7th European University Film Award
In 2016 Filmfest Hamburg and the European Film Academy launched the European University Film Award (EUFA) which is presented and voted by European university students. The aim of this initiative is to involve a younger audience, to spread the "European idea" and to transport the spirit of European cinema to an audience of university students. It shall also support film dissemination, film education and the culture of debating. The discussions within the local universities and during the debate in Hamburg are about fostering a common understanding, articulating values and ideas, searching for a way to understand this world and each other and overcoming national, social and stereotype marks.
In 2019 it became an official category of the European Film Awards.
Starting off with 13 universities from 13 countries in first edition, the 7th edition saw 25 universities and 25 countries:
- Austria | Vienna: University of Vienna
- Belgium | Antwerp: University of Antwerp
- Czech Republic | Prague: Charles University
- Denmark | Aarhus: Aarhus University
- Finland | Turku: University of Turku
- France | Paris : Université Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris 3
- Germany | Potsdam: Filmuniversität Babelsberg 'Konrad Wolf'
- Greece | Mytilini (Lesbos): University of the Aegean
- Hungary | Budapest: Pázmány Péter Catholic University
- Iceland | Reykjavik: University of Iceland
- Ireland | Cork: University College Cork
- Israel | Tel Aviv: Steve Tisch School of Cinema and Television Studies at Tel-Aviv University
- Italy | Udine: University of Udine
- Latvia | Riga: Latvian Academy of Culture
- Lithuania | Vilnius: Vilnius University
- Netherlands | Utrecht: Utrecht University
- Poland | Lodz: University of Lodz
- Portugal | Covilhã: University of Beira Interior
- Romania | Cluj: Sapientia University/Cluj-Napoca
- Serbia | Belgrade: University of Arts in Belgrade
- Spain | Bilbao: University of the Basque Country/Bilbao
- Sweden | Växjö: Linnaeus University
- Switzerland | Lausanne: Université de Lausanne
- Turkey | Istanbul: Kadir Has University
- United Kingdom | Liverpool: John Moores University
Based on the European Film Awards Feature and Documentary Film Selections 2022, five films were nominated for the 7th European University Film Award.
- ALCARRÀS by Carla Simón. Spain, Italy. Fiction
- CLOSE by Lukas Dhont. Belgium, France, The Netherlands. Fiction
- THE ECLIPSE (Formørkelsen) by Nataša Urban. Norway. Documentary
- EO by Jerzy Skolimowski. Poland, Italy. Fiction
- TRIANGLE OF SADNESS by Ruben Östlund. Sweden, Germany, France, UK. Fiction
From then on between October and early December the five nominated films were viewed and discussed by students in film and media studies classes at the participating 25 European universities. Each film was analyzed, evaluated and passionately discussed over the course of two months and in the end each institution voted by a point system for their top three films. These results were sent in for the final vote.
One student representative for each of 25 universities attended a two-day deliberation meeting in Hamburg that took place 5/6 December.
The First Day was characterized by discussing and reflecting all five films, finding arguments and describing the qualities of each film. Half-way through the results from the "national votes" – the Top 3 films (CLOSE, EO and TRIANGLE OF SADNESS) were announced and continued the journey with the students.
On the Second Day the students were developing criteria for the award. The discussion turned out to be very profound and enhancing reflecting aspects of all facets of the award: How do the films correspond to EUROPEAN, to UNIVERSITY and to FILM. The discourse was extremely rewarding for everybody. In a secret election the students to decided on the film EO by Jerzy Skolimowski to be the winner of the 7th European University Film Award.
The jury statement:
"Through the melancholic eyes of a donkey, Jerzy Skolimowski depicts a post-human odyssey across the absurdity of human cruelty and its relationship with nature. A masterclass on cinematic language as a means of expression, the film portrays a mélange of euphoric and traumatic experiences with a striking colour palette, daunting sound design and an almost brutalist approach to editing. Traversing a borderless Europe, EO embarks on a transient journey filled with magical realism and allegories. Enchanting the audience, the film allows for an experience of metamorphosis and transcendence,”
The winner was announced during the ceremony of the European Film Awards 2022 in Reykjavik/Iceland. The award was received by EO actor Lorenzo Zurzolo and composer Paweł Mykietyn. On the picture: Matthijs Wouter Knol (Director European Film Academy), Lorenzo Zurzolo, Albert Wiederspiel (director Filmfest Hamburg), Paweł Mykietyn and Agnieszka Holland (President European Film Academy)
Thanks to our wonderful students for their passion for European Cinema !!!
The 7th EUFA Edition 2022 is made possible with the support of Hamburg Marketing and Hamburg Foundation for the Advancement of Research and Culture.