Tampere Film Festival 2022 Awards Have Been Announced

Tampere Film Festival’s International Competition Grand Prix goes to the animation documentary film Babičino Seksualno Življenje (Slovenia, France 2021) by Urška Djukić and Émilie Pigeard. The International Jury wanted to award the Grand Prix to a story with powerful symbolic imagery depicting the unspoken and brutal truth of domestic violence against women.

The Tampere Short Film Candidacy for the European Film Awards 2022 went to Anssi Kasitonni’s experimental fiction Le Saboteur (Finland 2022). Bestia (Chile 2021) by Hugo Covarrubias won the Best Animation Category Prize and the Best Documentary Category Prize went to Angle Mort (Tunisia, France 2021) by Lotfi Achour. The Best Fiction Category Prize was awarded to Dania Bdeir’s Warsha (France, Lebanon 2021). The International Jury consisted of Liisa Holmberg, Lauma Kaudzīte, Nicolas Khabbaz, Luca Tóth and Edo Wulia.

Heartless by Haukur Björgvinsson (Iceland 2021) won the Best Genre Film Award in the Generation XYZ competition, organized in collaboration with American production company XYZ Films, Film Tampere and Audiovisual Producers Finland – APFI. Special mentions were handed out to Swallow by Mai Nakanishi (Taiwan, Japan 2021) and En fin de conte (Belgium, France 2021) by Zoé Arene. Mikko Aromaa, Annick Mahnert and Ilja Rautsi were the members of the Generation XYZ Jury.

National Competition

In the National Competition’s under 30 minutes category, the Main Prize was awarded to Fardosa (Finland, United Kingdom 2021) by Rukia Mahamed, Iqlaas Osman and Anton Tammi. The National Jury wanted to award an atmospheric film that surprised the jury with its original storytelling. The film not only celebrates the liberation of young women, and the friendships they have, but also highlights their quest for identity and autonomy.

The Main Prize in the over 30 minutes category was awarded to Susanna Helke’s documentary Armotonta menoa – Hoivatyön lauluja (Finland 2022). The jury found the film to be an compelling and truthful documentary which addresses an incredibly relevant topic spanning generations. The film won also the Church Media Foundation Prize, juried by Elina Vitkala

The National Competition Special Prize in the under 30 minutes category was handed to Ihmissoihtu  (Finland 2022) by Risto-Pekka Blom, and Invisible Demons – Tuhon merkit (Finland 2021) by Rahul Jain won the Special Prize in the over 30 minutes category.

The cinematographers of Invisible Demons – Tuhon merkit, Tuomo Hutri, Saumyananda “Somo” Sahi and Rodrigo Trejo Villanueva, won the Golden Shade Equipment Rental Prize (made possible by Valofirma the Light House and Kamerafirma the Camera House). Hei hei Tornio (Finland 2021) by Emilia Hernesniemi received a National Competition Special Mention. The National Competition Jury consisted of Wisam Elfadl, Kati Sinisalo and Niels Putman.

Mari Mantela’s fiction Kuinka käänsin Rabobeston kylkiasentoon (Finland 2021) received the Risto Jarva Prize. Ulla Leisio, Marjo Levlin and Juha Samola were members of the Risto Jarva Jury.

Finnish Broadcasting Company Yle, City of Tampere, Tampere Film Festival and Audiovisual Producers Finland – APFI ry presented a new Sustainability Award Verso for the first time at Tampere Film Festival. The award, the purpose of which is to promote responsible practices and sustainable development within the film industry, was awarded to the production team of Arctic Utopias, directed by Ville Koskinen, Daniela Toma, Svetlana Romanova and Matti Kinnunen. The Special Mention was handed out to the production team of Mehiläiskesä (Finland 2021), directed by Ida-Maria Olva. The Jury consisted of Perttu Pesä, Anne Puolanne, Marko Röhr and Irene Tommiska-Jarva.

The National Competition Student Award was handed to Mehiläiskesä by Ida-Maria Olva, and the Prize of the Youth Jury went to Uni (Finland 2021) by Pete Riski.

The winners of the Audience Awards are announced at www.tamperefilmfestival.fi on Sunday 13 March at 11am (EET/GMT+2).