The Casa África Award for Best Direction goes to Leïla Kilani for her film Indivision
Girley Jazama wins the Best Actress Award for her performance in Under the Hanging Tree; Parista Sambo is the winner of the Best Actor Award for Disco Afrika
The Audience Award goes to Le spectre de Boko Haram, by Cameroonian filmmaker Cyrielle Raingou
The Tarifa-Tangier African Film Festival has announced the winners of its 21st edition. The international jury, composed of Alejandra Val Cubero, Azza Chaabouni, and Farida Benlyazid, has decided to award the Best Feature Film Prize in the Long-Sightedness competitive section to Bye Bye Tiberias, directed by the Franco-Algerian-Palestinian filmmaker Lina Soualem, who previously won the Audience Award in 2021 for Leur Algérie. This time, the jury highlighted this film “for its work of remembrance through four generations of women who express a painful history that persists to this day. The film successfully combines the intimate with the universal, poetry, and humor in a deeply human approach.” The award, presented by Farida Benlyazid, was accepted by the director herself.
The Casa África Award for Best Direction goes to the Moroccan director Leïla Kilani for her film Indivision, “for her mastery and audacity in bringing this narrative trance to life. A tale from the thousand and one nights revisited by a director close to the concerns of our time: violence in class relations, virtual lives lived through social networks, the environmental crisis, and the eternal question of man versus nature.” The award, presented by Azza Chaabouni, was received by Leïla Kilani herself.
The feature film Disco Africa: A Malagasy Story has been awarded the 5th ACERCA Prize for Spanish Cooperation at the FCAT. The AECID Jury, presided over by Elvira Cámara, head of the Cultural Activities Area of the Directorate for Cultural and Scientific Relations of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), has decided to grant the 5th ACERCA Prize for Spanish Cooperation to the feature film Disco AfricK: A Malagasy Story, by filmmaker Luck Razanajaona (Madagascar, 2023) “for its reflection on the opportunities for sustainable development in Africa, which translate into individual opportunities for each person and each country.”
Girley Jazama wins the Best Actress Award in Under the Hanging Tree “for her accurate portrayal in a film with a complex narrative that recalls colonial violence,” while Parista Sambo wins the Best Actor Award in Disco Afrika “for his ability to carry the film with a restrained and believable performance.”
The Andalusian jury, composed of Chaimaa Boukharsa, Agus Jiménez, and Pablo García Casado, has decided to award the FAMSI Prize for Best Short Film to Bazigaga by Jo Ingabire Moys. The jury highlights “the importance of centering a woman in a war context, as their stories have often been marginalized. The protagonist, Zula Karuhimbe, saved more than 100 people from being killed, risking her own life. She defied a patriarchal and colonial society in a hostile and dangerous environment such as the Rwandan war, something difficult to find. She is an example of resilience and strength. The director herself, Jo Ingabire Moys, is a survivor of that genocide.”
Additionally, the Andalusian jury has decided to award a special mention to the short film La voix des autres by Fátima Kaci “for so effectively expressing, through the eyes of its protagonist, the dramatic situation of migrants during immigration procedures, their pain and suffering, in contrast to the cold bureaucracy of the system, while unable to avoid personal involvement.” The TV5 Monde Audience Award goes to Le spectre de Boko Haram by Cameroonian filmmaker Cyrielle Raingou. During her visit to Tarifa, the director explained that “making films had made her feel free for the first time.”
FCAT LAB
The FCAT LAB jury, the festival’s post-production workshop, composed of Lara
Sousa, Maher Diaba, and Nikolas Montaldi, has awarded the following prizes:
The Tarifa African Film Festival Award, valued at €1,500, goes to Zion Music,
a film that will be featured in future editions of the FCAT.
The Traducciones Bienza Award (translation and subtitle localization
services), valued at €2,000; the La Colorá Award (color correction services),
valued at €5,500; and the Sudu Connexion Award (services for developing a
festival circulation strategy and roadmap), valued at €2,500 (chosen by the
international sales and distribution company Sudu Connexion), have been
awarded to You Don’t Die Two Times, “for its female perspective on one of the
most complex contemporary migration routes, guided by the strength of its inner
faith and the director’s sensitive vision.”
The Tomahawk Digital Cinema Services Award (services for creating an
international distribution materials package and a DCP master), valued at
€2,500, goes to Kileo, “for being a heartfelt Kenyan story that, with support for
its international distribution, will resonate with diverse audiences in Africa and
beyond.”
The Tres Gatos Sonido Award (sound editing and mixing services), valued at
€5,000, goes to Zion Music, “a film that explores the political changes in recent
African history through a personal view of reggae music. A story that will
resonate with audiences worldwide.”
The Laserfilm Award (translation and subtitle localization services and an
international distribution materials package), valued at €5,000, goes to The
Magma, “a moving personal story about exile, memory, and the desire to
resolve a generational trauma. A family story that reveals the harsh truth of a
country’s past.”
