Winners of 10th Spektrum Film Festival

On Saturday, October 26th, during the awards ceremony, we announced the winners of the 10th Spektrum Film Festival. Which films earned the highest recognition in the The Youth Perspective competition and the new Competition 1,2?

On the penultimate day of the festival, awards were presented in The Youth Perspective short film competitions for young filmmakers. In each competition category (Short Fiction, Documentary, Animation, Amateur), a three-member jury, composed of representatives from the film and art world, selected their favorite. Additionally, audiences from both Poland and the Czech Republic chose their favorite from among all the short films in the four competitions, awarding the Audience Award.

Alongside the main jury, local juries also judged the films: the fiction entries were viewed by occupational therapy participants from Mokrzeszów, the documentary section was evaluated by inmates at the Świdnica Detention Center, the amateur competition by representatives of the Youth City Council of Świdnica, and the Competition 1,2 was judged solely by the festival audience!

The awarded prizes find their representation not only in trophies but also in the town of Świdnica itself! On Tuesday, three trees were planted in St. Małgorzata’s Square, marking the beginning of a cinematic map of Świdnica. Each tree will have a plaque with a QR code that, when scanned, will allow viewers to watch the winning film. This year’s trophies were crafted by Wrocław’s Zakwas studio, created once again from a custom ceramic blend using local materials and enriched with crushed recycled building brick from remnants of old structures in Lower Silesia.

Meet this year’s winners and learn the jury’s explanations for their choices!

Competition 1, 2

Rzeczy niezbędne, dir. Kamila Tarabura (Poland, 2024)

The Youth Perspective — Short Fiction

Main Award

The Mysterious Adventures of Claude Conseil, dir. Paul Jousselin, Marie-Lola Terver (France, 2023)

For the non-obvious linking of seemingly distant worlds, for an original sense of humour, for excellent human and animal acting and for showing the influence of ornithology on hip hop music.
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The jury also decided to award an honourable mention to An Orange from Jaffa, dir. Mohammed Almughanni (Palestine, 2023):
For a film that, without epitomising the theme of war, becomes a universal parable that gives faith in humanity.

Niepełny kadr Award

Les chenilles dir. Michelle Keserwany, Noel Keserwany (France, Liban, 2023)

The Youth Perspective — Documentary

Main Award

Sister of Mine, dir. Mariusz Rusiński (Poland, 2023)

The Jury would like to thank the director for the privilege of getting close to his family including the bravery of his sister to share her life story and struggle. In such a case, we believe in the healing abilities of the cinema presenting touching and inspiring personal stories that can resonate with the audience and provide a life lesson about forgiveness and recovery.
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The special mention went to Grandmamauntsistercat, dir. Zuza Banasińska (Poland, 2024)
We would like to give a Special mention to the film that is experimental, playful in form and works with the archives in a new and outstanding way. We appreciated the skillful remix of archive materials and by rewriting history, giving it finally new meanings.

Kinematografek Award

Echo, dir. Emi Buchwald (Poland, 2023)

In their justification, the jury noted that the film was moving and full of empathy.
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The jury also decided to recognize two additional films – awarding Sister of Mine, directed by Mariusz Rusiński, with second place, and Clear Sky, directed by Marcin Kundera, with third place.

The Youth Perspective — Animation

Main Award

Martyr's Guidebook, dir. Maksymilian Rzontkowski (Poland, 2023)

For an absolutely conscious view of morality with a lot of humour, and an original and unorthodox visual style, music and dialog, we would like to give the main award to the film that was the cherry on our carrot cake.
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The special mention went to Kinderfilm, dir. Adrian Jonas Haim, Robin Klengel, Michael Stumpf (Austria, 2023):
We appreciate the film on many levels: the play with context, its absurd sense of humor, and the way it merges popular culture with reflective narration.

The Youth Perspective – Amateurs competition

Main Award

Material, dir. Kuba Dyniewicz (Poland, 2023)

For creating with its artistic certainty an internally coherent and conscious film material, an image of emotional rupture. Kuba Dyniewicz’s film delighted us by translating universal themes, the search for one’s own path, inner dilemmas and emotional dilemmas into the language of cinema.

Youth Council of Świdnica Award

Wicked Touch, dir. Jarema Żądziński (Poland, 2024)

Jarema Żądziński’s film depicts the realities that young people can face today, e.g. struggling with inner thoughts, remorse and feelings of loneliness, which can lead to addictions. In addition to an elaborate storyline, Wicked touch is professionally made which keeps the audience’s attention and holds them in suspense throughout the screening.
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The special mention went to The girls that wore sweaters, dir. Dobrochna Walczak (Poland, 2024):
A skilful portrayal of challenges faced by modern women.

Audience Award in The Youth Perspective competitions

HUMANITY, dir. Tereza Kovandová (Czech, 2024)

Among all the short films in the Okiem Młodych sections (Short Fiction, Documentary, Animation, Amateur), the hearts of festivalgoers from both the Polish and Czech editions of Spektrum were won over by the film HUMANITY, directed by Tereza Kovandová (Czech Republic, 2024).

We extend our heartfelt congratulations to all the winners!