„And the winner is....“

The award ceremony of the 24th European Media Art Festival took place at the Lagerhalle Osnabrück on Sunday evening.

The Verband der Deutschen Filmkritik (VDFK) awarded the prize for the best German experimental film, along with 1000 euros, to Gerhard Funk for his film “bardzo” (9 Min.).
The animation deals with a sluggish being that appears to be unable to free itself from its situation – until there is a tiny flicker of hope, after all.

The members of this year’s VDFK jury are Günther Agde, Alexandra Pütter and Bodo Schönfelder. Their comments: “The jury was was impressed by the sparing but effective use of resources, demonstrating the filmmaker’s surety of style and consistency. The film is characterised by a two-dimensional creation in gradual shades of grey, broken by pronounced colour effects and omissions. The computer-aided three-dimensional appearance and the reduction to the colour grey enable experiments to be made with repetition and variation. The great importance attached to the music and the sound effects underline the manipulation of the images. Last but not least, bardzo is simply nice to watch.”

An international jury awarded not only the EMAF Award and the Newcomer Award but also the Dialogpreis of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This jury is made up of Arjon Dunnewind, Kathy Rae Huffman and Gabriel Soucheyre. Surprisingly, the jury decided this year to present the EMAF Award to a short film and a feature-length film, splitting the prize money.

The EMAF Award, given to trend-setting works of Media Art, was awarded to Emily Vey Duke and Cooper Battersby for their film “Lesser Apes” (17 Min.), as well as to the feature-length film “You Are Here” (77 min.) by Daniel Cockburn. Prize money totalling 1500 euros was awarded for each film.

“Lesser Apes” propagates uninhibited sexuality between humans – the “pinkies” – and our closest relatives, the apes. The directors do away with this dichotomy, reinterpreting the term perversion.

With its broadly based brain teaser, Daniel Cockburn’s “You Are Here” initiates serious and important discourse on the volatile nature of identity. The jury warmly congratulates the Canadian director on his first feature-length film.

This year, the Newcomer Award, with 1500 euro prize money, has been awarded for the first time. It was awarded to the 40-minute film “Půlnoc (Midnight)” by Klára Tasovská. In her works, the artist, who studies at the FAMU Academy in Prague, reveals the social and psychological effects light and darkness have on humans.

An honorable mention in the Newcomer category was given to Rizki R. Utama. In his film “Sidewalk Stories”, the artist uses everyday items found on the streets of Western Europe to draw conclusions on the cultural identity of Europe. The jury is looking forward to further works by the artist, and emphatically encourages him to continue to dare go down new paths with regard to form and content.

The Dialogpreis, awarded by the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote intercultural exchange, went to “Satellite, As Long As It Is Aiming At The Sky” (29 Min.) by Nasrin Tabatabai and Babak Afrassiabi, about the world of the Iranian satellite television broadcasting company in Los Angeles. The artists also receive prize money totalling 1500 euros.

A special mention was also given to the film “Invitation” by Payam Zeinalabedini, in which the Iranian filmmaker takes us on a pilgrimage through Iraq – a journey the jury, according to its comments, will never forget.

// European Media Art Festival
The EMAF in Osnabrück is one of the most important forums of international Media Art, and is an open laboratory for creative and artistic experiments that help shape media and the aesthetics of their content. As a lively meeting place for artists, curators, lenders, gallery owners and a specialist audience, it has been instrumental in forming the themes and aesthetics of Media Art.

// CONCEPT AND FESTIVAL MANAGEMENT
Hermann Nöring, Alfred Rotert, Ralf Sausmikat.

// SPONSORS
nordmedia - Die Mediengesellschaft Niedersachsen/Bremen mbH
City of Osnabrück
German Federal Ministry of Education and Research
German Federal Foreign Office
Kulturstiftung des Bundes
Kulturstiftung der Länder
Foundation of Lower Saxony
Europa fördert Niedersachsen
European Regional Development Fund
EU/Culture Programme
150 Years of Friendship Germany - Japan
University of Osnabrück
Mondriaan Foundation
Canadian Embassy
Grenswerte, funded by Euregio
Cybob Communications

// MEDIA PARTNERS
arte
le monde diplomatique

// CULTURAL PARTNERS
NDR Kultur

// MORE INFORMATION
Kerstin Kollmeyer
Presse(at)emaf.de

European Media Art Festival
Lohstr. 45a
D-49074 Osnabrück
Tel. +49 (0)541/216 58
Fax +49 (0)541/ 28327