CHICAGO– The 59th Chicago International Film Festival (CIFF) announced its competitive award winners on October 20th 2023, and the recipient of The Gold Hugo in the International Feature Film Competition – the festival’s top honor – is ‘Explanation for Everything” (directed by Gábor Reisz), a coming-of age story.
Picking up the Festival’s Silver Hugo in the International Feature Film competition is “The Delinquents” (directed by Rodrigo Moreno). In the New Directors Competition, Amr Gamal’s “The Burdened” takes the Gold Hugo and Ena Sendijarevic’s “SWEETDREAMS” takes the Silver Hugo. The complete list of honorees is below.
“This year’s winning selections truly reflect a global perspective, giving audiences a glimpse into lives and lived experiences they might not have had the opportunity to explore before,” said Chicago International Film Festival Artistic Director Mimi Plauché. “Hailing from every region on the planet from Hungary to Mexico, Argentina to Yemen, Sudan to the U.S., this year’s Hugo winners tell the stories of a complicated, ever-evolving, and often surprising world, demonstrating the breadth of filmmaking talent both established and emerging across the globe.”
Find capsule descriptions of all the films by CLICKINGHERE.
International Feature Film Competition
Explanation for Everything
Photo credit: Chicago International Film Festival
The Gold Hugo for Best Film:“Explanation for Everything” (Hungary, Slovakia) Directed by Gábor Reisz
This essential story unfolds from an apparently insignificant accident. Superbly written, directed, and acted, this is a film that not only deals with the trouble of growing up, but also digs deeply into human nature when faced with the daunting challenge of making choices.
The Silver Hugo – Jury Prize:“The Delinquents” (Argentina, Luxembourg, Brazil, Chile), directed by Rodrigo Moreno
The Silver Hugo – Best Director: Aki Kaurismäki of “Fallen Leaves” (Finland, Germany)
The Silver Hugo – Best Performance: Ilinca Manolache of “Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World” (Romania, Luxembourg, France, Croatia)
The Silver Hugo – Best Ensemble Cast Performance:“La Chimera” (Italy, France, Switzerland)
The Silver Hugo – Best Screenplay: Gábor Reisz and Éva Schulze of “Explanation for Everything”
The Silver Hugo – Best Cinematography: Hélène Louvart of “La Chimera”
New Directors Competition
‘The Burdened,’ Directed by Amr Gamal
Photo credit: Chicago International Film Festival
The Gold Hugo: Director Amr Gamal of “The Burdened” (Yemen, Sudan, Saudi Arabia)
The Silver Hugo Director Ena Sendijarević of “Sweet Dreams” (The Netherlands, Sweden, Indonesia)
The Roger Ebert Award:“Goodbye Julia” (Sudan), directed by Mohamed Kordofani
International Documentary Competition
The Echo
Photo credit: Chicago International Film Festival
The Gold Hugo:“The Echo” (Mexico, Germany), directed by Tatiana Huezo
The Silver Hugo:“In the Rearview” (Poland, France, Ukraine) directed by Maciek Hamela
Special Mention:“Four Daughters” (France, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Tunisia, Cyprus) directed by Kaouther Ben Hania
Outlook Competition (LBGTQ+ Films)
Monster
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The Gold Q-Hugo:“Monster” (Japan), directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda
The Silver Q-Hugo:“Housekeeping for Beginners” (North Macedonia, Poland, Croatia, Serbia, Kosovo), directed by Goran Stolevski
Special Mention:“Carnal Sins” (Argentina), directed by Juan Sebastián Torales
Chicago Award
We Grown Now
Photo credit: Chicago International Film Festival
Chicago Award:“We Grown Now” (USA), directed by Minhal Baig
Short Film Competition
A Real One
Photo credit: Chicago International Film Festival
The Gold Hugo – Narrative: “A Real One” (USA), directed by McKenzie Chinn
The Silver Hugo – Narrative: “The Heart” (USA), directed by Malia Ann
The Gold Hugo – Documentary: “Ethan Lim: Cambodian Futures” (USA), directed by Dustin Nakao-Haider
The Silver Hugo – Documentary: “Is My Living in Vain” (U.K., France, New Zealand), directed by Ufuoma Essi
Special Mentions – Documentary: “Mountain Man” (Bhutan), directed by Arun Bhattarai, “American Sikh” (USA), directed by Vishavjit Singh and Ryan Westra, Chronicle of a Summer Day (USA) Uncredited
The Gold Hugo – Animated:“The Miracle” (Belgium, The Netherlands, France), directed by Nienke Deutz
The Silver Hugo – Animated: “Maurice’s Bar” (France, Israel), directed by Tzor Edery and Tom Prezman
Special Mention – Animated: “Battery Mommy” (South Korea), directed by Seungbae Jeon
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 | By PATRICK McDONALD |
