This is the second important recognition for the film, that in 2019 won Best Film at the 29th FilmFestival Cottbus.
The international jury headed by British director Peter Webber and composed of American producer Jim Stark, Bulgarian actress Irmena Chichikova and Mexican producer Nicolás Celis, gave its Special award to Nathalie Biancheri’s Nocturnal from the UK. Belgium’s Eva Cools won Best Director for her film Cleo.
Hristo Simeonov’s Nina was named Best Bulgarian Short Film and will receive a combined cash / postproduction services award, this year provided by Doli Media Studio.
The Balkan jury headed by Slovak director Mira Fornay and composed of Iceland’s Benedikt Erlingsson and Bulgaria’s Simona Kostova, gave its award to Turkey’s Emin Alper for his A Tale of Three Sisters.
Mina Mileva’s and Vesela Kazakova’s Bulgarian/UK/French feature film debut Cat In the Wall (Activist 38 / Glasshead, Ici et Là Productions), won a second Best Bulgarian Film award from a separate jury headed by the Venice Days artistic director Gaia Furrer, the director of the Warsaw IFF Stefan Laudyn and the Egyptian film critic and selector Ahmed Shawky.
The summer edition of the 24th Sofia FF (25 June – 19 July 2020) took place online for the territory of Bulgaria, at open-air venues and in Sofia’s House of Cinema, screening a total of 111 films from 48 countries, with 88 films screened online.
The autumn part of the 24th Sofia IFF scheduled for the second half of September 2020 is prepared to host over 80 additional films.
FULL LIST OF WINNERS:
Grand prix ‘Sofia City of Film’
Sister (Bulgaria, Qatar)
Directed by Svetla Tsotsorkova
Produced by Omega Films (Bulgaria)
Coproduced by the Doha Film Institute (Qatar)
Jury Special Prize
Nocturnal (UK)
Directed by Nathalie Biancheri
Best Director Award
Eva Cools for Cleo (Belgium)
Special Mention for Best Screenplay
Massoud Bakhshi for Yalda, a Night for Forgiveness (France, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Iran, Lebanon)
Special Mention for Best Production Design
László Rajk for Those Who Remained (Hungary)
Directed by Barnabás Tóth
Doli Media Studio Award for Best Bulgarian Short Film
Nina (Bulgaria)
Directed by Hristo Simeonov
Produced by Screening Emotions
Domaine Boyar Award for Best Balkan Film
A Tale for Three Sisters (Turkey, Germany, Netherlands,Greece)
Directed by Emin Alper
Special Mention Best Balkan Film
Stitches (Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Directed by Miroslav Terzic
Produced by West End Productions (Serbia)
Coproduced by Nora Production Group (Slovenia), Spiritus Movens (Croatia), SCCA/Pro.ba (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Best Documentary Film Award
The Cave (Syria, Denmark, Germany, USA, Qatar)
Directed by Feras Fayyad
Special Mention Documentary Film
Collective (Romania, Luxembourg)
Directed by Alexander Nanau
Produced by Alexander Nanau Production (Romania)
Coproduced by Samsa Film (Luxembourg), HBO Europe
Best Bulgarian Feature Film
Cat In the Wall (Bulgaria, UK, France)
Directed by Mina Mileva, Vesela Kazakova
Produced by Activist 38 (Bulgaria)
Coproduced by Glasshead (UK), Ici et Là Productions (France)
FIPRESCI Award
Those Who Remained (Hungary)
Directed by Barnabás Tóth
Bulgarian Guild of Film Critics Best Balkan Film Award
God Exists, Her Name Is Petrunija (North Macedonia, Belgium, France, Croatia, Slovenia)
Directed by Teona Strugar Mitevska
Produced by Sisters and Brother Mitevski (North Macedonia)
Coproduced by Entre Chien et Loup (Belgium), Deuxième Ligne Films / EZ Films (France), Spiritus Movens (Croatia), Vertigo (Slovenia)
