James Longley’s “Mohabat” won the Opus Bonum section at Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival on Saturday.
Produced by Mohammad Sharif Hotak, Longley and Oscar-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney, it follows a 12-year-old boy Mohabat, whose father dies in a drone strike. Left without parental care, he’s taken to a city orphanage.
“By patiently observing the boy’s interactions with his two older brothers and the routines and rhythms of life in his village school, the film creates a complex and sympathetic portrait of an individual, a family and a community, stripping away the customary clichés,” argued the jury, calling it “meticulously researched and exquisitely crafted.”
Elvis A-Liang Lu’s “Songs From Within” received a special mention and an award for editing, while Nona Giunashvili’s “Sacred Songs” was named Best Central and Eastern European Documentary. Filip Remunda’s “Love Exposed,” Ishtar Yasin Gutiérrez’s “Life Is There,” Ania Winiarska’s “Good Girls” and Diana Martínez’s “19th Floor” were also awarded.
Brydie O’Connor’s “Barbara Forever,” about late artist and activist Barbara Hammer, was the winner of Testimonies.
The jury called it a “compelling cinematic study that breaks several taboos simultaneously: lesbian and female emancipation, aging and terminal illness. This exceptionally empathetic film incorporates experimental footage – shot by the protagonist herself over the span of five decades – in a highly creative manner.”
“Connecting with others through art was really at the core of her practice. It’s also why she loved teaching. I definitely try to take at least a page out of Barbara’s book in that regard,” said O’Connor.
“After one screening, a woman came up to me. She said: ‘I’ve never heard of Barbara Hammer. I’m from Texas and I’m not queer. But I was so moved because my father is at the very end of his life, and he keeps telling our family that he’s at peace. After seeing this movie, I finally understand what he’s saying.’”
In the First Lights section, Philipp Fröhlich picked up the main award for “After the Rehearsal.” Dominika Kováčová triumphed with “Elusiveness of Today” for the film’s “gentle ability to take the viewer from the confines of the physical space in which an elderly woman is bound, to the boundless jam of her mental universe, and for the eloquent play of light and accomplished camera work.”
Czech Joy’s main award was shared by Martin Páv’s “Glowing” and Nikola Klinger’s “Land of Fire.”
Finally, Klára Trsková and Anežka Horová were the winners of Exprmntl.cz with “On the Peaks of All the Beech Mountains.” Their film was praised for “the political courage in recalling one of the many dark chapters in our contemporary history, the relevance in denouncing ethnic cleansing during complex and painful historical moments, and the sophisticated and stirring filmmaking.”
Vietnamese-American filmmaker Trinh T. Minh-ha was given the Contribution to World Cinema Award.
Currently preparing her upcoming film “The Undying Desert,” her first set in the US, she told Variety about her philosophy.
“You set up the rules for yourself. I’m very glad that I was able to stick with the path I chose and not be intimidated by all these oppressive regulations.”
She added: “Cinema is not just an experience for the eyes. It’s an experience for the whole body. When I was first showing ‘Reassemblage,’ someone told me: ‘I’m hearing this film with my eyes and seeing it with my ears.’ I replied: ‘Perfect,’” she said.
“In East Asia, the senses are not that separate. They overlap. A painter is also a musician and a poet. I think it’s the same with film. It’s better to come with an open mind and see how it speaks to you, rather than focusing on what constitutes a ‘good documentary,’ or what its story or message is.”
Talking about the 30th anniversary edition, Marek Hovorka, the festival’s founder and long-time director, told Variety:
“Documentary cinema has undergone an extraordinary transformation over the past 30 years. It’s fascinating to witness. Just imagine – the first films submitted to our festival arrived by post on VHS tapes in padded envelopes.”
Over the years, the event has welcomed Richard Leacock, Claire Atherton, Marcel Ophuls, Béla Tarr and many others.
“What has always mattered to us is connecting film history and its key figures with contemporary cinema, with courage and originality.”
According to Hovorka, documentary cinema has an extraordinary power “precisely because of its relationship with reality.”
“And the Ji.hlava audience is truly among the best in the world. Filmmakers repeatedly praise the questions they ask and their extraordinary dedication,” he said.
“There’s something very special about watching a film together in a packed cinema and feeling that you’re all sharing an exceptional experience. We had many moments like this during this year’s post-screening discussions as well.”
The team has many ideas about how to develop the festival further.
“Whether we can realize them will largely depend on our financial possibilities, but what defines Ji.hlava’s DNA remains unchanged: a diverse film program; the trust and dedication of our audience; and discussions that do not end when the screening is over.”
Still, the times aren’t exactly stable.
“During the festival, we witnessed growing political pressure to change the funding and stability of Czech public service media, as well as the foundations of the well-functioning Czech Audiovisual Fund,” he noted.
“Czech cinema, and documentary cinema in particular, has been doing very well in recent years, partly thanks to the stability of institutions financing films, festivals and other distribution platforms such as DAFilms. All of this is now being shaken.”
“This is not only happening in the Czech Republic. In fact, it is not even limited to Eastern Europe. Because Ji.hlava brings together so many young filmmakers from different parts of the world, I could sense how deeply aware they were of this situation.”
He added: “Independent culture, and therefore independent cinema, is essential to our identity. It’s something we need to keep explaining and defending.”
‘Barbara Forever’
Courtesy of Ji.hlava Documentary Film Festival
You can find the full list of awards here:
Opus Bonum
Main Award: James Longley, “Mohabat”
Special Mention: Elvis A-Liang Lu, “Songs From Within”
Best Central and Eastern European Documentary: Nona Giunashvili, “Sacred Songs”
Best Documentary Film in the Visegrad Region: Filip Remunda, “Love Exposed”
Award for Original Approach: Ishtar Yasin Gutiérrez, “Life Is There”
Best Editing: Yi-ling Huang, “Songs From Within”
Best Cinematography: Ania Winiarska, “Good Girls”
Award for the Best Sound Design: Diana Martínez, “19th Floor”
Student Jury Award: Éric Baudelaire, “For the Moon”
First Lights
Main Award: Philipp Fröhlich, “After the Rehearsal”
Special Mention: Eli Maene, “Journey”
Best Cinematography: Emma Boccanfuso, “Saudades Eternas”
Award for the Best Sound Design: Leinad Pájaro De la Hoz, Manuel Escorihuela, “Voices From Neptune”
Award for Original Approach: Jihyeon Oh, “Erotic Blossoms in a Dream”
FIPRESCI Prize: Eli Maene, “Journey”
Testimonies
Main Award: Brydie O’Connor, “Barbara Forever”
Special Mention for Best Film on Nature: Markéta Ekrt Válková, “Light It Before It Burns”
Special Mention for Best Film on Politics: Zainab Entezar, “771 Days”
Special Mention for Best Film on Knowledge: Sien Versteyhe, “The Sessions Fascinations”
Main Award: Dominika Kováčová, “Elusiveness of Today”
Special mention: Rocío Salima, “Identity and Transit Document No. 4”
Exprmntl.cz
Main Award: Klára Trsková, Anežka Horová, “On the Peaks of All the Beech Mountains”
Audience Award: Aleš Pojar, “Mushroom Seconds”
Czech Joy
Main Award: Martin Páv, “Glowing”
Main Award: Nikola Klinger, “Land of Fire”
Best Editing: Sebastian Kučkovský, “Anatomy of a Crash”
Best Sound Design: Jakub Jurásek, Marek Buranovský, “Wasteland Chronicles”
Best Cinematography: Matěj Piňos, “Light It Before It Burns”
Award for Original Approach: Karolína Hovězáková, “Love Video Letter”
Student Jury Award: Georgij Mežujev, “My Father From the Island Russia”
Award for the Best Czech Short Documentary Film: Dariia Kovalchuk, “Donbas Within Reach”
Short Joy
Joseph Vitali, “Never Been There, Never”
Contribution to World Cinema Award
Trinh T. Minh-ha
