The 71st Mostra del Cinema under the direction of Alberto Barbera offered an artistically ambitious programme in both competition sections, Venezia 71 and Orizzonti. The INTERFILM Jury considers both of them and chose as winner of the INTERFILM Award for Promoting Interreligious Dialogue the French entry "Loin des hommes" (Far From Men), directed by David Oelhoffen. In addition, the Jury highlighted the Out of Competition entry "Words With Gods" which combines nine short films by renowned directors. The Golden Lion for the best film was awarded to a Swedish film for the first time, "En duva satt på en gren och funderade på tillvaron" (A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence), directed by Roy Andersson. Andrej Koncalovskij won the Silver Lion for best direction for his film "Belye noči počtalona Alekseja Trjapicyna" (The Postman's White Nights). "Loin des hommes" also won the SIGNIS award. Joshua Oppenheimer's "The Look of Silence" took the Grand Jury Prize.
At the award ceremony, the INTERFILM Jury said about "Words With Gods": "We wish to highlight the Out of Competition entry Words With Gods which shows the complex diversity of religious beliefs in different cultures and social environments. The power and the strength, the ambivalence and the danger, the consolation and hope of religion are put in 9 different short stories directed by significant directors. This film is even more as a personal statement or a religious information about living faith, it is also a project for working on religious dialogue and tolerance."
Link: Festival website
Gianna Urizio, member of the INTERFILM Steering Committee and president of INTERFILM's Italian membership organisation Roberto Sbaffi, shot three interviews with the jury members. You can watch them in the video below.