The Paper's reporter Cheng Xiaojun
On December 11, local time, the 34th European Film Awards came to an end in Berlin, Germany. The biggest winner of the night was not Bosnian director Jasmila Žibanić's Aida, where are you going? Quo Vadis, Aida?, won three trophies: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress.
Aida, Where Are You Going? poster
The annual European Film Awards are hosted by the European Film Institute (EFA) and the results of the awards are decided by vote of the academy's members, which currently have 4,200 members. After last year's online event, this year's awards ceremony was originally planned to invite shortlisted filmmakers to attend under the premise of strict social distancing. However, due to the recent sharp rise in confirmed cases of covid-19 in Germany, coupled with the threat of the new variant virus Omicron, the emergency call card planned to be held a week before the ceremony has to be held online this year, just like last year, and only a few award guests are allowed to come to the scene.
"We didn't expect the fourth wave of the pandemic to have a second consecutive impact on our awards ceremony." Polish director Agnieszka Holland, the new president of the European Film Institute, said, "But it is at this moment that we must stand with European filmmakers, so we are here as scheduled." ”
This year's highly acclaimed Aida, Where Are You Going? Set in the 1995 massacre of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a main competition film, the film premiered worldwide at the 2020 Venice Film Festival, and then represented Bosnia and Herzegovina in the best international film of the previous Academy Awards, but unfortunately failed to win the best picture of the last European Film Awards, "The Alcohol Project". Since the film was not officially released in many parts of Europe until this year, it is counted as this year's shortlisted film.
In her acceptance speech, director Zhibanić said that she dedicated the award to "the female compatriots of Srebrenica and the mothers who taught us to turn destruction into love" and "hope that this work will inspire more women to unite, more women's stories, more women's perspectives to appear in the film, in the political field and in our lives".
It is worth mentioning that this year's European Film Awards specially honored two female filmmakers: Hungarian director Márta Mészáros won the Lifetime Achievement Award, and Danish director Susanne Bier won the World Film Contribution Award.
Aside from Aida, where are you going? In addition, Danish director Jonas Poher Rasmussen's "Flee" won three awards, namely Best Documentary, Best Animated Film and European University Film Award. Not surprisingly, this year's new work will also make a big difference in the next awards season.
Poster of "Escape"
【34th European Film Awards Winners】
Best Picture: Aida, Where Are You Going? 》
Best Director: Asmira Zhibanić, "Aida, Where Are You Going?" 》
Best Actor: Anthony Hopkins, "Father Trapped in Time"
Best Actress: Justa de Yuricik, Aida, Where Are You Going? 》
Best Screenplay: "Father Trapped in Time"
New Discovery - Fabisi Prize: "Young Woman with a Bright Future"
Best Comedy: "Baby Ninja"
Best Animated Feature: "The Run"
Best Documentary: "Escape"
Co-Producer Award: Maria Ekerhovd
Creative Award: Steve McQueen, "Little Axe"
Lifetime Achievement Award: Marta Mesarosh
World Cinema Contribution Award: Suzanne Bill
Best Cinematography: The Great Freedom
Best Editing: "Let Go of the Fist"
Best Art Direction: Natural Light
Best Costume Design: Ammonite
Best Makeup & Hairstyling: Titanium
Best Visual Effects: "Sheep Cub"
Best Sound Effects: "The Innocents"
Best Original Score: "The Great Freedom"
Small Audience Award: "Across borders"
European University Film Award: "The Escape"
Editor-in-Charge: Zhang Zhe
Proofreader: Yijia Xu