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| Flight Of A Bullet |
Flight Of A Bullet has won the Open City Award at this year's Open City Documentary Festival in London.
The film, directed by Beata Bubenec, is a single take snapshot of a battalion during the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
The jury, which was chaired by filmmaker Stephanie Spray, said: "This palpably dangerous film is an unforgettable experience. It reflects a combination of the filmmaker’s capacity to be present, intuitive and to fully utilise the digital camera – revealing a new form of observational filmmaking as both durational and dramatic. It captures the disturbing carnivalesque of military operations – and the undecidable nature of the filmmaker’s role in this, where her camera is both witness and weapon/shield."
The Swing by Cyril Aris - which will close the festival tomorrow night - received an honorable mention for its "impeccable judged framing and profoundly touching meditation on mortality and morality".
The Emerging International Filmmaker Award went to Angkar by Neary Adeline Hay, who takes a personal journey back in time with her father, who meets some of his former Khmer Rouge persecutors.
The jury said: "Woven together with an unusual master of craft, this film is a remarkable intergenerational dialogue between father and daughter that ties together strands of history, place, loss, justice and memory. It is a brave exploration of the past that also shines a light on the present."
Dorothy Allen-Pickard picked up the Best UK Short Award for her documentary The Mess, which considers the highs and lows of one woman's bipolar disorder.
The jury praised it for "its visceral and empathetic portrayal of mental illness. The jury was impressed by its creative and collaborative approach to making an otherwise mental state visible."
The festival also hosts an initiative aiming to connect filmmakers with academics and encouraging collaboration. Six teams were selected pitch their projects this year and the winner of the £5,000 prize was Lifeblood, pitched by Dylan Howitt and Elizabeth Haines. The second prize of £2,500 was awarded to The Affordability Game, pitched by Antony Butts and Paul Honeybone.
