Festival Awards

This is an unclassifiable and unconventional film that, through its visual excess and multimedia playfulness, provides biting and humorous commentary on an authoritarian state. Weaving its way through tableaux of familial and human-animal relations, the film grapples with both narrative and political control.

We were immediately struck by the dynamism and skill displayed by the cinematographer in this incisive account of nascent lesbian desire. The film is brought to life through the artistic handling of 16mm film and is steeped in Northern Italian winter hues.

Without uttering a word, a world comes undone. Straddling multiple planes of existence in an undefined landscape, this filmmaker has created a pure and memorable cinematic experience.

This metaphoric representation of psychological states of isolation and breaking away from them is conveyed in an innovative narrative style. Relations seem stuck in stillness or loops, layers of space and time. Figures and realities multiply and interlace. Will this world be saved by the force of medieval ideals of noble love?

Offbeat and powerful, this film impressively interweaves experimental storytelling and pop culture. Oscillating between classical references and superhero universes as if the Nibelungs met Batman, this epic journey reflects the actuality of cinematic categories while treating the topic of relationship troubles in a profound but most entertaining way.

The idea of limitless seeing is avant-garde and romantic to the bone. This film daringly devotes itself to the exploration of expanded, total cinema considering film as an organic, even zoological practice. For its freshness in exploring the history of the medium, the Honorable Mention for special artistic achievement goes to Kiesler’s Body, directed by Ganaël Dumreicher.

We are honoring a film that splendidly celebrates the non-repeatability of the present moment. An equally concise and immersive study of time and light, color and material, which ties in with historical film experiments and yet speaks its own language with echoes of the recent past—a past in which the metropolis is at a standstill as a topos of breathtaking modernity, while we follow the poetry of small movements. The Austrian Short Film Award goes to NYC RGB by Viktoria Schmid.

In a refreshingly playful way and, at the same time, with great sociocritical depth, this Film tells the story of an encounter between two people. The facades of their bubbles are crumbling and blending, adopting a self-deprecating gaze that reaches the audience in bright, musical-style scenes. Not only the cinematic production but also the lead actor has excited us and made us eager to see more from this team. Which is why we’re not saying bye bye but hello and congrats to Bye Bye, Bowser by Jasmin Baumgartner.

Along with the fact that this film pushes background characters to the fore in an inventively playful manner, it is the subtle, balanced, precisely rendered sound effects, noises, and music that add to the experience of this bitingly cynical, often humorous bugs-and-glitches “primer.” The Special Jury Prize for Sound goes to Hardly Working by the self-proclaimed “pseudo-Marxist media guerillas” Total Refusal.

We’ve decided on a film that convinced us in terms of both plot and production. The editing is greatly responsible for the plot to be structured like a thriller. There are several mystery elements that convey a sense of foreboding, that something terrible is about to happen. The protagonist keeps spitting out small shards throughout the film. The uncanny atmosphere is also supported by the sound. It’s really riveting when a powerful droning noise builds and builds and suddenly ends in silence. Repetitions of moments also add to the confusion—a sense that there’s something off in the protagonist’s perception. Actor Marlene Hauser plays this discomfort that dominates the film very well. In one of the final scenes, she’s in the frame twice, and the film’s tension culminates in an explanation of sorts that nonetheless leaves many questions open. We were very impressed. Our award goes to Until I lie still by Yana Eresina.

We give special mention to Heavy Load by Tobias Pichler. The film was highlighted by all ten jury members in our deliberation. It moved us emotionally, as the story of a difficult situation and the process of letting go are told so well—in a shorter run time than expected—which affected us deeply.

An uncompromising and courageous music video with strong symbolism and powerful images. It shines through its expressive editing, colorful contrasts and bold performance by the artists. The vision of the director creates a wild aesthetic that enhances the attitude of the music. As stated in the lyrics they are “not scared of heights,” taking the risk of being both loud and honest.

In this music video, the director finds an unusual but touching solution to visualize love. The video stands out through its difference in “quote unquote” the contemporary music video landscape and by being sincere in its simplicity. Whoever thought that tooth- and heartache are so closely relatable.

The Elfi Dassanowsky Award was created in memory of the Austrian film producer and has been given out at the festival annually since 2010. The award is intended to support the work of emerging female filmmakers and directors. In this spirit, the Foundation would like to honor a film that has made a lasting impression and gives women in animation a voice—quite literally: a refreshing and humorous statement of empowerment in an industry that is still male-dominated. Congratulations to Anne Isensee and her team for their unique film Intro and for receiving the 2023 Elfi Dassanowsky Award. Best wishes from Colorado!

As this has been a very strong year, we’ve had an especially difficult time choosing only one winner. Allow us to start by giving special mention to Hardly Working by Total Refusal. The film presents the absurdity of capitalism in an ironic and thought-provoking way. The idea for the film’s design is incomparable and humorous. However, we present this year’s Social Responsibility Award of the Austrian Chamber of Labor to another festival contender that unmistakably points out the social inequality in our ostensibly affluent Austrian society. The dire situation that the protagonist finds himself in seems quotidian—and is in fact the sad reality of many citizens of affluent western nations. In this so-called First World, people who supposedly do not belong are driven to acts of desperation by red tape and social ignorance. This is shown in a film with a memorable dramatic structure, impressive production design, and phenomenal performances. The Social Responsibility Award goes to Land of Mountains by Olga Kosanović.