The Locarno Film Festival has always sought to promote films that are thematically and aesthetically powerful, venturing off the beaten track to offer audiences an unexpected and deliberately critical view of society. This year’s awards continue that tradition, honouring bold and innovative productions that push the boundaries of cinema. Topping the podium at the 77th edition was Toxic [+lee también:
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entrevista: Directors Talks @ European…
entrevista: Saulė Bliuvaitė
ficha de la película], the debut feature by young Lithuanian director Saulė Bliuvaitė. The film addresses, unapologetically, the challenges of growing up in an environment where violence, even if hidden, seems to infiltrate everything. Bliuvaitė’s subversive portrayal of the conflicted relationship her protagonists have with their bodies – both a place of discovery and a battleground – made a strong impression, also captivating the jury led by Jessica Hausner. The film also took home the Swatch First Feature Award for best debut film and the Ecumenical Jury Prize.

"Cinema is a driving force, and Locarno is its flagship," said the festival's artistic director, Giona A Nazzaro. The awarded films, works of great aesthetic and thematic power, are a tangible example of this. Alongside the winner of the Golden Leopard, leading the International Competition, are two other debut films: Moon [+lee también:
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entrevista: Kurdwin Ayub
ficha de la película] by Kurdish-Austrian director Kurdwin Ayub, which received the Special Jury Prize, and Drowning Dry [+lee también:
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entrevista: Laurynas Bareiša
ficha de la película] by Lithuanian director Laurynas Bareiša, who was awarded Best Director. Not to be forgotten are the two Special Mentions for Youth (Hard Times) [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Wang Bing and Salve Maria [+lee también:
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entrevista: Mar Coll
ficha de la película] by Mar Coll.

The first, Moon, which also received the Europa Cinemas Label Award, tells the story of a former martial-arts professional, played brilliantly by Austrian performer and choreographer Florentina Holzinger, who leaves her country to train three sisters from a wealthy Jordanian family. The second, Drowning Dry, which is also Lithuanian, like Toxic, explores the psychological aftermath of a trauma, with the protagonists each grappling with it in their own way. The four actors in the film - Gelminė Glemžaitė, Agnė Kaktaitė, Giedrius Kiela and Paulius Markevičius - also won the Best Performance Award, shared with Kim Minhee from the Korean flick By the Stream by Hong Sang-soo. Another film in the International Competition, Green Line [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] by Sylvie Ballyot, scooped the MUBI Award for Best Debut Feature.

The Cineasti del Presente Competition rewarded the creativity of two young directors making their debut features with its top prizes: Georgian filmmaker Tato Kotetishvili, who won the Golden Leopard for Holy Electricity [+lee también:
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entrevista: Tato Kotetishvili
ficha de la película], and Swiss-born, Lisbon-raised helmer Denise Fernandes, of Cape Verdean heritage, who received the Award for Best Emerging Director for Hanami [+lee también:
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entrevista: Denise Fernandes
ficha de la película]. Fernandes also won the Best Emerging Director Award and a Special Mention for the MUBI Award – Debut Feature. The awards list is rounded off by Listen to the Voices [+lee también:
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entrevista: Maxime Jean-Baptiste
ficha de la película] by Maxime Jean-Baptiste, which received the Special Jury Prize from Ciné+ and a Special Mention for the MUBI Award – Debut Feature. The Leopard for Best Performance went to Callie Hernandez for Invention and Anna Mészöly for Lesson Learned [+lee también:
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entrevista: Bálint Szimler
ficha de la película]. Lesson Learned also received a Special Mention in the Cineasti del Presente Competition, alongside When the Phone Rang [+lee también:
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entrevista: Iva Radivojević
ficha de la película] by Iva Radivojević.

The full list of award winners is as follows:

International Competition

Golden Leopard
Toxic [+lee también:
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entrevista: Directors Talks @ European…
entrevista: Saulė Bliuvaitė
ficha de la película] - Saulė Bliuvaitė (Lithuania)

Special Jury Prize
Moon [+lee también:
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entrevista: Kurdwin Ayub
ficha de la película] - Kurdwin Ayub (Austria)

Leopard for Best Direction
Laurynas Bareiša – Drowning Dry [+lee también:
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entrevista: Laurynas Bareiša
ficha de la película] (Lithuania/Latvia)

Leopard for Best Performance
Gelminė Glemžaitė, Agnė Kaktaitė, Giedrius Kiela, Paulius Markevičius – Drowning Dry
Kim Minhee – By the Stream (South Korea)

Special Mentions
Youth (Hard Times) [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] – Wang Bing (France/Luxembourg/Netherlands)
Salve Maria [+lee también:
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entrevista: Mar Coll
ficha de la película] – Mar Coll (Spain)

Cineasti del Presente Competition

Golden Leopard
Holy Electricity [+lee también:
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entrevista: Tato Kotetishvili
ficha de la película] - Tato Kotetishvili (Georgia/Netherlands)

Award for Best Emerging Director
Denise Fernandes - Hanami [+lee también:
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entrevista: Denise Fernandes
ficha de la película] (Switzerland/Portugal/Cape Verde)

Ciné+ Special Jury Prize
Listen to the Voices [+lee también:
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entrevista: Maxime Jean-Baptiste
ficha de la película] - Maxime Jean-Baptiste (Belgium/France)

Leopard for Best Performance
Callie Hernandez – Invention (USA)
Anna Mészöly - Lesson Learned [+lee también:
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entrevista: Bálint Szimler
ficha de la película] (Hungary)

Special Mentions
Lesson Learned - Bálint Szimler
When the Phone Rang [+lee también:
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entrevista: Iva Radivojević
ficha de la película] - Iva Radivojević (Serbia/USA)

Pardi di domani Competitions

International Competition

Golden Leopard for Best International Short Film
Washhh - Mickey Lai (Malaysia/Ireland)

Silver Leopard for the International Competition
Hymn of the Plague - Ataka51 (Germany/Russia)

Best Direction Award Pardi di domani
Joel Alfonso Vargas – Que te vaya bonito, rico (UK/USA)

Medien Patent Verwaltung AG Award
The Form - Melika Pazouki (Iran)

Special Mention
Freak - Claire Barnett (USA)

National Competition

Golden Leopard Swiss Life for Best Swiss Short Film
Sans voix - Samuel Patthey (Switzerland)

Silver Leopard Swiss Life for the National Competition
Better Not Kill the Groove - Jonathan Legg (Switzerland)

Best Swiss Newcomer Award
Gabriel Grosclaude – Lux carne (Switzerland)

Special Mention
Progress Mining - Gabriel Böhmer (UK/Switzerland)

Corti d’autore Competition

Golden Leopard Swiss Life for Best Auteur Short Film
Upshot - Maha Haj (Palestine/Italy/France)

Special Mention
The Masked Monster - Syeyoung Park (South Korea)

Special Mention and Locarno Film Festival short selected for the European Film Awards
La fille qui explose - Caroline Poggi, Jonathan Vinel (France)

Semaine de la critique

Grand Prix Semaine de la critique – Prix SRG SSR
We, the Inheritors – Simon Baumann (Switzerland)

Marco Zucchi Award
The Deposition [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] – Claudia Marschal (France)

Other awards

Swatch First Feature Award (Award for Best Feature Debut)
Toxic - Saulė Bliuvaitė

MUBI Award – Debut Feature
Green Line [+lee también:
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ficha de la película] - Sylvie Ballyot (France/Lebanon/Qatar)
Special Mentions
Hanami - Denise Fernandes
Listen to the Voices - Maxime Jean-Baptiste

UBS Audience Award
Reinas [+lee también:
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entrevista: Klaudia Reynicke
ficha de la película] – Klaudia Reynicke (Switzerland/Peru/Spain)

Letterboxd Piazza Grande Award
Gaucho Gaucho - Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw (USA/Argentina)

Pardo Verde
Agora [+lee también:
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entrevista: Ala Eddine Slim
ficha de la película] - Ala Eddine Slim (Tunisia/France/Saudi Arabia/Qatar)
Special Mentions
Skill Issue [+lee también:
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entrevista: Willy Hans
ficha de la película] - Willy Hans (Germany/Switzerland)
Revolving Rounds - Johann Lurf, Christina Jauernik (Austria) (short)

Europa Cinemas Label
Moon - Kurdwin Ayub

FIPRESCI Award
Youth (Hard Times) – Wang Bing

Ecumenical Award
Toxic - Saulė Bliuvaitė