Donnersmarck and Almodóvar make the night at the European Film Awards
Saturday, December 2 marked the first time that an Eastern European city hosted the European Film Awards. Approximately 1,500 professionals attended the European celebration of cinema at the EXPO XXI hall in Warsaw, in a ceremony directed by Volker Weicker, scripted by Michael Strauven and designed by Allan Starski.
The most coveted award of the evening, European Film 2006, went to The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen) [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Florian Henckel von Donners…
interview: Ulrich Muehe
film profile] by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (see Focus). "It is very moving to win this award here in Poland where my father was born as a citizen of this country," said the director, whose film was nominated in seven categories in total and picked up two other important prizes: European Screenwriter (von Donnersmarck) and European Actor (Ulrich Mühe).
However, with two awards more the grand winner at the ceremony was Pedro Almodóvar’s Volver [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agustín Almodóvar
interview: Carmen Maura
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
interview: Pénélope Cruz
film profile] (see Focus). With the statuette for European Director 2006 in hand, the director dedicated his award to his actresses. "It is a very important film for me because I returned to the region of my childhood, La Mancha. I would like to say thank you to my excellent actresses who embody the women I grew up with," he said.
One of the actresses, Penélope Cruz, also picked up Best European Actress 2006, while the film’s composer Alberto Iglesias and DoP José Luis Alcaine both left Warsaw with statuettes in their respective categories.
The prize for European Cinematographer 2006 was shared by Barry Ackroyd, DoP on Ken Loach’s The Wind That Shakes the Barley [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ken Loach
interview: Rebecca O’Brien
film profile] (see Focus), while audiences voted Volver for The People’s Choice Award 2006. "If I can continue to make films, it is thanks to the audiences who support me," said Almodóvar.
From the top films in the running for the European Discovery 2006, the Academy chose the Georgian/French co-production 13 Tzameti [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Fanny Saadi
interview: Gela Babluani
film profile] by Gela Babluani (see Focus).
Meanwhile, critics presented the FIPRESCI Award to Philippe Garrel’s Regular Lovers [+see also:
trailer
interview: Philippe Garrel
film profile] (see interview).
The EFA Award for Artistic Contribution 2006 went to Pierre Pell and Stéphane Rozenbaum for the set design on Michel Gondry’s The Science of Sleep [+see also:
trailer
film profile].
The German production Into Great Silence [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Philip Groening
film profile] by Philip Gröning (see Focus) won the EFA Documentary 2006, while the Hungarian director of Before Dawn, Bálint Kenyeres, took the UIP Award, Short Film 2006.
Jeremy Thomas – producer of Bernardo Bertolucci’s Little Buddha and Stealing Beauty – won the European Achievement in World Cinema 2006. The Italian director, who was unable to attend the Warsaw ceremony, sent his producer congratulations in the form of a text message during the evening.
The ceremony would be incomplete without a mention to the tribute to Krzysztof Kieślowski, who died ten years ago. At the beginning of the evening, Agnieszka Odorowicz, director of the Polish Film Institute, made reference to the first edition of the European Film Awards in 1988 when the renowned Polish director received the European Film Prize for Dekalog 5: Thou Shalt Not Kill.
"It is a double joy because among the greatest Polish winners, there was not only Kieślowski in 1988 and Andrzej Wajda in 1990 but today we have Roman Polański," added Ujazdowski, the Polish Minister of Culture. The audience gave a similar reaction when the entire room gave a long standing ovation as the director went on stage to accept his Lifetime Achievement Award. "I am extremely touched to win this Warsaw prize. In this city, I don’t know why exactly, but good things happen to me," said Polański.
European Film Awards 2006 complete list
European Film 2006
The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen) [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Florian Henckel von Donners…
interview: Ulrich Muehe
film profile] by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Germany
European Director 2006
Pedro Almodóvar for Volver [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agustín Almodóvar
interview: Carmen Maura
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
interview: Pénélope Cruz
film profile], Spain
European Actress 2006
Penélope Cruz for Volver [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agustín Almodóvar
interview: Carmen Maura
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
interview: Pénélope Cruz
film profile] by Pedro Almodóvar, Spain
European Actor 2006
Ulrich Mühe for The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen) [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Florian Henckel von Donners…
interview: Ulrich Muehe
film profile] by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, Germany
European Discovery 2006
13 Tzameti [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Fanny Saadi
interview: Gela Babluani
film profile] by Gela Babluani, France, Georgia
European Screenwriter 2006
Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck for The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Anderen) [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Florian Henckel von Donners…
interview: Ulrich Muehe
film profile], Germany
European Cinematographer 2006
José Luis Alcaine for Volver [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agustín Almodóvar
interview: Carmen Maura
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
interview: Pénélope Cruz
film profile] by Pedro Pedro Almodóvar, Spain
Barry Ackroyd for The Wind That Shakes the Barley [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ken Loach
interview: Rebecca O’Brien
film profile] by Ken Loach, UK, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain
European Composer 2006
Alberto Iglesias for Volver [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agustín Almodóvar
interview: Carmen Maura
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
interview: Pénélope Cruz
film profile] by Pedro Almodóvar, Spain
EFA Lifetime Achievement Award 2006
Roman Polański, Poland
European Achievement in World Cinema 2006
Jeremy Thomas, UK
EFA Award for An Artistic Contribution 2006
Pierre Pell and Stéphane Rozenbaum for The Science of Sleep (La science des rêves [+see also:
trailer
film profile] ) by Michel Gondry, France
People’s Choice Award Best European Film 2006
Volver [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Agustín Almodóvar
interview: Carmen Maura
interview: Pedro Almodóvar
interview: Pénélope Cruz
film profile] by Pedro Almodóvar, Spain
Fipresci Award 2006
Regulars Lovers (Les Amants réguliers) [+see also:
trailer
interview: Philippe Garrel
film profile] by Philippe Garrel, France
ARTE award, EFA Documentary 2006
Into Great Silence (Die Grosse Stille) [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Philip Groening
film profile] by Philip Groning, Germany
UIP Award, Short Film 2006
Before Dawn by Bálint Kenyeres, Hungary
(Translated from French)
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