European Film Awards for Polish filmmakers
Three female Polish filmmakers won European Film Academy awards in the categories of animated feature film, documentary and costumes. The awards were handed out at a ceremony in Berlin on Saturday.
"I am proud of the young Polish female directors' successes", said internationally renowned Polish filmmaker Agnieszka Holland, who attended the ceremony in the Berlin concert hall.
The European Film Award (EFA) for the best animated feature film was won by the Polish-British film “Loving Vincent”, directed by Dorota Kobiela and Hugh Welchman. It is the world's first ever fully painted feature film, and tells the story of the painter Vincent van Gogh's mysterious death. The scenes were originally played by actors, the footage was then displayed on canvas and painted frame by frame by a group of artists.
Polish director Anna Zamecka won in the Best Documentary category for her debut "Communion", which tells the story of a 14-year old girl named Ola who looks after her autistic brother, her apathetic father, and her mother who lives separately. The teenage girl takes upon herself the responsibility to prepare her brother for his First Holy Communion, which is a pretext for her family to meet.
The third Polish artist recognised by the the European Film Academy was Katarzyna Lewinska, who won an EFA award for costumes in Agnieszka Holland’s “Spoor”, Poland’s candidate for an Oscar in the Best Foreign Language Film category.
The European Film Awards have been presented since 1988. Since 1998, the host cities alternate, as Berlin hosts them every other year while other European cities get the chance in between. Last year it was held in the southwestern Polish city of Wroclaw.
The awards are regarded as a prestigious accolade for European filmmakers. Winners are chosen by the European Film Academy, an association of 3,000 film-industry representatives, such as directors and producers. (PAP)
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