Sarajevo Film Festival in Bosnia Unveils New Special Environmental Award

14 August 2024 | Source

The 30th Sarajevo Film Festival in Bosnia and Herzegovina introduces the Special Environmental Awareness Award, supported by the UNDP in BiH. This award recognizes films across nine festival programs that highlight environmental issues and promote sustainability. Seven films are in competition for the award, which will be presented on August 23, 2024. The jury comprises experts in sustainability and film, with a prize of EUR 5,000.

Sarajevo Film Festival

The Sarajevo Film Festival, marking its 30th anniversary, has taken a significant step in promoting environmental sustainability by introducing a new accolade: the Special Environmental Awareness Award. This initiative, sponsored by the United Nations Development Program in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNDP in BiH), underscores the festival's commitment to environmental responsibility and its role as a leader in positive changes within the film industry.

This award aims to recognize and encourage films that tackle environmental issues and contribute to raising awareness of the urgent need for a more sustainable future. Films from across the festival's diverse programs are eligible for this award, reflecting the wide-ranging impact of environmental themes in contemporary cinema.

A total of seven films from nine different festival programs are vying for the inaugural Special Environmental Awareness Award. These films will be showcased in the following categories: Competition Programme – Feature Film, Competition Programme – Short Film, Competition Programme - Student Film, Kinoscope, European Short Film, Network of Festivals in the Adriatic Region, TeenArena, Human Rights Day, and BH Film Programme.

Films in competition for the Special Environmental Awareness Award include:

"Holy Electricity" / Tato Kotetshivili / Georgia, Netherlands / 2024 / 95 min. / Competition Programme – Feature Film
"Gaia" / Nermin Hamzagić, Enis Čišić / Bosnia and Herzegovina / 2024 / 11 min. / Competition Programme – Short Film, BH Film Programme
"Children of the Bird" / Julia Tudisco / Hungary / 2024 / 12 min. / Competition Programme – Student Film
"Pepe" / Nelson Carlo de Los Santos Arias / Dominican Republic, Namibia, Germany, France / 2024 / 122 min. / Kinoscope
"The Sky Above Zenica" / Zlatko Pranjić, Nanna Frank Møller / Denmark, Bosnia and Herzegovina / 2024 / 90 min. / Human Rights Day, BH Film Programme
"Flow" / Gints Zilbalodis / Latvia, France, Belgium / 2024 / 84 min. / TeenArena and Network of Festivals in the Adriatic Region
"3MWh" / Marie-Magdalena Kochová / Czech Republic / 2024 / 12 min. / European Shorts

The decision will be made by a distinguished three-member jury, including editor, assistant director, and sustainability consultant Dörte Schneider Garcia (Germany), film programmer and researcher Julian Ross (Netherlands), and screenwriter Misan Sagay (United Kingdom). These individuals bring a wealth of experience in film production, programming, and sustainable practices to the table, ensuring that the award's recipient will be chosen with a deep understanding of both cinematic and environmental excellence.

The Special Environmental Awareness Award will be presented during the festival's official award ceremony on August 23, 2024. The winning film will receive a monetary prize of EUR 5,000, courtesy of the UNDP in BiH.

By introducing this award, the Sarajevo Film Festival not only celebrates its 30th edition but also solidifies its dedication to fostering environmental awareness through the powerful medium of film. The festival, set to run from August 16 to 23, 2024, continues to be a platform for cultural and social dialogue, with sustainability now firmly at the forefront of its agenda.