The 10th Friss Hús Awards were presented

The 10th Friss Hús Awards were presented

From the Hungarian selection The Love of Things One Can Lose and Above the Clouds were the winners, while from the international selection the Lithuanian techno-revolutionary story was awarded.

The 10th Friss Hús Budapest Short Film Festival was held in an unadulterated festival atmosphere with sold-out screenings, and the winners were announced at the awards ceremony on Wednesday at Toldi Cinema. The awards of the Hungarian short film programme were decided by actor-director Slava Doytcheva, Interfilm Berlin organiser and designer Moritz Lehr and director Borbála Nagy, whose short film The Praise of Pannonia was named Best Hungarian Short Film at last year's Friss Hús. The international jury was composed of producer Balázs Zachar, director Nóra Lakos, director of the CINEMIRA Children's Film Festival, and director Henning Backhaus.

In addition to the professional judges, the audience of the 10th Friss Hús chose their favourites in four categories. In the Queer Dreams section, Dorka Vermes' Alba Vulva received the most votes, in the @Midnight horror section, the Belgian You're Dead Helen was awarded, in the international documentary section, I Miss You, Marius was the most popular and in the international competition section, The Last Day of Patriarchy won the Audience Award.

The Last Day of Patriarchy

In the international selection, Kevin T. Landry's drama Woodpecker won a special prize for its sensitive and complex portrayal of human relationships. The best international short film award went to Lithuanian Saulius Baradinskas for his piece Techno, Mama. In its citation, the jury highlighted the film's powerful yet sophisticated depiction of the process of self-acceptance.

Two special prizes were awarded from the Hungarian selection. Dorka Vermes' Alba Vulva "sheds light on the female and lesbian intimacy, vulnerability and strength that is so desperately needed." Nikolett Fábián's animated short film, Resting Fog, also won a special prize. The jury praised the rich and mystical atmosphere of Resting Fog and the beauty of the effortlessly merging images.

The special prize of the Association of Hungarian Directors was presented by András Sólyom. The prize was given to Péter Karácsony, the director of High-Stand, for his outstanding directorial achievement in a very high-calibre field. The prize is a VFX/theme production opportunity worth 1 million HUF from Berger Studios, which can be used for the director's next film within a year.

László Ádám Kuru in The Uplands

The Best Actor award went to Ádám László Kuru for his performance in the film The Uplands. According to the jury, Kuru was able to "portray despair and hope, struggle and love at the same time", and for this reason the jury recognised his work as an actor. László Ádám Kuru is an amateur actor, 14 years old at the time of filming, and he plays in the film with a group of teenagers who have come together through the Street Theatre Creative Community. The best actress was Éva Magyar, who played a grandmother showing early symptoms of dementia in Not Yet Today. The London-based actor-dancer-choreographer, who rarely appears in Hungarian films, won over the jury with her powerful portrayal of the painful transformation of the protagonist in Not Yet Today.

Vivien Hárshegyi won the 300.000 HUF prize for the best Hungarian animated film. Above the Clouds was praised by the jury for its innovative and exciting visual depiction of intimacy.

The award for the best Hungarian short film went to The Love of Things One Can Lose.  "Through a loose weave of scenes, Jakob Ladányi Jancsó's film tells the story of Generation Z, sometimes desperately, sometimes resignedly searching for their identity. It is both entertaining and a punch to the gut." 

The Love of Things One Can Lose

The awards were also presented at the pitch forum held on Friday, with the eight short film projects selected by Ákos Erdős, international and Hungarian CEO of Paprika Studios, film director Dániel Tiszeker and producer Claudia Sümeghy. The jury highlighted this was one of the strongest lineup in recent years, and for the first time ever, two new special prizes were awarded this year. The special prize of Paprika Studios went to Dániel Villányi's project "Szerbusztok, gyerekek”. The project won the jury over with its concept, which was characterised by outstanding dramaturgical ingenuity.

The special prize of JUNO11 was awarded to Zsófia Csánki's mixed-technique project Lokál: Csepel Unleashed. "The concept, the tone and the character sketches promise a short film that can be entertaining content for the domestic audience, but at the same time exotic enough for foreign festivals." - was the praise. The special prize includes assistance in further developing the film's concept and securing funding, as well as professional mentoring for the filmmaker.

The prize of the jury of the Association of Hungarian Directors is the possibility to rent equipment offered by KRAFT Rental worth 1 million HUF, which the winner can use to realise the project. The prize was awarded to Dániel Villányi's film project titled "Szerbusztok, gyerekek!". Besides the concept, the jury praised "the suspense that runs through the short film, the exciting acting and the thoughtful visual concept”.

Bálint Dezső at the pitch forum

The Nándor Lovas Award, this year's main prize of the pitch forum, went to Bálint Dezső for his project "Marcival minden rendben". The jury awarded the prize of 300,000 HUF for "an inspired and entertaining pitch, a unique tone of the film project and a stark contrast to the search for identity”.

Although the 10th Friss Hús has ended, the films are still available for a few screenings. On the 11th and 16th of June, from 7:00PM, the winning films will be screened as part of Best of Friss Hús 2022 in the main hall of Toldi Cinema. And on Friday, the 24th of June, from 9:00PM, you can catch up or re-watch the winners in the courtyard of the Town Hall. The sports film selection will also be screened there on the 17th of June. From next week, the winning films, the Queer Dreams section and other Friss Hús surprises will be available on Cinego.

The winners of the 10th Friss Hús Budapest Short Film Festival:

Hungarian selection:

  • Best Hungarian live-action short film – Jakob Ladányi Jancsó: The Love of Things One Can Lose
  • Best Hungarian Animated Short - Vivien Hárshegyi: Above the Clouds
  • Best Actress – Éva Magyar (Not Yet Today)
  • Best Actor – Ádám László Kuru (The Uplands)
  • Special Prize:
    • Dorka Vermes: Alba Vulva
    • Nikolett Fábián: Resting Fog
  • Prize of Association of Hungarian Directors for the Best Hungarian Short Film - Péter Karácsony: High-Stand

International Selection:

  • Best International Short Film - Saulius Baradinskas: Techno, Mama
  • Certificate of Merit - Kevin T. Landry: Woodpecker
  • Audience Awards:
    • Best International Short - Olmo Omerzu: The Last Day of Patriarchy
    • Best International Documentary - Péter Becz: I Miss You, Marius
    • Best Film in the Queer section - Dorka Vermes: Alba Vulva
    • Best Film in the @Midnight section - Michiel Blanchart: You're Dead Helen

Professional Awards:

  • Nándor Lovas Award for the best film concept in the pitch forum - Bálint Dezső: Marcival minden rendben.
  • Prize of the jury of the Association of Hungarian Directors: equipment rental offered by KRAFT Rental worth 1 million HUF (pitch forum) - Dániel Villányi: Szerbusztok, gyerekek!
  • Paprika Studios Special Prize - Dániel Villányi: Szerbusztok, gyerekek!
  • JUNO11 Special Prize - Zsófia Csánki: Lokál - Csepel Unleashed
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