Ektoras Lygizos’ Greek drama wins cash prize.

Ektoras Lygizos’ Boy Eating the Bird’s Food has won the top award, worth €10,000 ($13,000), at the 10th Crossing Europe Film Festival Linz.

Awarding the Crossing Europe Award (European Competition), the international festival jury – comprising Dominique Choisy, Sarlote Liduma and Pia Marais – said: “For its musical precision, for its portrayal of human existence as something delicate, for its mystery, for its taking us to places we wouldn’t have thought of going. This film deals with the everyday battle for jobs and survival on an artistic level we have not seen before.”

A special mention was also given to Iveta Grofova’s Made in Ash, from Slovak Republic/Czech Republic.

The prize marks the latest success for Lygizos’ drama, which won best film, best actor and best director at the Hellenic Film Academy (HFA) awards earlier this month and will be the official Greek submission to the 2014 Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Film category.

Based on his Lygizos’ screenplay, the drama centres on a homeless young man trying to survive amidst the increasing decay of modern Greece.

The film was made by Giorgos Karnavas Productions and co-produced by Argyris Papadimitropoulos (Oxymoron Films), Elina Psikou (Guanaco Films) and Nikos Moutselos’s 235.

World sales are handled by Paris-based Premium Films.

Full list of awards

CROSSING EUROPE AWARD European Competition
€10,000,- powered by Linz Kultur

  • Winner: Ektoras Lygizos for To Agori Troi To Fagito Tou Pouliou / Boy Eating the Bird’s Food (GR 2012)
  • Special Mention: Iveta Grófová for Až do mesta Aš / Made in Ash (SK/CZ 2012)

CROSSING EUROPE AUDIENCE AWARD
€1,700,- (€1,000,- powered by Casino Linz + €700,- collected through analog crowdfunding)

  • Winner: Marçal Forés for AnimalS (ES 2012)

FEDEORA AWARD for European Documentaries
of the critics’ association Fedeora (Federation of Film Critics of Europe and the Mediterranean)

  • Winner: Peter Liechti for Vaters Garten - Die Liebe meiner Eltern / Father’s Garden - The Love of My Parents (CH 2013)

CROSSING EUROPE AWARD Local Artist
€4,000,- powered by the Federal Province of Upper Austria / Department of Culture
€2,000,- voucher from the company Synchro Film, Video & Audio Bearbeitungs GmbH, Vienna

  • Winner: Rainer Kohlberger for Humming, fast and slow (AT/DE 2012)
  • Special Mention: Florian Kofler for Pfitscher (AT/IT 2013)

CREATIVE REGION MUSIC VIDEO AWARD
€1,500,- powered by CREATIVE REGION Linz & Upper Austria

  • Winner: Karin Fisslthaler for Goodbye – Cherry Sunkist (AT 2013)

CROSSING EUROPE AWARD Local Artist Atelierpreis
Studio space for one year powered by Atelierhaus Salzamt of the City of Linz

  • Winner: Miguel José Gonzalez-Gonzalez for 2x10m2 Ostseeblick (AT 2013)

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