Locarno Pro, the industry arm of the Locarno Film Festival, announced August 6 the winning projects from the 12th First Look section which this year presented six UK works-in-progress to an audience of sales agents, buyers, programmers and representatives from post-production support funds, thanks to a partnership with British Film Institute (BFI), using funds from the National Lottery.
The section’s international jury, which comprised Ava Cahen (Artistic Director, La Semaine de la Critique, Cannes), Gaia Furrer (Artistic Director, Giornate degli Autori) and Eugene Hernandez (Festival Director, Sundance Institute) gave the Creativity Media First Look Award to Mother Vera by Cécile Embleton and Alys Tomlinson, produced by Laura Shacham (She Makes Productions). The award covers post-production services to the value of €50,000.
The project synopsis reads how “Mother Vera weaves the inner world of a strikingly unusual Orthodox nun, with the community that saved her life. As an unexpected new chapter opens, Vera’s path is changed forever.” The film was supported by the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program and was pitched at the Hot Docs Forum 2021.
The other two First Look prizes went to No Ifs Or Buts by Sarah Lewis, produced by Sarah Loews (Felt Culture) and co-produced by DoBeDo, which received both the Jannuzzi Smith Award (worth €8,500 for the design of an international poster) and an award of advertising space given by French trade paper Le Film Français, valued at €5,600.
Filmed over a 25-year period, No Ifs Or Buts “delivers a vital portrait of the low-key, yet world-famous London barbershop ‘Cuts’ – not just a place to get your hair styled but a space for street fashion and pop innovators,” the synopsis underlines.
Alliance 4 Development platform
The 3-day Alliance 4 Development platform also came to a close on 6 August. The documentary project Pas Ta Maman by Michèle Flury, produced by Felix Schreiber from Sommerhaus Filmproduktion, won the Alphapanda Market Breakout Award, which consists of consultancy services to the value of €3,500.
In their citation the jury wrote: “The Alphapanda Market Breakout Award goes to a film that will certainly move audiences just like it has moved us, a brutal yet playful tale, that uses contrasting genres to explore a current and important topic, abuse against women and what it means to be sexualised, victimised, and to fight back. We were very touched by the pitch and can’t wait to see this film on a big screen.”
