Winners

Ave Maria, for its outstanding ability to transfigure themes like occupation, suspicion and conflict into a brilliant story tinged with humor. At the same time, all the paradoxical and absurd conditions imposed on the inhabitants of the occupied territories filter through such a crazy story.

One minute, for the admirable description of a mother’s despair during the 2014 Gaza bombing, thanks to the powerful choice of a claustrophobic darkness accompanied with the sound of voices, messages and bombs – possibly the only way to tell the human side of things that are too horrible to show.

Mate superb, for the lively representation of Palestinian boys engaging in nonviolent resistance while performing their parkour exercises in Jerusalem. The feelings of protagonists are masterfully narrated using simple but effective shots coupled with an enthralling editing.

High hopes, for its remarkable ability to expose the relationship between propaganda and reality, as revealed by the shameful evacuation of a Bedouin clan during the Oslo negotiations. The pressing rhythm of the editing highlights in a merciless way the blatant contradiction between peace announcements and the criminal behaviors of the Israeli army.

Entr’acte, for telling in an overwhelming way the killing of a child by a sniper, mixing with astonishing effectiveness animation and film quotes. The film connects the narrative dramatic force with very strong emotional involvement and pietas, alternating in a heartbreaking way the prevailing black-and-white with color flashes.

Compagnia di Teatro le Donne del Muro Alto-detenute del carcere di Rebibbia-Roma

Our choice goes to: NO EXIT to the story of a white life sentence

For the intensity and strength with which he has been able to describe the “life sentence” of lives without a way out, always equal to themselves in a suspended time, from which one can only escape through thought as the only hope of salvation.

Bologna–Liceo “Laura Bassi”

The short movie “Shujayya” represents the Palestinian situation from a political, cultural and psychological point of view. In a few minutes it conveys the tragic nature of the conflict, particularly in Gaza, as well as the difficult and inconsistent cultural background: the difficult situation of the women, gender stereotypes, social traditions, family relationships, and personal drama. Through this short movie we can fully understand that this war doesn’t mean only losing one’s home, but also losing family and oneself, from a physical and a psychological point of view.

We loved “Shujayya”, and we wish to award it the best short movie prize because we were very moved, from the beginning to the end. We remained breathless. During the whole film, our eyes couldn’t leave the screen. In a few minutes Mohammed Almughanni

described a part of life where fear makes us blind (every day), and we’ll never thank him enough.

Youth Jury Città di Napoli

The movie is the detailed and moving story of an exile on different levels: leaving Palestine to find re fuge in Syria, leaving Syria, his family and his musical instrument. But you can’t forget art, and piano music takes us through this exodus with a message of hope: the chance of contrasting human cruelty with beauty.

Reward Oltre le mura (Beyond the walls) Women prison, Pozzuoli (Napoli)

We were very moved by the short movie, we even cried, because human suffering really is for everybody, it’s universal. The image of the sea is powerful: it covers everything, it’s the high tide of human wickedness. We drown in an “Ocean of injustice”, men and women grabbing the water not to die. On the surface, only the eyes floating, to tell the story.