The Central and Eastern European Film Festival (CinEast) concluded another successful year on Saturday with its closing ceremony, where films were awarded and contributors lauded. Radek Lipka, the director of the festival, said this year’s festival programme had been particularly strong: a wide selection of films, a stellar guest list and multiple concerts were among its key features.
As always, CinEast’s 18th edition emphasised cultural exchange, an international outlook, and, explicitly since 2022, solidarity with Ukraine. This year’s focus was on Poland – highlighting films and filmmakers from the country – and Lipka added that despite Luxembourg City’s Cinémathèque being temporarily closed and this year’s edition being some three days shorter, the 2025 edition saw a great turnout and a very strong response from Luxembourgers.
CinEast’s guests make their voices heard
CinEast, as one of Luxembourg’s largest film festivals, plays an important role in the Grand Duchy’s multicultural society. And every year, this role is reflected in its multiple awards, handed out both by hand-picked juries and the film-going audience.
Before the awards were announced, Sylvia Camarda – a member of Luxembourg City Council – delivered a speech on the festival’s close relationship and collaboration with the government institutions. Marc Angel, a sitting MEP, followed this up with a few words on the importance of such cultural events in the Grand Duchy – and stressed the European Union’s continued commitment to supporting the arts in all their forms.
This year’s awards
The Young Talents Jury, drawn from the BTS cinema and audiovisual course at the Lycée des Arts et Metiers, were first to present their award at the crowded cinema at Kinepolis Kirchberg. It went to Georgi M. Unkovski’s DJ Ahmet, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival in January and was made on a budget of under €1 million.
Next, the Press Jury, composed of cultural journalists from Luxembourg and the Greater Region, were invited to present their choice. Commending the winner for its incisive social commentary, the Slovenian-language drama Little Trouble Girls took home the Critics’ Prize.
Danis Tanović, recipient of both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, headed the International Jury this year and took a moment to reflect on the nature of the subjectivity of films and cinematic awards. “How do you compare Mulholland Drive to Shrek?” he asked rhetorically.
The International Jury awarded the Special Jury Prize to God Will Not Help, a drama concerning a Chilean woman who finds herself among shepherds in rural 20th century Croatia. “It was actually pretty easy,” Tanović commented, suggesting that the jury were fairly unanimous in their decision.
The audience eagerly awaited the jury’s announcement of the Grand Prix prize winner – the festival’s most prestigious award. The jury, Tanović admitted, weren’t as unanimous in their decision this time. Ultimately, comedy docudrama Fiume o morte! won out. A reenactment of Gabriele D’Annunzio’s occupation of Rijeka (a historically fiercely contested city in north-western Croatia), the film is directed by Igor Bezinović and has won multiple awards in the film festival circuit this year.
The Audience Awards
Lastly, before the screening of Teona Struga Mitevska’s Mother, the Audience Awards were announced, with Lipka inviting a courageous member of the crowd to present the winners. The Audience Award for the Best Short Animated Film went to Iva Tokmakchieva’s Balconada, a stylish, nine-minute long story of a hot summer day.
The Audience Award for the Best Short Fiction Film went to the Luxembourgish co-production Sujip, directed by Gintarė Parulytė. Lastly, Rebeka Bizubová’s Confession swept the Audience Award for the Best Short Documentary Film.
Finally, Lipka assembled the festival’s volunteers, collaborators, and partners for a family picture. Throughout, the director had joked that this (the 18th) was the year that CinEast officially reached adulthood. Nevertheless, he concluded, he hoped that it would retain some of its youthful energy.
