‘What Do We See When We Look at the Sky’ wins Batumi int’l art-house film festival
Georgian film director Alexander Koberidze's German-Georgian co-production had its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in June. Photo: Shot from the film trailer
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A film by Georgian director Alexander Koberidze What Do We See When We Look at the Sky?’ has received the Grand Prix of the Batumi International Art-House Film Fest (BIAFF) on Georgia’s Black Sea coast.
What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? is a love story which takes place in Georgia’s western city of Kutaisi. Lisa and Georgia fall in love with each other at first sight and agree to meet again, but the next day they wake up with different appearances and are not able to find each other.
In a conversation with the Georgian National Film Centre - which supported the production - Koberidze said he was "interested in magical elements ... and what people facing [unforeseen consequences of encountering] them could do."
Koberidze's German-Georgian co-production had its world premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in June.
Other awards went to:
- Best Film Director – Kornel Mundruzo for film Evolution (Germany/Hungary, 2021)
- Best Actress – Nutasa Kukhianidze in film Otar’s Death by Soso Bliadze (Georgia/Germany/Lithuania, 2021)
- Best Actor – Serhii Filimonov in film Rhino by Oleh Sentsov (Ukraine/Germany/Poland, 2021)
- Jury Special Mention – Otar’s Death by Soso Bliadze (Georgia/Germany/Lithuania, 2021) and Bandar Band by Manijeh Hekmat (Iran, 2021)
Having kicked off on September 18, BIAFF closed with awards at Cinema Apollo yesterday. The festival was held in a limited format in full compliance with the recommendations of current Covid-19 regulations.
Best films were awarded in three sections: feature, documentary and shorts. The festival ran 30 full-length feature and documentary movies from 30 countries, as well as 30 shorts movies.
Film director Alexandre Koberidze has added prize recognition in addition to plaudits from cinema critics after his feature What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? earned the FIPRESCI international film critics association award at the Berlin International Film Festival on Thursday.
Nearly three decades after a film by a Georgian director last competed for the principal award at the Berlin International Film Festival, director Alexandre Koberidze will see his feature What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? screen at the event in June.
The Batumi International Art-House Film Festival will make its 2020 edition particularly relevant to this year's theme by running an entire section for films about social isolation amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Dea Kulumbegashvili's award-winning feature Beginning will open the inaugural Svaneti International Film Festival in Georgia's picturesque mountainous northern province tomorrow, with organisers selecting 20 films for the maiden event's programme.
Filmmaker Alexandre Koberidze's feature What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? collected its latest international accolade on the weekend, with the film earning its cinematographer Faraz Fesharaki the Best Photography Award at Festival de Sevilla.