The KineNova International Film Festival was held from October 7th to 14th in Skopje, North Macedonia. Now in its 7thyear, the festival specialises in the work of new film-makers from the region and around the world. It defines itself as “a place where new film-makers can present new stories and offer a new perspective of humanity and the world we live in.”
Every year a jury gives awards to the best selected films, including Best Director, Best Screenplay and the Grand Prix for Best Feature Film. Members of the public can vote for the Audience Award.
The jury gave the major award to Emre Kayiş’ Anatolian Leopard, a Turkish, German, Danish and Polish co-production. The film is set in Turkey’s oldest zoo: the unattached director and a neglected female officer forge an unlikely bond when they pass off the death of the zoo’s oldest inhabitant, an Anatolian leopard, as an escape. Both participate in this charade to prevent the zoo being privatized. But their well-intentioned lie spirals out of control.
For Kayiş, the Anatolian leopard is a metaphor for the world in which these two characters no longer feel they belong. “I wanted to create a Kafkaesque atmosphere which would allow me to explore and portray existential anxiety, alienation and guilt,” he explains in the press release.
Among the other winners, Monica Stan’s Immaculate (Romania) won Best Director Award while David Kapac and Andrija Mardešić’s The Uncle continues its successful run with the award for Best Artistic Direction.
The call for films for the 8th edition of KineNova is open until September 20th2023.
Sources: Film Freeway, Film New Europe, Lux Box Films
