Nomadland receives FIPRESCI Grand Prix

International critics name Zhao's film best of the year

by Amber Wilkinson

Frances McDormand in Chloé Zhao's Nomadland
Frances McDormand in Chloé Zhao's Nomadland

Chloé Zhao's Nomadland has won the FIPRESCI Grand Prix after having been voted best film of the year by the members of the International Federation of Film Critics, voted on globally by 593 critics.

The film, which follows a woman as she embarks on a nomadic life in the modern US, was selected from a field that included all films released after July 1, 2020. The other four finalists were Thomas Vinterberg's Another Round (Druk), Jasmila Zbanic's Quo Vadis, Aida?, Alexandre Koberidze's What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? (Ras vkhedavt rodesac cas vukurebt) and Radu Jude's Bad Luck Banging Or Loony Porn (Babardeala cu bucluc sau porno balamuc ).

The FIPRESCI Grand Prix will be presented during the opening gala of the 69th San Sebastian Festival. In 2020 the award was left undecided due to the cancellation of festivals and releases caused by the Covid-19 crisis.

Previous winners of the award include Pedro Almodóvar, Michael Haneke, Cristian Mungiu, Jean-Luc Godard, Richard Linklater, Roman Polanski, George Miller, Maren Ade, Aki Kaurismäki, Paul Thomas Anderson and Alfonso Cuarón.

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