On Saturday, June 6, the first Polish online film festival ended with an awards gala, during which we met the winners of all festival competitions. The event was broadcast live on the Internet, hosted by Maciej Stuhr, and the large audience gathered in front of computer screens proved that a pandemic does not prevent true love of cinema and the festival!
Awards of the 60th Krakow Film Festival
The ceremony was launched by Tomasz Raczek, the editor-in-chief of the Film Magazine of the Polish Filmmakers Association, announcing the audience award that this year was given to the Norwegian documentary “The Self Portrait” directed by Margreth Olin, Katja Hogset and Espen Wallin. This film also received the Jury Prize of the International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI).
“The Whale From Lorino” directed by Maciej Cuske (Poland) who won three awards was the undisputed winner of the Festival. The film won the Silver Horn for the director of a film with high artistic value, the Award of the President of the Polish Filmmakers Association for editing for Katarzyna Orzechowska and the Award for the best producer of Polish short and documentary films funded by the Polish Producers Alliance for Mikołaj Pokromski and Aldona Pokromska.
In the justification of the Jury of the international documentary film competition headed by Łukasz Żal we read: “The Whale From Lorino” receives the Silver Horn for the depth experience in which metaphorical images and sound allow us to immerse ourselves in the reality of an indigenous Siberian village located in a remote and forgotten corner of Russia. (…) this unique film presents the cultural relationship between man and the environment in a beautiful way and paradoxically shows us that men who hunt endangered whales to survive also belong to the genre on the verge of extinction.
The main prize in the documentary competition went to Radu Ciorniciuc for the film “Acasa, My Home” (Romania, Finland, Germany) for the extraordinary and complex story presented from the perspective of children in the Roma family. (…) It is very rare that one documentary such as this one successfully analyzes and explores so many important aspects of the human condition within one beautifully told story, explains the Jury.
Mehrdad Oskouei received the Silver Horn for the director of the social film for “Sunless Shadows” (Iran, Norway), which with precision, authenticity, sensitivity and creative elegance presented dramatic stories about domestic violence, hidden traumas and the collective responsibility of patriarchal society.
In the international short film competition, chaired by Jan Komasa, the Golden Dragon Grand Prix went to the director, Shoko Hara, for the animated short film “Just A Guy” (Germany). Alex Evstigneev received the Silver Dragon for the director of the best documentary film for the film “The Golden Buttons” (Russia) “for a shocking presentation of how tyranny does not spare even the most vulnerable souls.” The best animated film in the competition was also the Russian film “He Can’t Live Without Cosmos” (Russia) directed by Konstantin Bronzit. The Silver Dragon for the directors of the feature film was awarded to Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli for their film “Chubby” (Canada).
The Self Portrait, dirMargreth Olin, Katja Hogset, Espen Wallin 
The Whale form Lorino, dir. Maciej Cuske 
Acasa, My Home, dir. Radu Ciorniciuc 
Sunless Shadows, dir. Mehrdad Oskouei 
Golden Buttens, reż Alex Evstigneev 
He Can’t Live Without Cosmos, dir. Konstantin Bronzit 
Just a Guy, dir. Shoko Hara 
Chubby, dir. Madeleine Sims-Fewer
In the DocFilmMusic International Music Document Competition, one prize is awarded each year. Golden Heynal, by decision of the Jury composed of: Stephen Nomura Schible (USA), Rachel Leah Jones (USA / Israel) and Leszek Możdżer (Poland) was received by Pushpendra Singh for the film “Pearl of the Desert” (India, South Korea). “For his lyrical celebration of the musical heritage and human voice.”
In the Polish Grand Prix competition and the Golden Hobby-Horse statuette, Tomasz Wolski was awarded for the film “An Ordinary Country”. The jury, chaired by Magdalena Łazarkiewicz, justifies: For the execution excellence of the film, which – avoiding the journalism trap – shows how imperceptibly evil creeps into everyday life.
The best documentary film of the Polish competition was “Sonny”, whose director, Paweł Chorzępa received the Silver Hobby-Horse “for a moving story about the relationship of a son and father, shown with extreme visual sensitivity.” Daria Kopiec was awarded the Silver Hobby-Horse for the best Polish animated film – “Your Own Bullshit”, and Damian Kocur for the short feature “Beyond Is The Day”.
Pearl of the Desert, dir. Pushpendra Singh 
An Ordinary Country, dir. Tomasz Wolski 
Sonny, dir. Paweł Chorzępa 
Your Own Bullshit, dir. Daria Kopiec 
Beyond Is The Day, dir. Damian Kocur
As part of each competition, all international juries gave special awards and numerous distinctions. As emphasized by Leszek Możdżer, a member of the jury, Better and deeper knowledge of music through films was a great experience and my own personal therapy., Jan Komasa added that participation in the jury proceedings was the best way to spend quarantine. Thank you all for your effective work. I had a lot of fun. Magdalena Łazarkiewicz emphasized that This festival has gained an incredibly wide audience which allowed it to reach people in various parts of our country.
The ceremonial Gala was also attended by the Director of the Polish Film Institute, Radosław Śmigulski, who, congratulating all the winners, referred to the festival jubilee saying that 60 years in Krakow years is only an early youth.
The screenings of all awarded films will take place on Sunday, June 7 in the virtual cinema halls of the Krakow Film Festival on the website www.krakowfilmfestival.pl and in all the screening rooms of the Pod Baranami Cinema in Krakow, at the Main Market Square and the Małopolska Garden of Arts.