Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry

Source: Cannes International Film Festival

‘Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry’

Elene Naveriani’s Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry was the big winner at the Sarajevo film festival’s awards ceremony on Friday (August 18), taking home prizes for best feature (with a €16,000 cash award) and best actress for Ekaterine Chavleishvili.

Scroll down for list of key winners

The Georgia-set romantic drama premiered in Directors’ Fortnight, and stars Chavleishvili as a prickly, self-sufficient woman whose life changes after she narrowly escapes a fatal accident. Totem are handling international sales.

Philip Sotnychenko won the €10,000 best director prize for Ukrainian cop thriller La Palisiada, which premiered at Rotterdam. Best actor went to Jovan Ginić for his role in Vladimir Perisic’s Cannes Critics’ Week title Lost Country, a 1990s Serbia-set political drama.

In the documentary competition, Nemanja Vojinović’s Serbia-Slovenia title Bottlemen won the top prize worth €4,000.

The CineLink industry award-winners were unveiled last week.

Sarajevo 2023 awards

Feature film
Best feature film – Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry (Geo- Switz) dir. Elene Naveriani
Best director – Philip Sotnychenko, La Palisiada (Ukr)
Best actress – Ekaterine Chavleishvili, Blackbird Blackbird Blackberry (Geo-Switz)
Best actor – Jovan Ginić, Lost Country (Ser-Fra-Cro-Lux-Qat) 

Documentary film
Best documentary film – Bottlemen (Ser-Slovenia) dir. Nemanja Vojinović
Human Rights award – Silence Of Reason (North Macedonia-Bos & Her) dir. Kumjana Novakova
Special Jury award – Fairy Garden (Hun-Rom-Cro) dir. Gergo Somogyvári
Special award for promoting gender equality – De Facto (Austria-Ger) dir. Selma Doborac