The short Beyond the Other Shore (波罗蜜) (2023, Singapore), directed by Pek Jia Hao and Ang Jia Jun, took the Grand Award at the 65th ZINEBI – International Festival of Documentary and Short Film of Bilbao, 7,000 euros.

The jury panel declared that “Through a wonderfully mastered cinematography, this short film filled with poetry takes us down the path of grief” and, “With a lot of delicacy, it allows the viewer to navigate between the physical wandering and the inner feelings of the main character” to confront us with “our own perception of mortality, beliefs and the passing of time”.

The main awards in the Official Section – International Short Film Competition are completed by the Basque Cinema Grand Award, for the fiction Ximinoa (Itziar Leemans, Basque Country / France, 2023), which “confronts us with a silently violent reality”. The jury declared: “without forsaking the luminosity of its formal and aesthetic aspects, the short slowly submerges us in a claustrophobic atmosphere to which the protagonist is forced to wake up as her class consciousness emerges”.
The Grand Award of Spanish Cinema went to the documentary El soldao (Alejandro Cabrera, Spain, 2023), of which it was said that “thanks to its authenticity, this documentary focusing on the Spanish countryside, portrays with great care a search for memories, but also what stays and what’s missing as time goes by”.

As every year, the Mikeldi Awards were also handed out in the various categories: best fiction short film went to It Turns Blue (Abi mishavad) (Shadi Karamroudi, 2023); the best animation short film to France/Colombia co-production La perra (Carla Melo, 2023); and best documentary short film to The Veiled City (Natalie Cubides-Brady, 2023).

The names of the prizewinning short films were announced by the members of the Jury Panel for this section, which this year features the coordinator of the Cannes Festival’s Short Film Corner Florian Fernandez; the director of the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival (Japan) Haruka Hama; Bulgarian film critic and programmer Mariana Hristova; Basque director Estibaliz Urresola; and Galician director of animation, illustrator and drawing artist Alberto Vázquez.

ZINEBI is also one of the two State festivals on the list of European festivals which select a short film each year to compete in the EFA (European Film Awards). The International Jury at this year’s ZINEBI festival chose the Croatian short film Valerija, by Sara Jurinčič, as the European Film Awards 2024 Short Film Candidate.

OFFICIAL SECTION. INTERNATIONAL ZIFF – ZINEBI FIRST FILM COMPETITION

Turning to the Official Section’s largest prize – 12,000 euros – for the best opera prima in the International ZIFF – ZINEBI First Film Competition, the winner was In the Rearview (Skąd dokąd), by Maciek Hamela.

The Jury, composed of Colombian producer and director Diana Bustamante; the head of programming at Arsenal – Berlin Cinema and Videoart Institute Birgit Kohler; and Spanish filmmaker Rocío Mesa, unanimously decided to award the prize to this Polish/French/Ukrainian co-production in view of the “exceptional power of its minimalistic approach to an international conflict, exploring horror from a humanistic perspective. We highlight the solid construction of the editing, which creates a poetic and touching portrait of war, free of exploitative images, that invites deep reflection. As the characters and the filmmaker drive away from the war, the audience travels to the heart of it.”

The Youth Jury Award – ZIFF (University of the Basque Country – UPV/EHU), 2,000 euros, went to Basque film Zarata, by Tamara García Iglesias.

OTHER AWARDS

The EiTB Audience Award, 3,000 euros, went to It Turns Blue (Abi mishavad), by Shadi Karamroudi (Iran, 2023), which also won the UNICEF Award, and so it stole the show at ZINEBI, with three prizes.

The FAS Cineclub Award of 2,000 euros for the best short film in the “Bertoko Begiradak – Views from the Basque Country” section went to the animation short film Kusikozu, by Aitor Irulegi Lopez.

The Festival’s Closing Gala, led by María Goiricelaya and Ane Pikaza (La Dramática Errante), will be this evening at 19:30 h in the Arriaga Theatre, featuring electronic pop group J Martina and contemporary dance company Compañía X, and the short films which took the ZINEBI 65 Official prizes will be screened afterwards.

ZINEBI INDUSTRY AWARDS

This year ZINEBI, financed by the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts (ICAA) with funds from NextGenerationEU, EITB MEDIA S.A.U. (EITB), the Association Zineuskadi and Europa Creativa Desk MEDIA Euskadi, with collaboration from Cannes Docs, the Scottish Documentary Institute and the Madrid Community’s Cinematographic and Audiovisual School (ECAM), is staging the sixth Bilbao Professional Documentary Film Forum ZINEBI NETWORKING: Dokumentalen Sorgunea, an initiative to promote emerging creativity in documentary cinema in the Basque Country and in the State.

For the second year running, the Forum had two cash prizes of 10,000 euros each: the ZINEBI Networking EITB 2023 Award went to La isla sumergida, directed and produced by Lucía Malandro and Daniel Saucedo, with production by Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola – EQZE; while the award for ZINEBI Networking 2023 Award of the Spanish State went to Jo Sóc, directed by Patricia M. Félix, and produced by Roger Torras Mayneris (wknd) and Diana Toucedo Films.

As a new feature this year, ZINEBI Networking has bolstered its links to Madrid’s ECAM school with the Impulso ECAM prize, a personalised advisory package for each project taking part. This year the Impulso ECAM Award – ZINEBI Networking 2023 goes to Inmersas en el Imserso, by Aitor Arruti.

This year ZINEBI also handed out the Aukera Awards, each worth 3,000 euros, to set up a short film project. The (H)EMEN Award went to Mi reina, by Irene Royo; the Aukera Creators Award and the Zineuskadi Internationalization Award Aukera went to Ezagutzen ditugun bekain guztiak, by Marta Codesido and Núria Ubach; and the Aukera Bizkaia Council Award for best project in Euskera will go to Gure gozamena, by Amaia Chocarro.


WINNERS ZINEBI 65

Sail Ofiziala
Film Laburren Nazioarteko Lehiaketa · Short Film International Competition · Concurso Internacional de Cortometraje

ZINEBIko Sari Nagusia · ZINEBI Grand Award · Gran Premio ZINEBI

Beyond the Other Shore (波罗蜜)
Pek Jia Hao & Ang Jia Jun – Singapur – 15’ – 2023 – FIC

Euskal Zinemaren Sari Nagusia · Grand Award of Basque Cinema · Gran Premio del Cine Vasco

Ximinoa (The Monkey)
Itziar Leemans – Euskadi / Francia – 25’ – 2023 – FIC

Espainiako Zinemaren Sari Nagusia · Grand Award of Spanish Cinema · Gran Premio del Cine Español

El soldao
Alejandro Cabrera – España – 20’ – 2023 – DOC

Fikziozko Film Labur Onenaren Mikeldia · Mikeldi for Best Fiction Short Film · Mikeldi al Mejor Cortometraje de Ficción

It Turns Blue (Abi mishavad) 
Shadi Karamroudi · Irán · 15’ · 2023

Film Labur Dokumental Onenaren Mikeldia · Mikeldi for Best Documentary Short Film · Mikeldi al Mejor Cortometraje Documental

The Veiled City
Natalie Cubides-Brady – Reino Unido – 13’ – 2023

Animaziozko Film Labur Onenaren Mikeldia · Mikeldi for Best Animation Short Film · Mikeldi al Mejor Cortometraje de Animación

La perra  Carla Melo – Colombia / Francia – 14’ – 2023

Publikoaren EITB Saria · EITB Audience Award · Premio del Público EITB

It Turns Blue (Abi mishavad) 
Shadi Karamroudi · Irán · 15’ · 2023 – FIC

Cineclub FAS Saria · FAS Cineclub Award · Premio Cineclub FAS

Kusikozu  Aitor Irulegi Lopez – Euskadi – 7’ – 2023 – ANI

UNICEF Saria
UNICEF · UNICEF Award · Premio UNICEF

It Turns Blue (Abi mishavad) 
Shadi Karamroudi · Irán · 15’ · 2023 – FIC

European Film Awards 2024ko Hautagai Film Laburra · European Film Awards 2024 Short Film Candidate · Cortometraje Candidato a los European Film Awards 2024

Valerija
Sara Jurinčič – Croacia – 15’ – 2023 – DOC

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ZIFF – ZINEBI
First Film Nazioarteko Lehiaketa · International Competition · Competencia Internacional

ZIFF Sari Nagusia
ZIFF · Grand Award ZIFF · Gran Premio ZIFF

In the Rearview (Skąd dokąd) Maciek Hamela – Polonia, Francia, Ucrania – 84’ – 2023 – DOC

ZIFF Gazte Epaimahaiaren Saria (UPV/EHU) · ZIFF Youth Jury Award (UPV/EHU) · Premio del Jurado Joven ZIFF (UPV/EHU)

Zarata
Tamara García Iglesias – Euskadi – 62‘ –  2023 – FIC/DOC

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ZINEBI Networking 2023: Dokumentalen Sorgunea 

ZINEBI Networking EITB 2023 Saria · ZINEBI Networking EITB 2023 · Award
Premio EITB – ZINEBI Networking 2023

La isla sumergida
 (2024, 90 min)
zuzendaria · direction  / ekoizlea · producer: Lucía Malandro, Daniel Saucedo
ekoiztetxea · production company: Elías Querejeta Zine Eskola – EQZE

ZINEBI Networking 2023 Saria · ZINEBI Networking 2023 Award · Premio ZINEBI Networking 2023

Jo Sóc  (2023, 90 min)
zuzendaria · direction: Patricia M. Félix

ekoizlea · producer: Roger Torras Mayneris
ekoiztetxea · production company: Diana Toucedo Films, wknd

Impulso ECAM Saria – ZINEBI Networking 2023 · Impulso ECAM Award – ZINEBI Networking 2023 · Premio Impulso ECAM – ZINEBI Networking 2023

Inmersas en el Imserso (2023, 90 min)
director · production 
zuzendaria · ekoizlea: Aitor Arruti
gidoia · screenplay: Oskar Tejedor

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Aukera Sariak · Aukera Awards · Premios Aukera

Aukera-(H)emen Saria
Aukera-(H)emen Award
Premio Aukera-(H)emen  

Mi reina

zuzendaria · gidoia: Irene Royo 
ekoizlea 
Sara Vozmediano

Aukera-Sortzaileak Saria · Aukera-Creators Award · Premio de las Creadoras-Aukera 

Ezagutzen ditugun bekain guztiak
zuzendaria · gidoia: Marta Codesido, Núria Ubach

Aukera – Nazioartekotze Zineuskadi Saria
Zineuskadi Internationalization Award – Aukera
Aukera – Premio a la Internacionalización Zineuskadi 

Ezagutzen ditugun bekain guztiak
zuzendaria · gidoia: Marta Codesido, Núria Ubach