14/12/2015 - The feature debut by Turkish director Kaan Müjdeci and As I Open My Eyes, the first feature by Tunisian filmmaker Leyla Bouzid, have won five out of the eight awards at Cinémamed

Sivas by Kaan Müjdeci

Having turned heads in late summer last year at Venice, Sivas [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by young Turkish director Kaan Müjdeci was able to win over the jury of the Brussels Mediterranean Film Festival, chaired by director Baya Kasmi, which highlighted the "astonishing cinematography, the masterful directing in spite of some particularly difficult conditions, and the extraordinary performance of the lead actor, whose acting whisks the audience away on an extremely meaningful voyage", as well as "its bold and ultra-realistic depiction of the rural community in Turkey”. The Young Jury also singled out the film, particularly appreciating this "intimate portrait of a barricaded yet courageous childhood". Meanwhile, the Special Jury Prize was bestowed upon Tikkun by Avishai Sivan (Israel), a minimalistic and intense film about the religious crisis of a young ultra-Orthodox Jew.

Another movie that snagged some impressive awards at the ceremony was As I Open My Eyes [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Leyla Bouzid
film profile] by Leyla Bouzid. First of all, actress Ghalia Benali received a Special Mention from the official jury for her performance (as did actor Koudous Seihon for his acting in Mediterranea [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jonas Carpignano
film profile]). But the title also pocketed the film critics’ UPCB-UBFP Award, which recognised a "film that subtly marries tradition and modernity with a view to assessing the situation of a country and a generation that yearn for justice and liberty". The movie also received the Audience Award. 

Lastly, the Cineuropa Prize was handed to Kosovar film Babai [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Visar Morina
film profile], the feature debut by young director Visar Morina. Presented at Karlovy Vary, where it took home the Best Director Award, in addition to the Europa Cinemas Label for Best European Film, Babai tells the story of a father and son who must face up to the issue of exile in pre-war Kosovo.

(Translated from French)