81st Venice International Film Festival Award Winners

Fest is over but what I was most afraid became real to me, this edition was more about the movie stars/celebrities and less about the movies worth of being at one of the three most important festivals in the world. Sigh.

Fortunatelly the jury didn't participate in all the buzz and fuzz as ended giving awards to very interesting movies or at least, to movies that absolutely are must-be-seen for me as just from trailer called my attention beyond the usual. Perhaps my most favorite trailer images are from Georgian director Dea Kulumbegashvili's April as looks and feels similar to her previous film Beginning; also, can help but to mention that film was produced by Luca Guadagnino who also produced anothe film that I'm very curious about Giovanni Tortorici's Diciannove (Nineteen).

Can't deny that I'm in cloud nine with Pedro Almodóvar winning the Golden Lion, it was about time! After so many nominations (218 according to IMDb) and so many wins (173 according to IMDb) he finally is honored with a top award from one of the three top film festivals in the world. In my book, he is one of the most original alive master filmmakers in the world and deserves all kinds of industry top honors. Sigh. Now let's hope AMPAS members react to his first feature film in English but being realistic the Golden Lion this year was given by a very homogeneous group as most jurors were film directors and there were only two actresses, of course, one was the President. So, could AMPAS members appreciate his work? We'll see soon as time flies nowadays and we are almost in 2025!

Yes, I'm curious about The Brutalist even when the cast is not one I prefer; the French and Italian award winning films, from what I saw and read, are kind of traditional to me and will watch them but I'm not rushing to the cinema to watch them. Then we get to Halina Reijn's film Babygirl, know her more from being actress (first saw her in the Black Book) than as a director, but have seen Instinct (with Carice van Houten) so have references from her directing style. Still we know what could happen to directors when they film in a different language from their mother tongue. So, was wondering about Babygirl but now after Nicole Kindman's honor, think will give it a try.

Ci vediamo nell prossimo anno!!!

The Award Winners

Official Selection

Competition

Golden Lion for Best Film: The Room Next Door, Pedro Almodóvar, Spain

Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize: Vermiglio (Vermiglio, The Mountain Bride), Maura Delpero, Italy, France and Belgium
Special Jury Prize: აპრილი April, Dea Kulumbegashvili, Georgia, France and Italy

Silver Lion for Best Director:  Brady Corbet for The Brutalist, Brady Corbet, UK

Copa Volpi for Best Actress: Nicole Kidman in Babygirl, Halina Reijn, USA
Copa Volpi for Best Actor:  Vincent Lindon in Jouer avec le feu (The Quiet Son), Delphine Coulin and Muriel Coulin, France
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actress or Actor:  Paul Kircher in Leurs enfants après eux (And Their Children After Them), Ludovic Boukherma and Zoran Boukherma, France

Best Screenplay: Murilo Hauser and Heitor Lorega for Ainda estou aqui (I'm Still Here), Walter Sellers, Brazil and France
Lion of the Future - Luigi de Laurentiis Award for Best Debut Film: Familiar Touch, Sarah Friedland, USA

Orizzonti Awards
Best Film: Anul nou care n-a-fost (The New Year That Never Came), Bogdan Mureşanu, Romania and Serbia
Special Jury Prize: Hemme’nin öldüğü günlerden biri (One of Those Days when Hemme Dies), Murat Fıratoğlu, Turkey
Best Director:  Sarah Friedland for Familiar Touch, Sarah Friedland, USA
Best Actress: Kathleen Chalfant in Familiar Touch, Sarah Friedland, USA
Best Actor: Francesco Gheghi in Familia, Francesco Costabile, Italy
Best Screenplay: Scadar Copti for Yin’ād alīku (Happy Holidays), Scandar Copti, Palestine, France, Germany, Italy and Qatar

Best Short Film: Who Loves The Sun, Arshia, Shakiba, Canada, 19' (documentary)
Short Film nominee for the European Film Awards: René va alla guerra (Rene goes to War), Mariachiara Pernisa, Luca Ferri and Morgan Menegazzo, Italy and Slovenia, 18' (documentary)

Orizzonti Extra Best Film Audience Award: Shahed (The Witness), Nader Saeivar, Germany and Austria

Venice Classics
Best Documentary on Cinema: Chain Reactions, Alexandre O. Philippe, USA
Best Restored Film: Ecce Bombo, Nanni Moretti, Italy, 1978

Venice Immersive
Grand Prize: Ito Meikyū, Boris Labbé, France and Luxembourg
Special Jury Prize: Oto's Planet, Gwenael François, Luxembourg, Canada and France
Achievement Prize: Impulse: Playing With Reality, Barry Gene Murphy and May Abdalla, UK and France

Autonomous Sections

20th Giornate degli Autori
Director's Award: Manas (Sisters), Marianna Brennand Fortes, Brazil
Label Europa Cinemas Award: Alpha, Jan-Willem Van Ewijk, Slovenia, Switzerland and Netherlands
People's Choice Award: Taxi Monamour, Ciro De Caro, Italy
Premio SIAE Career Award: Alice Rohrwacher
Premio SIAE Creative Talent Award: Federica Di Giacomo

39. Settimana Internazionalle della Critica (Venice International Film Critics Week)

Grad Prize: Mưa trên cánh bướm (Don't Cry, Butterfly), Dương Diệu Linh, Vietnam, Singapore, Philippines and Indonesia
Jury Special Mention: No Sleep Till, Alexandra Simpson, USA and Switzerland

Verona Film Club Award: Mưa trên cánh bướm (Don't Cry, Butterfly), Dương Diệu Linh, Vietnam, Singapore, Philippines and Indonesia
Mario Serandrei Award for Technical Contribution: Homegrown, Michael Premo, USA (documentary)
The Film Club Audience Award: Paul and Paulette Take a Bath, Jethro Massey, UK
Luciano Sovena Award for Best Independent Production:  Anywhere Anytime, Milad Tangshir, Italy

Short Film Awards
Best Short Film: Things That My Best Friend Lost, Marta Innocenti, Italy, 15'
Best Director: Francesco Manzato for Nero argento (Black Silver), Francesco Manzato, Italy, 20'
Best Technical Contribution: Manco Talarico for At Least I Will Be 8 294 400 Pixel, Marco Talarico, Italy, 15'
Centro Nazionale del Corto Award: The Eggregores' Theory, Andrea Gatopoulos, Italy 15'

If you wish to check Official Awards at festival site go here.

Collateral Awards

FIPRESCI Awards
Best Film in Venezia 81: The Brutalist, Brady Corbet, UK
Best Film in Orizzonti: Anul nou care n-a-fost (The New Year That Never Came), Bogdan Mureşanu, Romania and Serbia

Signis Award: Ainda estou aqui (I'm Still Here), Walter Sellers, Brazil and France

Ambassador of Hope Award Smithers Foundation Award: King Ivory, John Swab, USA

Arca CinemaGiovani Award
Best Film Venezia81: The Brutalist, Brady Corbet, UK
Best Italian Film: Vittoria, Alessandro Cassigoli and Casey Kauffman, Italy

Authors Under 40 Award
Best Director : (tie)
Anne-Sophie Bailly for Mon inséparable (My Everything), Anne-Sophie Bailly, France
Elizabeth Lo for Mistress Dispeller, Elizabeth Lo, China and USA (documentary)
Special Mentions
Directing and Screenwriting: Xiaoxuan Jiang for To Kill a Mongolian Horse, Jiang Xiaoxuan, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and USA
Cinematography: Boroka Biro for Anul nou care n-a-fost (The New Year That Never Came), Bogdan Mureşanu, Romania and Serbia

1964 Pop Art Award: Toni Servillo in  Iddu (Sicilian Letters), Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, Italy and France
Brian Award: The Room Next Door, Pedro Almodóvar, Spain

Bisato d'Oro Awards
Best Film: Kjærlighet (Love), Dag Johan Haugerud, Norway
Best Director: Berhard Wenger for Peacock, Bernhard Wenger, Austria and Germany
Best Actress: Kathleen Chalfant in Familiar Touch, Sarah Friedland, USA
Best Sound: Tu Duu-Chih for Mò shì lù (Stranger Eyes), Yeo Siew Hua, Singapore, Taiwan, France and USA
Best Screenplay: Anul nou care n-a-fost (The New Year That Never Came), Bogdan Mureşanu, Romania and Serbia
Best Director/Producer: Murat Fıratoğlu for Hemme’nin öldüğü günlerden biri (One of Those Days when Hemme Dies), Murat Fıratoğlu, Turkey
Best Cinematography: Antikvariati (The Antique), Rusudan Glurjidze, Georgia, Russia, Cyprus and Croatia
Immersive is Cinema: Turbulence: Jamais Vu, Ben Joseph Andrews and Emma Robers, Australia

Carlo Lizzani Award: Iddu (Sicilian Letters), Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, Italy and France

Cinema and Arts Award
Best Film: (tie)
Riefenstahl, Andres Veiel, Germany
Paul and Paulette Take a Bath, Jethro Massey, UK
Best Multidisciplinary Artist: Stephen Quay and Timothy Quay

Cinema for UNICEF: Familia, Francesco Costabile, Italy

CinemaSarà Award: The Brutalist, Brady Corbet, UK
Special Mention: El Jockey (Kill The Jockey), Luis Ortega, Argentina and Spain

Edipo Re Award: El Jockey (Kill The Jockey), Luis Ortega, Argentina and Spain
Edipo Re Youth Jury Award: Sugar Island, Johanné Gómez Terrero, Spain and Dominican Republic

Enrico Fulghignoni-CICT-UNESCO Award: The Fishermen, Zoey Martinson, Ghana

Fanheart3 Awards
Graffeta d'Oro for Best Film: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Tim Burton, USA
Nave d'Argento for Best OTP: Brad Pitt and George Clooney in Wolfs, Jon Watts, USA
XR Fan Experience: Uncanny Alley: a New Day, Stephen Butchko and Rick Treweek, USA and South Africa
Special Mention: NightMara: Episode 3, Gianpaolo Gonzalez , USA

FEDIC Awards
Premio FEDIC: Vittoria, Alessandro Cassigoli and Casey Kauffman, Italy
Special Mention: Familia, Francesco Costabile, Italy
Special Mention FEDIC: to Short Film Playing God, Matteo Burani, Italy and France, 9' (animation)

Fondazione Fai Persona Lavoro Ambiente Award: Peacock, Bernhard Wenger, Austria and Germany
Special Mentions:
Sugar Island, Johanné Gómez Terrero, Spain and Dominican Republic
Anywhere Anytime, Milad Tangshir, Italy
Le Mohican, Frédéric Farrucci, France

Fondazione Mimmo Rotella Award: Iddu (Sicilian Letters), Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, Italy and France
Fundacion Casa Wabi - Mantarraya Award: Familiar Touch, Sarah Friedland, USA

Francesco Pasinetti Awards - SNGG
Best Italian Film: Iddu (Sicilian Letters), Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, Italy and France
Best Actress: Romana Maggiora Vergano in Il Tempo che ci vuole (The Time it Takes), Francesca Comencini, Italy and France
Special Award: to Francesco Gheghi, Barbara Ronchi, Francesco Di Leva and Marco Cicalese cast of Familia, Francesco Costabile, Italy

FRED Film Radio Award: Luca Marinelli in M. Il Figlio del secolo (M: Son of the Century), Joe Wright, Italy and France (Ep 1 to 8)

Green Drop Award: (tie)
Vermiglio (Vermiglio, The Mountain Bride), Maura Delpero, Italy, France and Belgium
Ainda estou aqui (I'm Still Here), Walter Sellers, Brazil and France

Impact Award: Jouer avec le feu (The Quiet Son), Delphine Coulin and Muriel Coulin, France
Interfilm Award: Quiet Life, Alexandros Avranas, France, Germany, Sweden, Greece, Estonia and Finland

La Pellicola d'Oro Awards
Best Costume Designer: Antonella Bachini for Campo di Battaglia (Battlefield), Gianni Amelio, Italy
Best Chief Electrician: Kristian De Martiis for Vermiglio (Vermiglio, The Mountain Bride), Maura Delpero, Italy, France and Belgium
Best Prop Maker: Italo Maurizi for Iddu (Sicilian Letters), Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, Italy and France

Lanterna Magica Award: La Storia del Frank e della Nina, Paola Randi, Italy and Sweden
Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award: Jouer avec le feu (The Quiet Son), Delphine Coulin and Muriel Coulin, France
NETPAC Award: Mistress Dispeller, Elizabeth Lo, China and USA (documentary)

Nuovoimaeie Talent Award
Best Newcomer Actress: Tecla Insolia in Familia, Francesco Costabile, Italy
Best Newcomer Actress:  Martinca Scrinzi in Vermiglio (Vermiglio, The Mountain Bride), Maura Delpero, Italy, France and Belgium

Premi Film Impresa Special Award: Anne-Sophie Bailly for Mon inséparable (My Everything), Anne-Sophie Bailly, France
Queer Lion Award: Alma del Desierto (Soul of the Desert), Monica Taboada-Tapia, Colombia (documentary) (T)
RB Casting Award: Francesco Gheghi in Familia, Francesco Costabile, Italy

Sorriso Diverso Award
Best Italian Film: Vermiglio (Vermiglio, The Mountain Bride), Maura Delpero, Italy, France and Belgium
Best Foreign Film: Mon inséparable (My Everything), Anne-Sophie Bailly, France

Soundtrack Stars Award
Best Soundtrack in Venezia81: Hildur Guðnadóttir for Joker: Folie à Deux, Todd Phillips, USA
Soundtrack Star Award: Colapesce for Iddu (Sicilian Letters), Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza, Italy and France

UNIMED Award: The Brutalist, Brady Corbet, UK

12th Final Cut In Venice (post production awards)
Aisha la tastaea al tayran (Aisha Can't Fly Away), Morad Mostafa, Egypt, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and France
Ancestral Visions of the Future, Lemohang Jeremiah Mosese, France, Germany and Lesotho
In This Darkness I See You, Nadim Tabet, Lebanon, France, Qatar and Saudi Arabia
O Profeta (The Prophet), Ique Langa, Mozambique and South Africa

CIAK d'Oro Awards
Ciak d'Oro Classic: Giuseppe Tornatore and Margherita Buy
Ciak d'Oro Rivelazione: Pietro Castellito and Romana Maggiora Vergano

Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement: Peter Weir
Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement: Sigourney Weaver
Cartier Glory to the Filmmaker: Claude Lelouch
Premio Robert Besson: Marco Bellocchio
Campari Passion for Film Award: Production Designer Paola Comencini
Premio Bianchi: Nanni Moretti
Liberatum Women in Creativity Award: Ellen Burstyn
Women in Cinema Award: Giovanna Mezzogiorno and Patty Bravo
Leone di Merletto di Burano:

To check autonomous and collateral Award winners go official site here.