The program featured 71 films, and the awards ceremony was held on Saturday, September 12 in the Urban Park of the Croatian Home in Karlovac with an online broadcast

The 25th Youth Film Festival and the 13th Four River Film Festival were held from 8 to 12 September 2020 in Karlovac, co-organized by the Croatian Film Association and the Karlovac Cinema Club.

A recording of the award can be viewed at the link: https://www.facebook.com/four.river.film.festival/videos/332338644680017/

The Grand Prix was won by the film Silence by Australian Radheya Jegatheva with the jury’s explanation that this is one of those rare films you will want to watch again and again and that it delights with a seemingly simple, yet powerful and layered story that draws us from the enchanting depths of space psyche.

The audience award went to the film Ship in a Bottle by Karlo Gagulić. The yellow flag, which is awarded for the film that condemns violence most successfully and convincingly with its themes and stories, was received by the film Between the Doves by Danish director Anne-Marie Bjerre Koch. It was presented by Boško Picula, film critic and screenwriter of the TV show Kokice, which presents the award in the media and promotes Croatian and television films of children and youth from Croatia and the world, film culture and new and classic films intended for young film lovers and adult film lovers.

Paula Petković was awarded for the film S mamom u šetnji at the 25th Youth Film Festival in the animated film category. In the documentary category, the film Veselica za kraj by Dorian Vicić was awarded. The film Dust Under the Bed by David Padovan was awarded in the feature category, and in the freestyle category the film Listen with Your Eyes, produced by the School of Fine Arts in Split. A special recognition of the expert jury was awarded to the film Galactic Flock from the School of Art, Design, Graphics and Clothing Zabok.

Read the explanations of the jury below.

With a simple and effective drawing, the film “S mamom u šetnji” easily takes us through a series of absurd situations brought about by mobile phone addiction. A brilliant picture from life in which we all recognize each other. ”

“Honestly and without hesitation,” Veselica za kraj” speaks in a witty and touching way about the hopes and fears of high school students in the face of online teaching. A film in which there is almost no self-censorship, which gives it additional charm. ”

“Dust under the bed” offers a refreshing perspective on the forced stay in the house. It captivates with the persuasiveness of the actor’s expression and the subtle creation of an atmosphere in which one forgets about problems and enjoys small things.

The experimental film “Listen with your eyes” stands out by provoking the senses, senses and logical thinking. The paradoxical title introduces us to an exciting cinematic play with image and sound that leaves no room for indifference.

With its enchanting choreography of simple artistic elements and exciting visual gradation, the “Galactic Flock” presents the solar system in an unexpectedly witty way.

In the feature film category of the 13th Four River Film Festival, the film Love at First Sight by young Spaniards Alvaro Jimenez and Mikel D. Etxeberrie was awarded, and in the freestyle category Sunset in my rearview mirror by Sam Leslie from Canada. The animated film Distance Teaching by the Georgian Cinema Club MFS animation and the documentary Home on the Road by Miha Verdonik from the United Kingdom were also awarded. Special awards from the expert jury went to Singapore’s surrogate father Lucas Young and Strange Fruit: Taking a stand through song produced by the All American High School Film Festival.

Below are the explanations of the jury.

“Love at First Sight” conquers with the irresistible charm of a playful story, the temperament of the film performance and the fine elaboration of details that accidentally meet at the train station give a whole new dimension. A movie you will love unconditionally!

“Sunset in my rearview mirror” stands out with the magic of poetic shots and the montage creation of an unusual impression of travel on several levels of space and time and imagination. Pleasure for all the senses!

“Distance learning” delights with vivid animation and witty depiction of a school lesson in which the problems of the heroes come to the surface at the worst possible moment. Laughter squared!

“Home on the road” is imbued with serenity and immediacy that is hard to resist. The splendor of playful visuals captures attention as much as the joy of the protagonist who found in the amusement park not only fun, but also the warmth and security of the family home.

The “surrogate father” attracts attention with an unusual combination of weirdness and human warmth. The story of the fear of rejection is superbly told, acted and directed, so that the film is watched breathlessly, cheering that the protagonist finally bridges the old wounds and acquires the family he longs for.

“Strange Fruit” through a report on the origin of the legendary song Bilie Holiday speaks about the power of artistic expression as an engine of progress in all segments of human society.

The Youth Jury awarded Mikkel Graversen for Best Actor for his role in the Danish film The Lost Boy and Celeste Zollino for Best Actress in the Great Robbery of the United Kingdom. The best director is O Khe Yn from the Russian Federation to work on the film Perfect, and the best cinematographer is Moritz Piehler who shot the film Gangster from Germany. The best screenwriters are Michaela Gojević and Hana Volner, who wrote the screenplay for the film Reflection of Silence, produced at the Karlovac Cinema Club, and for working on the same film, Niko Pauković was awarded for best editing.

The awards of the Festival were decided by an expert jury consisting of Irena Krčelić, independent artist, screenwriter and playwright, Mato Ilijić, editor and teacher of film editing, and Sydney Levine, educator and consultant in the film industry. Together with them, the jury of young people also decided on the awards, that is, a jury of high school students.

A record 1,632 entries were received at the festivals this year, and the inclusion in the program was decided by Ana Đordić, professor of Croatian language and philosophy and film teacher, Boško Picula, film critic and
Dinka Radonić, cameraman and director as members of the selection committee.

We invite you to the last event of this year’s festivals, the screening of the film Tereza37 at 8 pm at Fogin’s beach in Karlovac. The film was directed by Danilo Šerbedžija, who will also visit tonight’s event, and at the recently concluded Pula Film Festival he won the Grand Golden Arena and the award for directing. In addition, Ivana Roščić was awarded for the supporting role, Lana Barić for the screenplay, Snježana Gorup for the mask and Dubravka Turić for the editing.

We continue to grow as a global festival with a multitude of interesting and quality entries. The films came to four rivers from all continents from as many as 99 countries, from Singapore, China, the United States to Bolivia, Uruguay, Mozambique and almost all European countries.

28 films were screened at the 13th Four River Film Festival. In the categories of feature and animated film, 10 films each. The program also included 5 documentaries and 3 freestyle films.

The 25th Youth Film Festival screened 43 films, the most represented of which was the feature film category with 17 films. This is followed by the freestyle category with 12 films, the animated film with 9 films and the documentary with 5 films.

The number of applications, which is growing from year to year, despite the unfavorable and crisis events in the world, testifies to the great interest of young filmmakers for these film events, both in the region and internationally. Understanding them as important platforms for working, acting, encouraging and further motivating young people’s filmmaking is becoming more important and represented than ever.