September 15, 2021 (SIGNIS / INTERFILM). The Ecumenical Jury awarded their main Prize to the film Beans, directed by Tracey Deer (Canada, 2020), competing in the Junior category of the international competition for feature films.
Twelve-year-old Tekahentahkhwa (“call me Beans”) belongs to the indigenous Mohawk people of Canada. During the Oka Crisis in 1990, she searches for her way and emancipates herself between her role in the family and role models of older youths. A peaceful protest against a planned golf course on a traditional Mohawk cemetery is answered with racist riots. The film shows impressively how this affects people and how also anti-racism becomes radicalized. On the other hand, strong women become peacemakers in a world of violence. The film functionally combines fiction style with documentary footage. The aesthetics of the film thus collaborates with the two thematic levels of the story: the personal and the social.
In addition, the Jury awarded a Commendation in the Youth category to Valentina, directed by Cássio Pereira dos Santos (Brasil, 2020). Valentina is 17 and trans. She moves from the city to the Brazilian countryside with her mother to start over as a young woman. But a sexual assault exposes her, and again she faces resentment. In all her despair, she always finds friends who stand by her. An impressive film with a straightforward narrative that touches us profoundly and opens up possibilities for dialogue, especially for young people and gives courage.
The members of the Jury were Dietmar Adler (Germany, President), Marta Sedláčková (Czech Republic), and Andrej Chovanec (Slovakia/Czech Republic).
After a first part held online before summer, the second part of the 61st Zlín Film Festival opened on site on 9 September. The festival focuses on the sections of the international competition, which is divided into three age groups (children, junior and youth). In addition, the festival shows a short film competition, a documentary film competition and a student film competition. Visit zlinfest.cz to know more.
