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Following Fernanda Torres’ surprise Golden Globe win last Sunday, Walter Salles’ political bio-drama “I’m Still Here” is picking up steam going into Oscars voting as it has now also received the FIPRESCI Prize for Best International Feature Film at the 36th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival. Salles’ film is based on Marcelo Rubens Paiva’s 2015 memoir of the same name and follows a mother and activist as she comes to terms with the forced disappearance of her husband, a dissident politician fighting against the dictatorship in Brazil at the time.
Of the film, the Palm Springs jury said in a statement, “To ‘I’m Still Here,’ for conveying the horror of encroaching dictatorship from the intimate perspective of a mother defending not just her family of five, but her dignity. Evoking the severity of the violence without resorting to melodrama, director Walter Salles captures a critical moment of history in scrupulous and compelling detail.”
The Italian film “Vermiglio” from Maura Delpero also received recognition, taking home Best International Screenplay. As with Salles’ “I’m Still Here,” Delpero’s “Vermiglio” was also featured on the shortlist for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards. Jacques Audiard’s crime musical “Emilia Pérez” was listed as well as France’s submission and has already received the award for Outstanding Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy at the Golden Globes, but the film’s real contender is Zoe Saldaña for her supporting performance.
In awarding Saldaña with the prize for Best Actress in an International Feature Film, the Palm Springs jury said in a statement, “To Zoe Saldaña, for the ferocity and complexity of her performance in ‘Emilia Pérez,’ which shows a virtuosic range of expression, from song and dance to her potent interpretation of a morally shaded character. Although her character plays a supporting role, she drives the narrative with the power of a protagonist.”
The Best Actor prize was given to not one performer, but three, with the three stars of Ireland’s “Kneecap” all being recognized. Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap, and DJ Provái make up the actual Irish rap group Kneecap and play versions of themselves in their autobiographical film of the same name.
“Proving equally authentic and explosive in both capacities,” the jury said of their performances in a statement, “they bring a fresh and propulsive energy to the whole notion of cultural identity.”
Though it still has yet to find a major U.S. distributor, the Palestinian/Israeli documentary “No Other Land” went on to win PSIFF’s Best Documentary Award. The doc has received recognition from multiple awards groups, including the European Film Awards, the New York Film Critics Circle, and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. It also made the shortlist for the 97th Academy Awards in the category of Best Documentary Feature Film.
“This film foregrounds the bond between two filmmakers — one Palestinian, the other Israeli — without sentimentalizing the relationship,” said the jury, “but emphasizing the different rules that apply to Israelis who live under civil law and Palestinians governed by Israeli military justice.”
Keep reading below to find out all the winners at the 36th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival.
FIPRESCI Prize for Best International Feature Film: “I’m Still Here” (Brazil), Director Walter Salles
FIPRESCI Prize for Best International Screenplay: “Vermiglio” (Italy), Director Maura Delpero
FIPRESCI Prize for the Best Actress in an International Feature Film: Zoe Saldaña — “Emilia Pérez”(France), Director Jacques Audiard
FIPRESCI Prize for Best Actor in an International Feature Film: Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap, and DJ Provái — “Kneecap” (Ireland), Director Rich Peppiatt
Best Documentary Award: “No Other Land” (Palestine), Directors Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor
Best Documentary Award Special Mention: “Blue Road – The Edna O’Brien Story” (Ireland/United Kingdom), Director Sinéad O’Shea
New Voices New Visions Award: “The New Year That Never Came” (Romania), Director Bogdan Mureșanu
New Voices New Visions Special Mention: “Don’t Let’s Go to the Dogs Tonight” (South Africa), Director Embeth Davidtz
Ibero-American Award: “Sujo” (Mexico), Director Astrid Rondero, Fernanda Valadez
Ibero-American Special Mention: “Manas” (Brazil/Portugal), Director Marianna Brennand
Desert Views Award Winner: “Checkpoint Zoo” (United States/Ukraine), Director Joshua Zeman
Desert Views Special Mention: “Desert Angel” (United States), Director Vincent DeLuca
Young Cineastes Award Winner: “Tatami” (Georgia/Israel/Iran), Directors Zar Amir Ebrahimi and Guy Nattiv
Young Cineastes Special Mention: “Superboys of Malegaon” (India/United States), Director Reema Kagti
Bridging the Borders Award: “Souleymane’s Story” (France), Director Boris Lojkine
Bridging the Borders Special Mention: “Happy Holidays” (Palestine/Germany/France/Italy/Qatar), Director Scandar Copti
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