Georgian film Tangerines wins top award at French film festival

Georgian war-time drama Mandarinebi (Tangerines) has won top honours at the world’s first international festival dedicated to recognising the vast theme of war and conflict.

‘War On Screen 2014 – International Festival of War Cinema’ took place for the second time this year in France from October 1-5. The Georgian.

The festival’s top award - Jury’s Grand Prix – was awarded to Mandarinebi (Tangerines), which was a joint Estonia-Georgia production and directed by Zaza Urushadze.

After his win, Urushadze went onto the ‘War On Screen 2014’ facebook page and said: "I am very pleased and honoured, thank you so much!”

Meanwhile, the winning film was located in an Estonian village in Abkhazia during the war-time in the 1990s. Two villagers – an old man Ivo and his neighbour Markus – were the only ones left in the neighbourhood. Markus wanted to harvest his tangerine plantation but Ivo was against cropping during war-time.

Following the plot, as the war approaches and a conflict takes place before their eyes, Ivo finds two survivors on the battlefield - a wounded Caucasian man and a wounded Georgian. The tangerine harvesters now must resolve their own war which is developing under their roof with enemies from both sides.

Mandarinebi (Tangerines), which was the first Georgian-Estonian co-production, was recently nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Race at the world renowned Academy Awards, otherwise known as the Oscars.

The Georgian film was also named the best film in the Taste of Europe section at the Ostend Films Festival in Belgium.

Mandarinebi (Tangerines) has won 15 international film awards at six international festivals since it was released in 2013, including top prizes at the Warsaw International Film Festival 2013, the Seattle International Film Festival 2014 and the BIFEST - Bari International Film Festival 2014.

Watch the film trailer below: