so much. Oh, wow. Special mention. Okay, thank you. Yeah, I want to thank, wow, it's my first nomination in screenplay, so it's amazing. Thank you. And, well, yeah, for all the women out there and special mention for the women from Peru, thank you so much applause applause applause applause applause applause applause applause so it's me again, unusual. Okay. In this strongly penned script, the parent-child roles get reversed, shifting the narrative from a seemingly straightforward genre film to a creepingly observant psychological drama. For the truly impressive take on oppressing mental health conditions that sneaks into the life of a family of two, we award Best Screenplay to the Danish writer-director Kasper Rudolf for In the Soil. in the Soil. Congratulations and we're going to see a video message. Hi Linz Film Festival. My name is Casper. I'm the writer and director of the short film In the Soil. I am super happy about the award. I've never received an award for writing before, and it's something that I'm honestly very proud of. I love writing, and to be acknowledged for the writing of this short film means a lot, especially for this festival. So thank you so much. I hope you've had a great festival. I'm so sorry I couldn't be there. I wish I could have attended and watched the film with an audience that is, after all, the point of making the film. But I hope you all enjoyed the festival very much. And again, thank you so much for the award. It means a lot. Bye. We continue with best acting and the nominees are andrea maggiuli leo for colony directed by roma do de jahan sand Sandra Guldberg-Kamp for In the Soil, directed by Kasper Rudolf Emil Jeltsin, Emmett Kelly for The Secret Life of Jim, also directed by him, Vicky Krebs for Frida, directed by Alexandra Oditsch, and Jacobo Sanchez for Zaral, directed by Sebastian Valandra Odic, and Jacobo Sanchez for Tsaral, directed by Sebastian Valencia Munoz. Should I start and continue? Her portrayal of a young nurse who falls in love with a terminally ill patient she's taking care of is so close to the bone that you can feel emotion coming from every movement of her body in each line spoken on the screen. Our award for Best Acting goes to Vicky Krips for her role in Aleksandra Odic's drama Frida. Sorry, there was a misunderstanding. I'm sorry. Ashkan, would you... Because we have two awards. We decided to have an actor and an actress. Wir haben zwei Worte. Wir haben einen Sch, danke vielmals für diesen tollen Preis. Ich freue mich sehr darüber, es ist ein sehr besonderer Film gewesen für mich. Und ja, danke an das ganze Festival, danke an Alexandra für den Film, danke an Frida, dass es sie gibt und den Film und solche starken Frauenfilme und Frauenthemen. Und ich kann jetzt nichts mehr sagen, außer ich bin nicht da. Es tut mir leid. Ich wäre gerne da, aber liebe, aller allerliebste Grüße aus Mexiko. Für seine unglaubliche Spontaneität, nicht nur durch seinen Standard-Jahr, sondern auch durch die Freiheit und die Souveränität, die in seinem Gesicht entsteht. sanity detected not only by his tender age but also by the freedom and the sincerity that his gaze emanates for heavy accompanied house on an intimated and tender journey for his curious eyes full of questions for his simplicity the intimacy it managed to deliver to the viewer a personal and emotional theme. Without such, a communicative protagonist would not have been the same. The best actor goes to Zarzal. Unfortunately, there is no video message, but congratulations to Jacobo Sanchez. Bravo. I want also to add that for acting, really wasn't easy to choice also the nominees, because there were many, many movies with a good acting, so we really fight a bit to choice how to manage that, and we propose also to have an actress and an actor for this reason. We wanted to have a cast as well, and she told us to calm down. We want, yeah, so just to know that we really appreciate the actress and the sure things. Thank you very much. And we continue with Best Directing. And here for the nominees are... they are coming so i gotta sing something oh sorry sorry that was my fault oh i'm so sorry no it, it's a... I'm sorry. Yeah. Yeah, improvisation is everything. Sometimes you say that word. Of course, we're going to continue with Best Austrian Film. I'm very sorry, Aschkahn. And yeah, so the nominees for best Austrian film are, now, Aschken, you can help me, perfect. Inside by Emma Braun, Up and Down, The Wheel Goes Round by Christopher Aron, Margari by Shari Ehlers and Thomas Guttenberger, and Guttenberger, Gucken, Entschuldigung. Yeah. I should mention something. Because of this, like, false thing. I think it's because our graphic designer was, like, really, had a really bad time because of the situation in Iran. And she had always like had these mistakes and it was a bit hard for her to work at all in this time so I'm really sorry if there are some mistakes in this. Thank you. I'm sorry as well if I pronounce it yeah, incorrect so, last nominee More More by Katharina Pichler so, thank you applause applause applause applause the film lives up to its title, the audience gets immersed in the story of a young person with an unusual profession this is a captivating full-bodied portrait of a woman who knows her way around Vienna's roofs like the back of her hand. We award Best Austrian Film Insight directed by Emma Brown. Big applause, but no video, sorry. Woohoo! It's from other Austrian director association. So they send it to us. So I also show it here. And we will be sure to give it to Emma. Ashkan, you're ready? We can continue with the best directing. And the nominees for the category best directing are... Okay, I have to improvise something. Any questions so far? I just, yeah, say it out. Heading South by Yuan Yuan, Love Dead by Diana Kamphan Nguyen, Technomama by Zolios Baradinskas, and Zar Zar by Sebastian Valencia Munoz. Come on. A film in which the figure of the director emerges in a powerful way. The environments are framed according to the well-chosen physical and emotional geometries and the actors in ambit displays with strength and credibility. Each scene is support like a dance step in the music. The refined and specific aesthetic leaves an alternative to the viewer, almost forced to empathize with the sense of constraints that the young protagonist experiences. The title is a perfect synthesis of the protagonist's emotional journey. From the internal music of rebellion he feels to the detachment he seeks from a mother who feeds him his desire for escape. Surgical direction in the design of a director with the client's idea and a lot to tell. The best directing goes to Techno Mama. And he sent us some video message. Hi everyone, I hope you're having a great time. Firstly, I want to thank the festival programmers for selecting our short film. And secondly, I would like to thank the wonderful jury for giving me this award. It means a lot to me as a filmmaker. And my short film is talking about love and why it's so hard to love. So today I just want to send a lot of love to you and hope you are all well and just good energy, good vibes and see you Sunday. Bye. Bye. presented by VDFS, Verwertungsgesellschaft der Filmschaffenden Österreich. And the nominees are Love Dead by Diana Kamp-Von Nuyen, Papa by Maria Jakimowicz, The Doll by Elahe Esmaili, The Shallow Water by Marek Mutka, Girls Talk About Football by Paola Sorrentino. It seems to be that it was really a hard decision and our jury really had a very hard time to decide over here. So there is one special mention and two winners. and our jury really had a very hard time to decide over here. So there is one special mention and two winners. Here you are. Yeah. Yeah, seriously, it was really hard. But let's start. Pink is for girls and blue is for boys, or are they? Although we are slowly getting over the colors traditionally assigned to, until recently, two officially recognized sexes, there's still many spaces dominated by men. In her animated documentary, the director is letting six young women tell about their experiences in a boy-dominated sport, exploring different ways to wrap them in a visual narrative. We give the special mention for Best Documentary to Paula Sorrentino's Girls Talk About Football. Thank you so much. It's just a big honor even to be in the selection and to be considered. So thank you for trusting my film also because it's my first film, my graduation movie. So this really means a lot. So thank you. Thank you. applause so thank you applause applause applause applause applause applause applause this is going to be a great pleasure personal letters are turned into documentary built on multiple animation techniques and action, excelling in storytelling made of finely connected puzzle pieces from the past and present, the echoes of filmmakers in a voice and her quest for the truth. With its impressively innovative visual language and emotional complexity, this is an affecting film that leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer. The award for the best documentary goes to Diana Kamvanayn's Love Dead. We are sorry, no video message did receive us. So the second winner for The Intimate Journey, which takes the viewer by hand and accompanies his among real family footage, moments of real testimonies and others of animation and collage. A visual language articulated on several levels, however, aims at the same goal, to dissect the intimated bond of the narrator and protagonist with the father figure. Owing and showing real pieces of our memories is powerful, and in this film empathy is fortified by the team personal, by those personal elements and the intimated voice over. The second award goes to Papa. And here we have some video message. Hello, I'm Maria Akimovich, the director of the film Papa. And I'm very glad to know that my film resonated in people's heart and won this award. I really didn't expect this, but still, nothing happens in life by chance. Unfortunately, I couldn't be personally a part of this event, but I'm really glad that at least my film could be part of the festival so I really want to say thank you to the jury of the festival to all those people who organized this event also to audience who watched movies films and also a big thanks to my team and people who helped me in this not easy journey, not easy journey of film therapy. Also big thanks to my Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, who gave me, all those people who gave me the chance to create this film. So thank you very And I hope to see you in other events and film festivals like this. Thank you. It is the last category that we're going to award right now. And the talent is going gonna follow afterwards as well. But this is the last category, best fiction. And the nominees for best fiction are, A Firecracker Story by C.C. Howe, Heading South, yeah. Sisi Hao, Heading South, Heading South by Yuan Yuan, Sugar by Elias Elfaris, and Techno Mama by Solios Baradinskas. I just have to say, there is also a special mention. Yeah, special mention and the award. A special theme for its originality, original simplicity. It deals with a profound theme with a light and delicate story. It allows the viewer to cross to the discomfort of a young couple who are beginning to love each other with irony and subtle games of roles. The elements of sugar is the common thread in various situations, delivering a sweet taste like sugar, ever give the final bitterness. Credible characters, an invisible camera totally at the service of the narrative, and absolutely out of the ordinary film that displays its common active power through an incredibly poor form of making cinema. The special mention with a big pleasure is going to Sukar. We have to continue without a video message. We have to continue without a video message. For a balance between style, narration and emotionality in a familiar scenario made up of silent internal conflicts of the young protagonist, the little actress powerfully excludes constant tenderness and helplessness. The photograph is delicate, uniform, soft, and welcoming despite the predominant cold tones. The camera is discreet, never intrusive, and at the service of the intimacy of the narrative. It is a film that touched us with its delicacy and ability to strike the deep chords without major twists and above all with a dialogue made up of looks and not just words. The best fiction is heading south. Thank you. And we got some video message for that. Hi everyone, I'm Yuan Yuan, I'm the writer and director of Heading South. Thank you so much to all the programmers and committee at Leeds International Short Film Festival. I'm really honored that we can screen my films there, can be watched by audiences in Austria. Heading South is a story based on my real experience when I was five years old. It means so much to be able to watch this film come into life and connect to audiences internationally. I wish you enjoy the movie and I hope I can visit the festival in the future with my next project. Thank you. I just give a really short brief about our talent program and then we go going to announce the winner We had a Mentoring program with eight Talented filmmakers and I would name There are six of them are here two couldn't be with us unfortunately and one is also because of visa he really wanted to come from Turkey and I don't know why he couldn't obtain a visa it was like and the name are Hani Domazet Demetereter Stavropoulou, Mehmet Parmaksis, Yasna Safik, Sara Grigoric, Isis Karolin Souza, Alexis Muller, and Natalia Nilek. It was about two, three months online mentoring with six mentors, and they developed their next short film project. And just today at 12 we had their pitching. Everyone had pitched their project here and we just had to select one. They are really great project. Sorry. It's okay. Okay. So, and then we go to the statement of the jury and the winner. Okay. Because of the excellent presentation, mastery of the answers, and the ability to justify one's choices in a simple but specific way. Because of the successful title and at the service of the story. Because of the ability of the director to combine the technique and the emotional part in a balanced way. because we are sure that this project has a very good chance of becoming a beautiful short film with a peculiar story and atmosphere hoping this recognition will be a part of encouragement for all the future careers as a director the award for the best pitch at the lindsby festival goes to home game of natalia Nilec. Good luck! Thank you. Which I do now. I want also to announce what is the prize. It's 2,000 co-production fund. By Clausewitz. I'm surprised. I feel like crying. But thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you for having me here. Thank you for having me here. Thank you for inviting me here. I want to say big thank you to you, Parisa, because you accepted my application. And that was a very helpful and wonderful journey with you guys. Even if we're meeting on the zoom meetings and i had the chance only to see your faces on the computer um but yeah i want to say big thank you for believing in the project i've been with this project for seven years already and it's been a journey to get it found and that's really helpful. We were planning and I'm hoping that we're gonna shoot it by the end of the year so please keep your fingers crossed so we can meet in here and see the movie that it's done. And I really hope everything will be fine. So thank you again, thank you very much for having me here and for this award. I'm really touched. Yeah, you're welcome. I just want to also invite the other talents to come here so you can know which are these. Please join us to the stage. I want really to it's okay it's normal I want to tell to the others that this is just one occasion one opportunity I think it's really a fight it's like a challenge every day to do our movies so I really hope that in the future I will find all your project done and really this is my you know wish for you that you find a way to do it and don't don't come do you say no more and don't think that we immediately said uh you know they were like it it was a good and hard also for us but yeah so good luck Good luck. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. not just, you know, and the jury that was deciding about, you know, these 10 categories, but also having the opportunity to meet the talents and decide about this pitching thing. So thank you so much, Parisa and Ashkan, you know. Thank you for everything. Thank you. Yeah, actually Marina just said the last important words, I think so. This was the ceremony of Linz's Film Festival 2022. Thank you very much for coming, being part of the festival. Parisa is gonna say something as well, okay? We already heard the words thank you such a lot of times, but again, a very warm and pleasuring thank you to Parisa and Ashkan. It was really an interesting, beautiful festival. And thank you also for having me. Goodbye. Yeah, thank you very much. I'm really, today I was like, many, many of you came to me and tell about your experiences here. And I was about to cry because of many positive things that I heard from you. I'm really happy that we could manage it to have this year. After these two years of COVID, we were like, oh, we can do it. Or can we go on? How is it going and i'm really really happy that it happened and like this and i wanted also to announce about our talent program and we will last year we did it online the whole thing and with that and we invite the whole talent to be here with us during the festival. We have also this program next year, but we have an online part, a residency part in another European country, which this year is Spain. And after, the filmmakers will be here in the Lins again during the festival and we will also screen the films of these talents next year. And also every year the film that they are making we will also screen during the festival. Yeah, I want to tell again a big thank you for all your support, everyone who is attending and supporting the festival. Thank you very much. Ja, es gibt dann Deutsch. Sorry, Deutsch. German is my second language and English is my third language. It's a bit getting really hard to speak English for me as I speak German all the day. I always should just switch the German word to English. I just want to tell there is something to eat and drink and music to dance here. We have two hours of party here and dance there. And there is also the opportunity to go to Kapu afterward and celebrate. Thank you very much. Have a lovely evening. Thank you very much. Have a lovely evening. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you to Michelle.