31st Sarajevo Film Festival holds award ceremony
The festival, which began on August 15, featured 50 films competing in the categories of feature film, short film, documentary, and student films.
The “Heart of Sarajevo” Award for Best Feature Film went to Serbian director Stefan Dordevic for “Vjetre, Pricaj sa Mnom” (Wind, Talk to Me). The Best Director Award was presented to Ivana Mladenovic for her film “Sorella di Clausura”.
The Best Actor Award was given to Andrija Kuzmanovic for his performance in “Yugo Florida”. The Best Actress Award was shared by Sarah al Saleh, Aline Juhart, Mina Milovanovic, and Mia Skrbinac for their performances in “Fantazija”.
In the documentary categories, Ivette Löcker’s “Unsere Zeit Wird Kommen” received the Best Documentary Award, while Mariam Bakacho Khatchvani’s “Kacebis Mitsa” won Best Short Documentary. Natalia Mirzoyan took home the Best Short Film Award with “Lumi Saadab Meid”, and Adem Tutic’s “Tarık” won in the Best Student Film category.
This year’s Honorary Heart of Sarajevo Awards were presented to Italian director Paolo Sorrentino, American actor Willem Dafoe, Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård, and British actor Ray Winstone.
The festival brought together over 200 films from 65 countries, continuing its legacy as one of the region’s most significant cultural events.
A Festival Born from War’s Aftermath
The Sarajevo Film Festival was founded 31 years ago with the aim of healing the scars of the Bosnian war. Over the years, it has hosted world-renowned stars and filmmakers.
The Honorary Heart of Sarajevo Award, the festival’s most prestigious recognition, has previously been presented to figures such as Morgan Freeman (2010), Angelina Jolie (2011), Robert De Niro (2016), Oliver Stone (2017), Nuri Bilge Ceylan (2018), Tim Roth (2019), Wim Wenders (2021), Ruben Östlund, Jesse Eisenberg, and Mads Mikkelsen (2022), Charlie Kaufman (2023), and Meg Ryan (2024).
Over the decades, stars including Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom, Daniel Craig, John Malkovich, and many others have walked the Sarajevo red carpet, while numerous Turkish films have also been recognized with awards.
