11-03-2015

One World audiences vote for gorillas from Virunga National Park

    Virunga, a docu-thriller about mountain gorillas shot in the middle of a war in the Congo, received the most votes from One World audiences and will take home the AVAST Foundation Audience Award.

    Director Orlando von Einsiedel shot a unique documentary which shows the protracted conflict in the Congo in a new light. In terms of thrills, the film's narrative form can easily compete with feature action films. At the centre of events is a refuge for the almost extinct mountain gorilla, the last of which live in Virunga National Park. Now the gorillas are under threat, not only from the local militias, but also from a British company that is planning to drill for oil here. When the insurgents launch an offensive, the brave group of park rangers who are trying to protect the gorillas find themselves under fire, as do the film crew.

    This extraordinary docu-thriller (executive producer Leonardo DiCaprio) was nominated for an Oscar this year. The One World audience gave it a score of 1.14.

    People in Need has been present in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, one of the poorest countries in the world, since 2009. The organisation focuses mainly on health care but also works to improve access to drinking water, to raise the quality of teaching at primary schools and to help victims of sexual assault. You can find more information here.

    The last screening of Virunga will be on Wednesday, March 11 at 17:00 in the large auditorium of the Světozor cinema.

    You can watch the trailer at www.oneworld.cz.

    Second place in the AVAST Foundation Audience Award voting when to Hip Hop-eration with a score of 1.18. The film by Bryn Evans is about a group of seniors from New Zealand who decide to take part in a hip hop dance contest. Third place went to Romanian documentary Toto and His Sisters by Alexander Nanau with a score of 1.25.

    Nearly 30,000 spectators attended One World screenings in Prague. The festival will then move to 33 other towns and cities around the Czech Republic and to Brussels.

    All of the awards for the One World Festival will be presented to the filmmakers and other guests on Wednesday, March 11 from 19:00 in the Lucerna cinema.