ROYAL ARTS VISIONS; 'Super Happy Forever' by Kohei Igarashi and soundtrack from 'Grand Tour' grab top prizes at 51st edition Film Fest Gent

'Super Happy Forever'

by Kohei Igarashi and soundtrack from 'Grand Tour' grab top prizes at 51st edition

Film Fest Gent

Super Happy Forever by Japanese director Kohei Igarashi has won the Grand Prix for Best Film at the 51st edition of Film Fest Gent. The International Jury was deeply moved by Igarashi's economic use of narrative. Grand Tour, the new film by Miguel Gomes, received the Georges Delerue Award for Best Soundtrack.

Grand Prix for Best Film

On Saturday night, 19 October, the Official Competition of the 51st edition of Film Fest Gent came to a close with an award ceremony followed by the festival's closing film Waarom Wettelen (The Weeping Walk), the directorial debut by Belgian novelist Dimitri Verhulst. An incredibly diverse lineup of twelve films, including Belgian features hold on to her and Maldoror, made for an unpredictable competition. This year's International Jury members, presiding over the competition, were: Robbie Ryan (Jury President), Bas Devos, Lu Huang, Marija Kavtaradze, Valentina Maurel and Rodrigo Moreno.

The International Jury presented the Grand Prix for Best Film to Super Happy Forever. Kohei Igarashi's delicate portrait of a young man returning with his friend to the place where he first met his recently deceased wife is a poetic exploration of grief, healing and the miraculous power of love.

The jury: "Super Happy Forever needs very little to give a lot to its audience. Throughout we were moved by the economy of the narrative and its singular use of time and space. It is incredibly generous in its intimate look into the life of its main characters. Gorgeously shot on 35mm film, and beautifully performed, this film is a melancholic ode to living and dying in modern-day Japan."

Georges Delerue Award for Best Soundtrack

Music is part of Film Fest Gent's DNA. Each year, the Official Competition shines a spotlight on the influence that music and sound design have on storytelling in film. It is within this context that the coveted Georges Delerue Award for Best Soundtrack stands as one of the festival's most prestigious honours. The jury gave the 2024 Georges Delerue Award for Best Soundtrack to Miguel Gomes' Grand Tour. The sixth feature from the Portuguese filmmaker behind FFG Grand Prix winner Tabu (2012) is another hypnotic fever dream. Staying true to his playful approach, Gomes crafts a beguiling story that follows a man on a tour of Asia as he attempts to flee from his fiancée.

In Gomes' tour de force, the International Jury discovered "a tapestry of voices, music and sounds from the natural world that draws the audience into an almost magnetic dreamscape".

Short Film Awards

On Sunday 13 October, the winners of the festival's short film competitions were announced. The Short Film Jury consisted of Nienke Deutz, Isadora Neves Marques and Faraz Fesharaki. Goodbye First Love by Shuli Huang received the Award for Best International Short (powered by Nationale Loterij). And How Miserable is the Home of Evil by Saleh Kashefi got a Special Mention. In the Competition for Belgian Student Shorts, Dreams About Putin by Nastia Korkia & Vlas Fishez won the Award for Best Belgian Student Short (powered by Amplo). The Audience Award for Best Belgian Student Short (powered by THEPACK), as voted by the FFG audience, went to The World is My Idea by Alexander Wolfgang Smadja.

Explore Award

On Thursday 17 Ocotober, 78 Days by Emilija Gašić received the Explore Award from the Explore Zone Jury. Starting from her own childhood memories during the Kosovo war, Gašić created a hybrid documentary, unique in its kind, about the conflict and its impact on an entire generation of Serbian citizens. The film consists solely of video camera footage made by three sisters, who record their daily life to keep their father at the front up to date. As the weeks go by, the line between documentation and enactment slowly fades.

The jury: "We’ve chosen one of the smaller films from the Explore Zone section, but one that left the biggest impression on each of us. Filming with a Hi8 camera, Emilija Gašić made us believe we were witnessing a collection of video tapes of three sisters in Serbia with the civil war in the background. Despite its intense subject matter and hyper-realistic atmosphere, 78 Days is perhaps the film that made us laugh the most, thanks in part to a stellar performance by Viktoria Vasiljevic, who plays the youngest sister."

78 Days has not yet found a distributor in Belgium. The Belgian distributor releasing the film is granted a media campaign worth €27,000 in newspaper De Morgen, magazine Knack Focus and on MNM.

The Explore Zone Jury decided to give a Special Mention to queer road movie Crossing Istanbul by Levan Akin.

The jury about their Special Mention: "Crossing Istanbul is stunning both visually and narratively. Levan Akin convinced us by illuminating the Turkish transgender community with great humanity and tenderness. Add to that a rock-solid mother-son dynamic, and you get an immersive film experience that deserves a special mention."