24/11/2016 - Zaradasht Ahmed’s latest film follows an Iraqi nurse over five years

The 29^th edition of the IDFA is still running until Sunday 27 November, but its awards were already handed out last night at the Stadsschouwburg theatre. Kurdish-Norwegian director Zaradasht Ahmed’s Nowhere to Hide [+see also:
trailer
film profile], which premiered internationally as part of the festival’s international competition section, received the Award for Best Feature-length Documentary.

Shot in central Iraq, Nowhere to Hide focuses on a male nurse working in the local hospital in Jalawla. When the Iraqi Army pulled out in 2013 because of militant groups, the population fled – accompanied by the majority of the hospital staff. Sharif was one of the few who remained and filmed the victims. When IS advanced on Jalawla in 2014 and finally conquered the city, Sharif continued to film – and fled as well, turning the camera on himself as he led his family to safety. The film was produced by Norwegian outfit Ten Thousand Images, in co-production with Pasaremos and Mantaray Film.

The Chinese documentary Still Tomorrow by Jian Fan won the IDFA Special Jury Award for Feature-length Documentary. The Award for Best Dutch Documentary went to Reber Dosky for Radio Kobanî, whilst Guido Hendrikx’s Stranger in Paradise [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], which opened the festival (read more), received the IDFA Special Jury Award for Dutch Documentary.

Several other awards were delivered last night (see the list below). The winner of the VPRO IDFA Audience Award will be announced on Sunday, the last day of the gathering.

Here is the complete list of award winners:

Best Feature-length Documentary
Nowhere to Hide [+see also:
trailer
film profile] - Zaradasht Ahmed (Norway/Sweden)

Special Jury Award for Feature-length Documentary
Still Tomorrow - Jian Fan (China)

Best Dutch Documentary
Radio Kobanî - Reber Dosky (Netherlands)

Special Jury Award for Dutch Documentary
Stranger in Paradise [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] - Guido Hendrikx (Netherlands)

DocLab Award for Digital Storytelling
Death Tolls Experience – Ali Eslami (Iran)

DocLab Immersive Non-Fiction Award
Deprogrammed - Mia Donovan (Canada)

IDFA Award for First Appearance
Who We Were - Sine Skibsholt (Denmark)

Special Jury Award for First Appearance
Plastic China - Jiu-liang Wang (China)

Award for Best Mid-length Documentary
Death in the Terminal [+see also:
trailer
film profile] - Tali Shemesh and Asaf Sudry (Israel)

Special Jury Award for Mid-length Documentary
Come Back Free - Ksenia Okhapkina (Estonia)

Award for Best Student Documentary
When Will This Wind Stop - Aniela Astrid Gabryel (Poland)

Special Jury Award for Student Documentary
Close Ties - Zofia Kowalewska (Poland)

Best Children’s Documentary
Rocknrollers - Daan Bol (Netherlands)

Special Jury Award for Children’s Documentary
Naomi’s Secret - Saskia Gubbels (Netherlands)

Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds Documentary Award
Ester Gould