Winners of the 11th PLANETE+ DOC FF

On Saturday, May 17, 2014, winners of 11th PLANETE+ DOC FILM FESTIVAL, one of the most important European documentary festivals, held in Warsaw and Wrocław between May 9-18 and in 20 other Polish cities through “PLANETE+ DOC Festival Weekend” of May 16-18, were announced during the awards ceremony held in Warsaw’s Kinoteka theater.
International jury consisting of Nino Kirtadze, Aleš Suk i Manuel Rougeron awarded the festival’s main prize - MILLENNIUM AWARD and 8000 Euro, funded by festival’s patron, Millennium Bank – to Hubert Sauper’s “We Come as Friends” – “an astonishing fairytale film that takes viewers to the birthplace of humanity and civilization, explaining what the latter has become. Following events in Sudan, which form a bittersweet mosaic of surreal situations, people and places, the film questions the essence of our European civilization and exposes its narcissist cynicism, greed and appalling hypocrisy. It is a universal and deeply personal film, evoking both laughter and chills” wrote the Jury in their decision.
Honorable mentions went to Michel Gondry’s “Is the Man Who is Tall Happy?” – “an absolute UFO of a film that stimulated our minds with its unusual and impressive tempo and dynamic interactions between one of the most distinguished thinkers of our time and Michel Gondry, evoking deep reflections, asking questions without answers and somehow providing a bit of joy in the process” – and “Velvet Terrorists” by Ivan Ostrochovsky, Pavol Pekarčík and Peter Kerekes, which the jury described as “a unique film that expands existing documentary formats with its fresh and joyous approach that presents personal and heroic perspectives on resistance against a totalitarian regime”.
International Jury consisting of Željka Sukova, Paweł Łoziński and Błażej Hrapkowicz presented the MAGIC HOUR AWARD for best mid-length film and 4000 euro funded by Polish Film Institute to the documentary “Three Women” by Anna Jadowska for “the subtle and patient observation that allows viewers to enter the protagonists’ intimate world without the feeling of encroaching on someone’s privacy and for the realization that documentary filmmaking is more than just turning the camera on and waiting for things to happen.” Additionally, the Jury awarded honorable mentions to: Elisa Amoruso’s “Off Road” for its “insightful and entertaining depiction of an alternative family that convinces us that love and attachment rather than cultural patterns are warrants of happiness. But first and foremost – for the protagonist that is both larger than life and true to life”; and to Benjamin Oroza’s “Voices of El Alto” for “the skillful construction of space that would allow protagonists to freely tell their life stories, which constitute a portrait of a strong independent community.”
Jury consisting of Irena Gruca-Rozbicka, Bogdan Dziworski and Maciej Nabrdalik presented the CANON CINEMATOGRAPHY AWARD and 4000 euro funded by Canon Poland to Henry Corry and Regina Nicholson for “Farewell to Hollywood” – a multi-layered, universal and intimate film that not only depicts illness, but also complicated family relations; a film that presents emotions, but also evokes them in the viewer.” Honorable mentions went to Eliza Kubarska’s “Walking Under Water”, which the jury praised for “composition, ambience, light and ideal camerawork as well as the perfect correspondence of film form and content” and Joe Piscatella’s #chicagoGirl – The Social Network Takes on a Dictator” for “rendering of reality in which information travels in an instant, while the world idly watches deaths of thousands of people. An honorable mention for this film is also a tribute to all the civil reporters that risk their lives in their quest for truth” read the jury statement.
Jury consisting of Michał Piróg, Przemek Pasek and Liliana Religa presented the GREEN CROSS WARSAW AWARD for best documentary about environmental issues and 3000 euro funded by Green Cross Poland to “The Human Experiment” by Dana Nachman and Jon Hardy for its “portrayal of an issue that affects all of us, regardless of domicile, gender or environmental activism”. The jury stressed the film’s “diverse, vivid and gender-conscious way of encouraging local activism to help improve the situation on a global scale”. Additionally, the jury awarded honorable mentions to Tom Heinemann’s “The Carbon Crooks”, a film “full of suspense on par with a crime feature, that surprises, evokes reflection and reminds us of the necessity to control those in power”.
THE VIEWERS’ PLANET – PLANETE+ AUDIENCE AND COMMUNITY AWARD and 2000 euro funded by PLANETE+ documentary channel and nc+ digital platform went to Luc Jacquet’s “Once Upon a Forest”.
In the competition for best documentary about human rights, jury consisting of Draginja Nadaždin, Tadeusz Sobolewski and Mirosław Chojecki presented the AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL AWARD and 3000 euro to Madeleine Sackler’s “Dangerous Acts Starring the Unstable Elements of Belarus” about an illegal Free Belarussian Theather, a film that “despite the tragic fate of its protagonists encourages activism and gives hope.” The jury also presented honorable mentions to Andreas Johnsen’s “Ai Wei Wei: the Fake Case” and “Art War” by Marco Wilms.
CHOPIN’S NOSE AWARD for best film about music and 1000 euro, presented in partnership with National Audiovisual Institute went to Salvo Cuccii for “Summer of ’82: When Zappa Came to Sicily”. “The film is naturally a great treat for Zappa fans. It is a film about us, music lovers willing to go to great lengths to attend a concert of their beloved artist. It is also a film about how music brings people together regardless of age, borders or distance measured in thousands of kilometers” wrote the jury consisting of Monika Brodka, Agnieszka Szydłowska and Jarek Szubrycht. An honorable mention went to Sini Anderson’s “The Punk Singer”. “We would like to honor not so much the film itself as its main protagonist, Kathleen Hanna, for her courage, strong spirit and great songs. While watching the film, one cannot help but pine for those not-so-bygone days when music was at the forefront of the opinion-making front and was truly changing the world” reads the jury statement.
This year’s edition of PLANETE+ DOC festival saw the launch of GDYNIA IMMIGRATION MUSEUM AWARD that aims to attract audience attention to documentaries that depict the scale and multi-faceted character of the immigration phenomenon and its impact on the society and the individual. Jury consisting of Andrzej Kołodyński, Karolina Grabowicz-Matyjas and Maria Zmarz-Koczanowicz presented the GDYNIA IMMIGRATION MUSEUM AWARD and 2000 euro to Joe Piscatella’s #chicagoGirl – The Social Network Takes on a Dictator” for its “convincing portrayal of contemporary migrants, whose lives – thanks to modern communication technologies – span over two continents: their native Syria and the United States”. The jury underlined the special role of the film’s protagonist, Alaa Basatneh – “an independent young migrant woman, conscious of her roots and strong tiesd to her compatriots, who goes to extraordinary lengths to support the Syrian revolution”.
During this year’s festival, PLANETE+ DOC ACADEMY AWARD was presented for the first time by the youth jury consisting of Paulina Wilkowicz de Arruda, Weronika Althamer, Agnieszka Gabriel, Miłosz Gierszewski, Krzysztof Lach, Hanna Dymarska and Dominika Budkus to the best mid-length documentary. The winner was “Stream of Love” by Ágnes Sós – “a film full of picturesque frames and moving testimonies that in an endearing and entertaining way depicts the unwavering need for love”. Additionally, the jury awarded honorable mentions to Anna Jadowska’s “Three Women” – “a raw, true-to-life story about the world around us” and “C.K.O.D.2 – Evacuation Plan” by Piotr Szczepański. „This is how documentaries should be made” wrote the jury in the verdict.
On May 13, the FOCUS MONTHLY AWARD for greatest personality of PLANETE+ DOC was presented to Noam Chomsky – American linguist, philosopher, political activist, co-creator of transformative-generative grammar, developer of psycholinguistics and one of the most prominent and most often cited scholars of our time.
The LOWER SILESIA GRAND PRIX – DOLNOŚLĄSKIE VOIVODESHIP AWARD and 3000 euro funded by the Marshal of Dolnośląskie Voivodeship went to Michael Obert’s “Song from the Forest” – “a moving portrayal of a modern-day nomad who tries to find himself somewhere between New York City and the heart of African jungle. The jury consisting of Adriana Prodeus, Bodo Kox i Katarzyna Roj also awarded an honorable mention to “Farewell to Hollywood” by Henry Corry and Regina Nicholson. “We want to honor this exceptional work that documents a controversial relationship developed between the filmmaker and his protagonist; at the same time, we want to stress that in our opinion it should not be perceived as a valid competition entry. This is our homage to Regina Nicholson” wrote the jury in its verdict.
Winner of POLISH CINEMAS NETWORK award, chosen during PLANETE+ DOC Weekend, will only be announced in late May and will receive the network’s financial support for distribution of the film in Poland.
11th PLANETE+ DOC FILM FESTIVAL – one of the most important documentary film festivals in the world was held between May 9-18 in Kinoteka and Iluzjon theaters in Warsaw and in Dolnośląskie Centrum FIlmowe (DCF, Lower Silesian Film Center) in Wrocław. This year’s edition presented over 150 documentaries from around the world, with over 70 filmmakers (directors, producers, cinematographers) and film protagonists attending the festival in Warsaw and Wrocław. In both cities, screenings were supplemented with debates, Q&A sessions, exhibitions, concerts, music events, workshops and master classes. Additionally, during the “PLANETE+ DOC WEEKEND” festival films were screened in arthouse cinemas in 20 Polish cities.

For more information about 11th PLANETE+ DOC FILM FESTIVAL go to:
www.planetedocff.pl
www.facebook.com/PlaneteDoc
www.facebook.com/PlaneteDocWroclaw