Director Elina Talvensaari received the Church Media Foundation Award for her documentary "Lady Time" (Neiti Aika, Finland 2019) at the 50th Tampere Film Festival (March 4-8, 2020).
The winner was chosen by Mikko Hieta, deputy board member of the Church Media Foundation, and communications director in the education company Hyria that focuses on visual expression and training media professionals.
The motivation for the award states that "Lady Time" is simultaneously timely and timeless. It invites the viewer to pause and ponder big issues like loneliness, life without children, the perishability of everything and the things that truly matter in life.
An old lady has died with no one left to remember her. The filmmaker has purchased her apartment and everything the lady owned remained there and passed on to her. If she would throw everything away would the woman’s life disappear in oblivion?
In this documentary, the filmmaker becomes a modern-day Good Samaritan who volunteers to help selflessly an unknown person. With that, the viewers get lured into a mind-boggling journey through the time, through happiness and sorrow.
"Surely every one of us ends up thinking what will remain, when I am no more. This film is deeply touching, humane and a consoling reminder that life itself is meaningful even if the memories later on will be lost in the timestream", Mikko Hieta says.
The Church Media Foundation Award is given to a domestic film every year at the Tampere Film Festival, and is presented to the film director. The award is endowed with 1.500 €.
15 years ago, the Church Media Foundation was established by the 24 largest parish unions and the Church Council of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Finland. The purpose of the Foundation is to support and promote producing, distributing and broadcasting programs dealing with religion, ethical issues and values.