Honorable mentions of the Jury
Found&Lost (Internationaler Dräxlmaier Kurzfilmpreis / International Dräxlmaier Short Film Award) von Reza Rasouli
The jury’s reasoning:
An elderly Syrian father who cleans restrooms at a Vienna nightclub finds a wallet there one night and decides to return it to its owner in person. The ordeal that ensues leads him to conclude that, in our world, mindless obedience to rules pays off more than good intentions. Author and director Reza Rasouli has created a universal story that captivates with its simplicity. Through its bitter irony and profound humanism, it is perhaps more political than many works that claim to champion those very values. For these reasons, we would like to take this opportunity to give an honorable mention to the screenplay for Reza Rasouli’s film FOUND AND LOST.
The jury’s reasoning:
There can be only one film for our honorable mention: KLEE by Gavin Baird! Shot on grainy 16mm Kodak film, this Canadian movie tells the story of an alien in the form of a First Nations man who infiltrates a settler family. Building on racist prejudices, the ominous stranger becomes both a bogeyman and a perverted, exotic object of desire. In the finest tradition of outsider art, this scenario is staged as a lustful revenge horror, with everything appearing strangely detached and artificial. Costumes from the historical museum, an elastic penis that stretches to infinity, and an entire family that succumbs to the mysterious “stranger.” Emancipation and satire take turns in the spotlight; the alien serves as both a projection screen and a subversive exaggeration.
All that concludes in a masculine spin on the Vagina-Dentata-Myth, with the triumphant, seductive KLEE appearing as personified vengeance and a self-proclaimed boogeyman.
Topics that remain relevant today meet a fascination with 1970s cinema; once again, the beautiful analog imagery deserves mention. A strange, unsettling film in the best sense of the word, which tackles its serious themes with a great lust for sex and an aestheticized breaking of taboos.
Our Honorable Mention and a fascinating piece of horror art—the invasion of the invaders!
The jury’s reasoning:
Our Honorable Mention in the DaHome section goes to the only documentary in this competition: LARVEN by Amina Krami. Through long, contemplative shots, the film tells the story of a village and its controversial custom. Once a year, the men transform into Krampuses. They slip into the “wooden masks,” and give free rein to their wild instincts. This quiet film feels like a horror tale; the tradition has long since become a myth of its own. As if by themselves, the costumes are donned, the village girls are chased, and the “untamed” is celebrated. Krami stands aloof with her cameraman Anian Krone, overlaying the enchanted images with direct quotes. The history of the Krampus seems to have become ingrained in this place; the young people pose proudly in their elaborate costumes. But nothing can conceal the menacing atmosphere that settles over the landscape like wisps of fog. The church tower turns red; the spectacle takes hold of reality. An accident occurs, and by now it is absolutely clear: the myth has long since become reality, has altered reality, and is transforming this documentary as well, causing it to end on a tragic, unpredictable note. The Krampuses can no longer be controlled; the own homeland feels alienated— ironically, by the very tradition that it brought about and of which everyone was so proud.
