Unveiling of the winners of the 38th edition of The International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA)!Â
The International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA) is pleased to reveal the winners of its 38th edition from 17 to 29 March 2020 . This year, 17 feature-length films and 16 short films were in official competition. They were in the running for one of the six prizes awarded by the jury: Grand Prize, Jury Prize, Prize for Best Essay, Prize for Best Portrait, Cineplex Odeon Quartier Latin Prize for Best Canadian Work and Prize for Best Short Film.
​“​It is indeed with great pleasure and pride that we announce today the winners of the 38th edition of FIFA. This edition exceptionally online due to the COVID-19 pandemic could not have taken place without the support of the entire community of artists, directors and producers who supported us in our decision to continue the Festival online and to maintain the competition. Special thanks also go to all the members of the Jury for adapting to the more laborious virtual discussions in order to offer us a most engaging prize list,​”​stated Jacinthe Briseboi​​s, ​FIFA’s Director of Programming of art films. ​
“This edition of the Festival is unprecedented. Keeping and growing our audience as we migrated to an online platform in a matter of 48 hours was a major challenge that we met, thanks to a competent and close-knit team. However, I think that what people miss the most today is human contact. That is why we are looking forward to seeing our audience in the next edition. Because a festival is a celebration. A celebration that brings people together and initiates conversation,” added FIFA’s Executive Director, Philippe U. del Drago.
More info
AWARD FOR BEST SHORT FILM:
L’Ă‚GE D’ORÂ BY ERIC MINH CUONG CASTAING
“This short film pushes us to question our relationships with proximity. A sensory piece which, very gently, promotes the sense of touch as therapy, in a world where physical contact is less and less present. With a fluidity devoid of any false restraint, the film addresses motor disability through movement. In addition, beyond the physical, it is a question of our imagination. Self-expression is an individual ability and it knows no bounds. This was the film that, for us, had the most impact as a whole, in terms of both the filmmaking and subject matter. All elements (pace, colour, sound, camerawork) create a beautiful world to explore disability and dance. A truly wonderful film.”, emphasized the jury.
More info
Director Eric Minh Cuong Castaing’s message
CINEPLEX ODEON QUARTIER LATIN AWARD FOR THE BEST CANADIAN WORK:
HAIDA MODERNÂ BY CHARLES WILKINSON
“This film seduced us in several ways. Firstly, in meeting the Amerindian artist Robert Davidson, whose powerful work and personal trajectory open an invaluable window on Haida culture and history. Then, through the quality of his cinematic grammar, and finally, through his visual approach to his artistic work: from the artist’s gestures in close-up, to a more general view of the works, the distance is always appropriate.”, stated the jury.
“We are honoured to be associated with FIFA again this year, as the team has shown remarkable inventiveness and responsiveness in these difficult times. Together with the Cineplex Odeon Quartier Latin Cinema team, we are already looking forward to welcoming the 39th edition of FIFA on the big screen, and most importantly, all of us together!” said Alice Burger, Senior Marketing Manager, Quebec, Cineplex Divertissement.
AWARD FOR BEST PORTRAIT:
LEMEBELÂ BY JOANNA REPOSI GARIBALDI
“This portrait of Lemebel, a total Chilean artist, who used his body as an instrument of art and expression of civil rights against dictatorships, is a tribute, but also a manifesto in itself. The director allowed us to discover the artist right up to his last act, through an intimate vision of a memory album where Lemebel faces fire with courage – but without burning himself. We come out of it conquered by the man, his fight, his mission.”, underlined the jury.
AWARD FOR BEST ESSAY:
ARCHITECTURE OF INFINITYÂ BY CHRISTOPH SCHAUB
“From the first moment to the end credits, director Christoph Schaub convinced us through his ability to share personal questioning in a story with just the right rhythm. We were moved by this essay that is unafraid to let long, contemplative time stand still, by the beauty of its images, by the relevance of the gaze of its protagonists, all craftsmen of the infinite.”, highlighted the jury.
JURY AWARD:
QUE L’AMOURÂ BY LAETITIA MIKLES
“The director’s close-up look at Abdel Khelil, the moving and generous interpreter of Brel songs, who is also employed in a car rental agency, particularly won us over. The journey of this man, who appropriated another language, another culture, and, today, the words and gestures of such an emblematic artist, all touched us with the truth and the strength that emerge from him. He surrenders himself entirely, in front of sometimes sparse rooms, not as a performer, but to present his humanity, so well rendered by Laetitia Mikles.”, commented the jury.
More info
Director Laetitia Mikles’s message
GRAND PRIZE:
WE ARE NOT PRINCESSESÂ BY BRIDGETTE AUGER AND ITAB AZZAM
“We Are Not Princesses is not only a touching testimony of Syrian refugee women living in a camp in Beirut, it is above all a strong and essential film about all that art, in this case literature and theatre, will bring them. These women, inspired by the strength and stubbornness of Antigone, heroine of the Sophocles tragedy, will confront their husbands, their families and society, will sometimes find the joy they had lost, but, mainly, will never be the same again. The subtle editing work, the poetic incursions into animation when the image of the women is forbidden, allow us, above all, to hear the voice given to them by the directors, one they express fully and that will resonate in us for a long time.”, stated the jury.
