An award ceremony concluded the last day of the Liburnia Film Festival in Opatija, the festival dedicated entirely to the Croatian documentaries, co-organized by Restart for the last 10 years. The jury, Vanja Kovačević, Kumjana Novakova, Dinka Radonić, Iva Ivan and Davor Sanvicenti, decided that The Best Film of this year’s festival is “Knin-Zadar” by Melita Vrsaljko, produced by Dinaridi Film. The same film received the “Dragan Rubeša” Critic’s Award, decided by film critic and director Nikola Strašek. The Best Regional Film is “Kantrida” by Luka Karlo Kauzlarić (Filmaktiv, Nova škola dokumentarnog filma), Special Mention of the jury went to “Wild Flowers” by Karla Crnčević (Elias Querejeta Zine Eskola / self-produced) and the audience chose “El Shatt – A Blueprint for Utopia” by Ivan Ramljak (KOMPOT, Horopter) who gave it very high 4,54 / 5. The Best Director is Ana Bilankov (“Chasing the Sun: El Shatt”), and the Best Sound Designer is Yiannis Loukos for the same film. The Best Editor of the 21st LFF is Jelena Maksimović for her work on “El Shatt – A Blueprint for Utopia” and cinematographer Boris Poljak, who filmed both films about El Shatt camp. Besides cash awards given by the festival to the Best Film and the Audience Award, new monetary support is given to the Best Regional Film by the AJB DOC Film Festival, an equipment voucher of 700 euros to the best cinematographer and the best sound designer is given by the AVC Zagreb, and an LCD projector to the best editor is sponsored by ACER Croatia. Other awards consist of direct entrance to the program for the development of documentary film with the next project, Ex Oriente Film (for the best director) and BDC Discoveries (for the best regional film). The Liburnia Film Festival screened 33 films, of which five were produced by Restart and screened out of the competition. “Snajka: Diary of Expectations” by Tea Vidović Dalipi and “Valerija” by Sara Jurinčić had their Croatian premieres. The festival also screened our co-production “Between Revolutions” by Vlad Petri, concluded by two films made at the Restart’s School of Documentary Film, “Radicle” by Dora Fodor and “Searching (One Night in Zagreb” by Matea Jocić. The festival again hosted ABC of Film workshop for children, this year led by Vanda Kreutz and Tin Dožić.
