Montreal, Saturday, November 20, 2021 – The Montreal International Documentary Festival (RIDM) concludes its screenings in theatres tomorrow, Sunday, November 21. The winners of this 24th edition have just been unveiled at the awards ceremony, which took place at the Cinémathèque québécoise.
The RIDM is pleased to announce that all holders of a RIDM online passport or a subscription to Bloc 3 will have access to 7 award-winning films, which will be made available for streaming from November 22 to 25, across Canada.
GRAND PRIZE FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE presented by TV5
Looking for Horses by Stefan Pavlovic (Netherlands/Bosnia and Herzegovina/France)
“For its great mastery of a hybrid form, for its eloquent interweaving of formal experimentation into a narrative process, for its poetic interplay between micro and macro-cosmic questions.”
SPECIAL JURY PRIZE – INTERNATIONAL FEATURE
A Night of Knowing Nothing by Payal Kapadia (France/India)
“For its hypnotic and poetic approach to a story both personal and political, a tender protest film that transcends the conventions of nonfiction filmmaking.”
The International Feature Competition Jury was composed of Alyx Ayn Arumpac (Filipino filmmaker), Mathieu Bouchard-Malo (film editor), and Matthew Rankin (filmmaker).
GRAND PRIZE FOR BEST NATIONAL FEATURE presented by PRIM
zo reken by Emanuel Licha (Quebec/Canada)
“For his poetic offerings and fertile film technique which, with the complicity of the team, highlight the tension between the characters and the reality that surrounds them. This process reminds us that our existence will always be political."
SPECIAL JURY PRIZE – NATIONAL FEATURE
Animal Macula by Sylvain L'Espérance (Quebec/Canada)
“For being a hypnotic ‘geste de liberte’ that offers the viewer a ghostly and disturbing cinematic experience. With his haunting poetic essay, the filmmaker pays a particular tribute to cinema and invites us to reflect on our animal condition as human beings.”
A special mention is given to Dropstones by Caitlin Durlak (Canada).
NEW VISIONS AWARD presented by the Société civile des auteurs multimédia (SCAM) and Post-Moderne
Far Beyond the Pasturelands by Maxime Lacoste-Lebuis and Maude Plante-Husaruk (Quebec/Canada)
“This film resonates with beauty beyond words and images. There is this wonderful quote from Trinh T. Minh-ha encouraging us to film alongside rather than about each other and we feel that it is in this sensitive approach that the filmmakers offer us a wonderful encounter. "
The National Feature Competition and New Visions Jury was composed of Marta Andreu (director of Walden Creative Residencies), Darya Bassel (programmer at Docudays UA, Ukraine, and producer), and Marie-Pierre Grenier (sound designer and filmmaker).
BEST INTERNATIONAL SHORT OR MEDIUM-LENGTH FILM
If You See Her, Say Hello by Jiajun (Oscar) Zhang and Hee Young Pyun (China)
“For the way it layers past and present to make us mourn a lost future; for the threads it weaves between real and imaginary; for the tender beauty that glows deep within its dystopian landscape; and for the trance we find ourselves in, long after the dust has settled and the credits have rolled.”
A special mention is given to All of Your Stars are but Dust on my Shoes by Haig Aivazian (Lebanon).
BEST NATIONAL SHORT OR MEDIUM-LENGTH FILM presented by Télé-Québec and SLA Location
The Truss Arch by Sonya Stefan (Canada)
“For the playful energy with which it shakes off all restraints; for the power of a daughter’s questioning about aging, identity and freedom; and for the fearlessness at its core that reminds us to find joy within our bodies.”
The Short and Medium-Length competitions Jury was composed of Mira Burt-Wintonick (filmmaker and radio producer), Halima Elkhatabi (director of short films and documentary podcasts), and Oksana Karpovych (screenwriter, filmmaker and photographer).
MAGNUS ISACSSON AWARD presented in collaboration with ARRQ, DOC Québec, Funambules Médias, Cinema Politica and Main Film
Dear Jackie by Henri Pardo (Quebec/Canada)
“Our choice for the Magnus Isacsson Award goes to a film that also takes us into inaccessible worlds, this one much closer to home. Its inspired direction and formal audacity come together in a film that also delivers an urgent message. Yet it is a joyful film that inspires us to grow even as it compels us to act. We are inspired by the author’s courage to say, poetically and forcefully, what official discourses suppress, and whose truth resides in the intimate relationship and trust established between the director and the community represented.”
A special mention is given to zo reken by Emanuel Licha (Quebec/Canada).
The jury for the Magnus Isacsson Award was composed of Jocelyne Clarke (producer, director and editor), Amandine Gay (Main Film), Nicole Giguère (ARRQ), Steve Patry (Funambules Médias), Amélie Tintin (Doc Québec) et Svetla Turnin (Cinema Politica).
STUDENT AWARD presented by the Caisse Desjardins du Plateau Mont-Royal
zo reken by Emanuel Licha (Quebec/Canada)
‘’For the strength, beauty and relevance of the people it features, and for the infectious passion the filmmaker demonstrates for the many issues raised in his work.’’
The jury for the Student Award was composed of Yohan Perron (Cégep Édouard-Montpetit), Mathilde Levasseur (Cégep André-Laurendeau), Emma Soares (Collège de Maisonneuve), Jorge Contreras (Cégep Marie-Victorin) and Noémie Célestin (Winner of the RIDM Student’s Choice Award for the best student documentary from Cégep André-Laurendeau).
PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD presented by the NOUS | MADE
Dear Audrey by Jeremiah Hayes
ABOUT MADE | NOUS
Launched in 2019, MADE | NOUS celebrates the works of Canadian creators in film, television, video games and digital entertainment, both here and around the world. Canada is home to award-winning television, movies, and special effects that have captured global audiences and swept box offices worldwide. MADE | NOUS shines a spotlight on the achievements of Canadians who bring exceptional stories to life and encourages audiences to discover and celebrate their work. MADE | NOUS is the result of a collaborative effort between key entertainment industry players such as the Canada Media Fund (CMF) and Telefilm Canada, as well as an additional thirty—and growing—industry partners. For more information, visit made-nous.ca.
THANK YOU TO THE RIDM’S PARTNERS
The RIDM gratefully acknowledges the support of its valued partners: the Gouvernement du Québec, the ministère de la Culture et des Communications, SODEC, the Secrétariat à la région métropolitaine, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ville de Montréal, Téléfilm Canada, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, Tourisme Montréal, the Centre des Services aux Entreprises - Intégration en emploi (Emploi-Québec), the ministère des Affaires municipales et de l’Habitation, Crave, Canal D, the Canada Media Fund, Télé-Québec, the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), TV5, Radio-Canada, Post-Moderne, the Société civile des auteurs multimédia (SCAM), PRIM, BDO, the Cinémathèque québécoise, and Studio Chop Chop, as well as Benoît Parent and Arthur Gaumont-Marchant.
The RIDM’s 24th edition is held in theatres until November 21 at the Cinémathèque québécoise, Cinéma du Parc, Cinéma du Musée, Centre Pierre-Péladeau, and Cineplex Odeon Quartier Latin and online everywhere in Canada until November 25, 2021.
Contact: Caroline Rompré | pixelleX communications | 514-778-9294 | caroline@pixellex.ca