EnergaCAMERIMAGE 2022 Film and Art School Etudes Competition Line-up!

Thursday October 13th, 2022

We announce the line-up of the Film and Art School Etudes Competition of the 30^th anniversary edition of EnergaCAMERIMAGE International Film Festival.

First held in 1997, Film and Art School Etudes Competition (formerly Student Etudes Competition) supports the development of novice filmmakers and provides unique opportunity to confront cinematic achievements of students from various parts of the world. Each year, a growing number of film schools submit their best etudes for consideration of the EnergaCAMERIMAGE selection committee. The winners are chosen by an international jury of prominent filmmakers and industry professionals.

The author of the best cinematography wins the coveted Laszlo Kovacs Student Award - The Golden Tadpole. Silver and Bronze Tadpoles are awarded for the second and third place respectively. Additionally, Polish Filmmakers Association will award the winner of the Student Etudes Competition a cheque for PLN 10 000.

AFROLENIN

During the Ethiopian civil war, Sergeant Dunga is a cause of terror and hate for his prisoners. One man, disabled through Dunga’s torture, dares to show him forgiveness instead of revenge.

Director: Dawit Adera
Cinematographer: Dawit Adera
School: American Film Institute Conservatory (AFI)
Country and year: USA, 2021

ALMOST HOME

Having lived on a spaceship only with his mother for two years, Jacob’s dream of returning home is finally about to come true. But as they close in on Earth, they receive word of a danger that could put the teenager in mortal peril. And with the uncertainty of his return, an even bigger question arises whether the boy is mature enough to make life changing decisions by himself.

Director: Nils Keller
Cinematographer: Georg Nikolaus
School: University of Television and Film Munich (HFF Munich)
Country and year: Germany, 2022

THE CREATURE

30-year-old Kazik recalls his childhood, when he was walked to school every morning by his beloved aunt Dagna. When the woman unexpectedly disappears one day, the boy decides to find out what happened to her.

Original title: Stwór
Director: Damian Kosowski
Cinematographer: Ignacy Ciszewski
School: Łódź Film School
Country and year: Poland, 2022

ENTRETERRESTRES

Spain, 1977. A 50-year-old housewife, dissatisfied with her life, spends her days reading UFO magazines and has a devotion to aliens. Sick of earthlings, she decides to seek love outside Earth.

Director: Lucas Parra
Cinematographer: Dani Benejam
Film school: Cinema and Audiovisual School of Catalonia (ESCAC)
Country and year: Spain, 2022

FIREWORKS

©Victoria Herbig

Following an act of sexual violence, two loving sisters plan to take revenge on the unconvicted perpetrator and find themselves being pulled deeper and deeper into the darkest areas of their minds. As they are constantly confronted with their fears, they must figure out if the decision to take the law into their own hands can be the answer to their pain.

Director: Sebastian Schmidl
Cinematographer: Victoria Herbig
School: Institut für Film und Fernsehen - Filmakademie Wien
Country and year: Austria, 2022

HANDBOOK FOR A PRIVILEGED EUROPEAN WOMAN

©Jakob Fliedner

There are people who ride a bull and everybody is thinking: wow, he’s controlling nature. And then there are people who ride a bull and everybody is thinking: wow, her boobs are really jiggling. Jackie belongs to the second category and that is a problem. An easy step-by-step guide on how to get rid of your short straw.

Director: Alma Buddecke
Cinematographer: Sebastian Ganschow
School: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg
Country and year: Germany, 2021

THE LEPER

The Leper is a drama set in 2005 that blends interviews with real paparazzi with the story of Frankie, a paparazzo with no second thoughts on the ethics of his career. That is until he meets Emma, a reality TV star with terminal cancer.

Director: Hugh Mulhern
Cinematographer: Andri Haraldsson
School: National Film and Television School (NFTS)
Country and year: UK, 2022

LION'S CAGE

To free herself from her two pimps, Klea hires a hitman whose assassination plan leads up to a tense reunion.

Director: Linus Von Stumberg
Cinematographer: Laura Morales
School: Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK)
Country and year: Szwajcaria, 2022

LIVING ALL OF LIFE

After a lifetime together, Susana has been abandoned by her husband. She is in denial and holds on to the past. One day, she needs the help of her neighbour, Gloria, a free-spirited woman who Susana cannot stand. But the friendship that emerges between them arises in Susana the desire to live in the present.

Original title: Vivir Toda La Vida
Director: Marlén Ríos-Farjat
Cinematographer: Ignacio Miguel Ortiz
School: Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica (CCC)
Country and year: Mexico, 2021

MAGDALENA

Czechoslovakia, 1971. A woman cannot shake the demons of her horrific past as they come back to haunt her and threaten to destroy the life she’s tirelessly trying to build.

Director: Michael Lazovsky
Cinematographer: Enrico Silva
School: American Film Institute Conservatory (AFI)
Country and year: USA, 2021

MARTYRS OF STRIVING

When Death wants to bring the plague to Württemberg in 1349, he reckons without the two guard soldiers Volckel and Utz, who engage him in a heated argument about plague ordinances and entry regulations.

Original title: Märtyrer der Strebsamkeit
Director: Alexander Fischer (Peskador)
Cinematographer: Vincent Eckert
School: Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg
Country and year: Germany, 2021

MY LIFE STOPPED AT 15

Sofia’s visit to a roller skate rink triggers traumatic memories, plunging her into a world where she must follow the clues to break free from her past.

Director: Nicole Mejia
Cinematographer: Seth MacMillan
School: American Film Institute Conservatory (AFI)
Country and year: USA, 2021

ON THE EDGE

Two brothers decide to take one last hike on a mountain in the Alps where they share many family memories. Yet during the ascent, Paul’s condition worsens and a sudden change in the weather tests his physical strength. As they search for shelter, it becomes clear to Felix that the future, much like the mountain, will challenge them and their relationship.

Original title: Am Grat
Director: Matteo Sanders
Cinematographer: Konrad Milan
School: Institut für Film und Fernsehen - Filmakademie Wien
Country and year: Austria, 2022

PHANTASMAGORIA

Two women living alone are visited by a young strange man whose identity and intentions they begin to question as the evening progresses.

Director: Alejandro Mathé
Cinematographer: Marcel Reiter
School: Internationale Filmschule Köln (IFS)
Country and year: Germany, 2022

SAMMY, WITHOUT STRINGS

When a black puppet named Sammy, performing at the hands of his malevolent puppeteer, falls in love with a beautiful woman in his audience, he sets his sights on freedom from his strings to live a life of dignity and humanity with her.

Director: Ralph Parker
Cinematographer: Ariano Trevino Angelone
School: School of Filmmaking at University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA)
Country and year: USA, 2022

TRUST GAME

Two lovers share unique chemistry, they are meant to be together. This is a metaphorical film that the director Sofia is making. In order to make her movie as ‘realistic’ as possible, Sofia goes to extreme lengths, even making her actor husband and the actress fall in love with each other.

Original title: Balíme
Director: Chihyu Lin
Cinematographer: Asmi Chandola
School: Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (FAMU)
Country and year: Czech Republic, 2022

UNDER WATER

The ambitious Elea has always had one goal: to be a successful competitive swimmer. Lately though, she is pushed to her athletic limits, her performance is lacking. Elea has to face the question of how far she is willing to go to make her dream become reality.

Director: Frederic Kau
Cinematographer: Alexander Gruber
School: Hamburg Media School (HMS)
Country and year: Germany, 2021

WHERE THE BIRD GOES

Denzel and Dominique are a couple who have just moved into a new apartment together. Denzel suffers from depression and struggles to maintain a healthy appearance while being on the verge of a breakdown inside. When his pet bird Maya suddenly disappears from its cage, Denzel’s fragile heart has no place to rest.

Director: Troy Charbonnet
Cinematographer: Evan Feng
School: Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University
Country and year: USA, 2021

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