International film awards dedicated to YPG and YPJ fighters in Kobanê
NEWS CENTER (DİHA) - Four Iranian directors, three of them Kurds, have dedicated awards they received at the recent Beirut International Film Festival (BIFF) to the fighters of People's Protection Units (YPG) and Women's Protection Units (YPJ) in Kobanê Canton.
Salem Salavati’s Kurdish-language drama "The Last Winter" won two BIFF awards for Best Middle Eastern Feature Film and Best Feature Film Script. It had already won awards at the First Hewler International Film Festival and the Duhok International Film Festival in South Kurdistan, the Baghdad Film Festival, and Yerevan Golden Apricot International Film Festival. In an emotional statement, Salavati, a Kurd, said he would dedicate his prize to the defenders of Kobanê. Similar statements were issued by three other filmmakers.
The setting of "The Last Winter" is a remote village in Kurdistan vacated by its inhabitants who are threatened by a flood. The mayor and his wife Baji are the only ones to stay behind and have no one but each other. But they are separated one night by bad weather and Baji is home alone. As her husband does his best to get through the snow, she weaves the latest chapter of their story on a piece of cloth.
"More Than Two Hours", by Iranian director Ali Asgari, won the gold Aleph award for Best Middle Eastern Short Film. It tells the story of a girl who loses her virginity and is left bleeding. She and her friend look for a hospital to get treatment but she is unable to receive the medical care she needs because she is not married.
Kurdish-language movie "Ants Apartment" by Tofigh Amani, another Kurdish director, won the silver Aleph award in the Middle Eastern Short Film category. It tells the story of a family of three living in a small apartment in the Iraqi desert after the war until events changes their lives. "The Kurdish Region in Iraq and Iran has been flying high in cinematic productions, and it had sent about 60 applications to participate in the event.” Colette Naufal, the festival director said.
The bronze Aleph in the Middle Eastern Short Film category went to Kurdish-speaking "Butterflies" by Iranian Kurdish director Adnan Zandi and Le Miroir, by Lebanese-French director Céline Kotaiche.
The Société Générale Award for Best Feature Film, decided by the audience vote, went to "The President" by Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf. This movie, which opened the last Venice Festival, is inspired by Arab Spring revolutions and tells the story of a dictator who runs away after a coup with his five-year-old grandson. The festival, at the start of this month, screened more than 70 films, most from Middle East.
(nt)
